Georgia Teacher of the Year Lauds Classworks

Emily Jennette, second-grade teacher at Sawyer Road Elementary, was named the 2008 Georgia Teacher of the Year. Jennette was the Marietta City Schools’ Teacher of the Year for 2006-07.

“Emily Jennette is the only elementary grades teacher among the ten finalists, and is one of 147 local district teachers of the year who applied for the statewide honor,” said Dr. Emily Lembeck, Marietta City Schools Superintendent. “We are very proud of all our teachers, however today Emily Jennette makes us especially proud.”

A graduate of the University of Alabama, Jennette received her undergraduate degree in Early Childhood, Elementary, and Special Education. She earned her master’s degree in Elementary Education from Kennesaw State University in 2003.

Jennette is an avid supporter of Classworks, and uses the program in her class to design individualized learning paths for each student, as well as for creating lesson plans and for Pyramid of Intervention instruction.

“Classworks gives teachers the opportunity to read students’ scores when assignments or activities have been completed and allows us to track their development. This is invaluable because we can gauge whether or not our students are lagging behind or are getting too far ahead of themselves,” Jennette said. “It also helps teachers plan future lessons to meet the Georgia Performance Standards. The feature allowing me to read my class at a glance helps me keep track of who is doing what during their time on the computer. It also gives me information for students who haven’t mastered certain objectives so I can plan remediation or continual practice of the particular skill they are struggling with until they have mastered it.”

“The many different ways Classworks presents activities and lessons is extremely useful. As a teacher, it's really important for me to address the multiple intelligences and learning styles of the students in my classroom,” she continued. “Classworks is a wonderful teaching tool for honing in on the various strengths and weaknesses of students for a particular skill or concept. It is an asset for assessment driven instruction and allows teachers to create alternative activities for students to explore learning.”