Tag Archives: Social Studies Teachers

NJ educator Bashir Muhammad Ptah Akinyele: Social Studies teacher extraordinaire

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New Jersey Social Studies teacher and community activist Bashir Muhammad Ptah Akinyele teaches Africana Studies courses at his school. Photo credit: Bashir Muhammad Ptah Akinyele

There are many extraordinary teachers working with young people in our nation’s public schools. One of them is Bashir Muhammad Ptah Akinyele, a Social Studies teacher from Newark, New Jersey.

Bashir teaches US History and Africana Studies at Weequahic High School in New Jersey. The population of the school’s 545 students is comprised almost entirely of African American and Latino students.

In addition to his responsibilities in the classroom, Bashir is also a community activist and an active member of ASCAC, the Association for the Study of Classical African Civilizations. In fact, the respected educator was among the community activists and educators who took part in this year’s Amistad Commission’s Summer Institute, which was held at Stockton University’s campus in Atlantic City this past August.

One of the primary objectives of the summer institute was to improve the awareness of teachers in New Jersey schools of the state’s Amistad Law, which mandates that African and African American history be included in public school curriculums. The legislation, passed in 2002,  was the brainchild of two former New Jersey State Assembly members, William D. Payne and Craig A. Stanley.

“This law is leading the way to help abolish centuries of white supremacy ideology plaguing humanity in the classroom,” Bashir remarks. “The Amistad law cultivates the progressive and inclusive growth of our society by legally mandating the schools to teach the contributions Black people made to human civilizations in social studies classes and in subject area curricula throughout the state of New Jersey,” he continued.

To learn more about Bashir Akinyele, click on this link to a 2024 Op-Ed article he wrote that was published online by Patch.com. The title of the article is Stomping on Racist Education.

CO teacher Michelle Pearson inducted into the 2025 class of the National Teachers Hall of Fame

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Middle school Social Studies teacher Michelle Pearson of Thornton, Colorado, has been inducted into the National Teachers Hall of Fame. Photo credit: NTHF

I always enjoy sharing stories about exemplary educators who have earned recognition for their work in the classroom. One of these is Michelle Pearson, an elementary school teacher from Colorado. Michelle is one of five educators who have been inducted into the 2025 class of the National Teachers Hall of Fame (NTHF).

Michelle earned her Bachelor’s degree in History from Mary Washington University in 1991. She inaugurated her 31-year career in the teaching profession when she accepted a position as a fifth grade teacher at Woodland Academy in Virginia. From there she went to the Annunciation School in Denver, where she taught K-8 technology. Next, she taught at Adams 12 Five Star Schools in Hulstrom, Colorado, in 2005. For the last ten years she has taught eighth grade social studies at Century Middle School in Thornton, Colorado, near Denver.

In her classroom, Michelle employs place-based learning. She regularly provides field study opportunities so her students can learn about historic places and public lands. She also employs real-world civics advocacy projects by asking them to write portions of local, state, and national legislation. Furthermore, she and her students have worked to lobby federal legislators for funding to support national parks and historic places, including key archaeology sites in the Four Corners region. Specifically, she led her students to work  with legislators to help craft the Great American Outdoors Act, which helped to fund public lands.

Michelle’s NTHF honors includes a check for $20,000 by Canva, and an additional $20,000 check goes to her school. In May, she and her fellow inductees were flown to New York City for an in-studio appearance on CBS Mornings.

Michelle’s induction into the NTHF is not the only accolades she has earned. In 2011, she was named the Colorado State Teacher of the Year. In 2008, she was recognized as the Colorado Apex Technology Teacher of the Year

To read more about Michelle Pearson, click on this link to the NTHF.

Social Studies teacher Sayre Posey named Utah’s 2025 Teacher of the Year

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Junior high school Social Studies teacher Sayre Posey has been named Utah’s 2025 State Teacher of the Year. Photo credit: Northwest Middle School

Many exceptional educators work with our nation’s young people, and one of them is Sayre Posey, a Social Studies teacher from Utah. She has been named her state’s 2025 Teacher of the Year.

In a career that has spanned nine years, Sayre taught first in Baltimore City Public Schools in Maryland. She currently she teaches US history to eighth graders at Northwest Middle School, a Title 1 school in Salt Lake City. There she employs culturally relevant and project-based teaching strategies.

In her classroom, Sayre strives to build strong relationships and high self-esteem, which she believes will help to close the achievement gap. Sayre encourages her students to become researchers and historians in their own right. And the effort has yielded impressive results. As participants in National History Day, her students have garnered awards at both the regional and state level.

“I love designing hands-on learning activities in class and opportunities for students to re-enact or role-play history,” declares Sayre. “For example, we recently investigated a Boston Massacre crime scene before re-enacting the trial of the British soldiers,” she continues. “I think giving students the opportunity to experience history through hands-on learning generates higher student engagement and learning outcomes. It makes it memorable,” she concludes.

Sayre’s selection as the 2025 Utah Teacher of the Year, Sayre was selected the 2016 Maryland Teacher of Promise. She also presented at the annual conference of the 2022 National Council of Teachers of English. Her topic was literacy strategies for social justice teaching.

Sayre earned her Bachelor’s degree in History Education from the University of Maryland, Baltimore. She earned her Master’s degree in Education from Southern Utah University. She also earned teaching credentials in Social Studies, English as a Second Language, and Education Technology.

To learn more about Sayre, click on this link to a newspaper article about her published by the Salt Lake City Weekly.

Illinois teacher Irene Hunt became an acclaimed author

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Illinois teacher Irene Hunt became an acclaimed author. Photo credit: Bookologymagazine.com

Many teachers are familiar with the historical novels of Irene Hunt: Across Five Aprils, Up a Road Slowly, and The Lottery Rose, for example. But did you know that she was also a distinguished teacher?

Irene was born on May 18, 1907, in Pontiac, Illinois. As a young girl, she spent a great deal of time with her grandfather, who spent countless hours recounting stories of his childhood during the Civil War. These stories eventually became the basis of her historical novels.

Irene earned her Bachelor’s degree from the University of Illinois, Urbana, in 1939, and her Master’s degree from the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, in 1946. She taught English and French in public schools in Oak Park, Illinois, from 1930 to 1945. For the next four years she taught psychology at the University of South Dakota, Vermillion. Then she returned to teaching in public schools in Cicero, Illinois, from 1950 to 1969, when she retired to write full time.

Irene’s first book, and her signature work, was Across Five Aprils, published in 1964, when she was 57 years old. The volume garnered high critical acclaim, winning the Follett Award and being named the sole Newbery honor book of 1965 by the American Library Association. It was followed by Up a Road Slowly, published in 1966, which received the Newbery Medal, among other honors.

Irene was a pro at using historical novels in the classroom. She once said, “While teaching social studies to junior high school students, I felt that teaching history through literature was a happier, more effective process.”

Irene Hunt passed away on Mary 18, 2001. It was her 94th birthday. To read more about her, see this biography at Bookology.

Former child star Christopher Castile declares teaching his true calling

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Former child star Christopher Castile says teaching is his true calling. He now teaches US History in California. Photo Credit: the Downey Legend

Many individuals who are talented actors go on to become excellent classroom teachers. One of these is Christopher Castile, a former child star who now teaches both at the high school and at the college level in California.

Christopher was born on June 15, 1980, in Orange County in Southern California. His career in acting began when he was only seven years old. He did a number of television commercials. But he earned his greatest fame for his role as Ted Newton in the 1992 family comedy Beethoven and the subsequent 1993 sequel Beethoven’s 2nd. He also portrayed Mark Foster in 160 episodes of the hit ABC television sitcom Step by Step. The show ran for seven seasons, from 1992 to 1998. In 1991, Christopher also appeared in three episodes of the ABC sitcom Going Places, where he portrayed Sam Roberts, in addition to numerous other appearances. Christopher also voiced the character of Eugene Horowitz on the Nickelodeon series Hey Arnold!

When Christopher’s career in acting came to a conclusion, he earned first a Bachelor’s and then a Master’s degree, both from California State University at Long Beach. He then accepted a position at Downey High School in Downey, California, where he currently teaches US History. He also teaches political science courses at Biola University in La Mirada, California.

In addition to acting, Christopher is also an author. He published his autobiography for young adults entitled Being You is Most Definitely Cool in 1996.

Christopher once said that, despite his success as an actor, teaching is his true calling. He revealed that he finds teaching far more fulfilling than acting. He always finds a way to fill his class with humor and a positive environment, he says, and this makes his students pay attention and truly understand the lessons.

He also admits that teaching high school is more challenging than teaching at the college level. “Being a high school teacher, I actually have to be good at what I do,” he confessed. “In college it’s up to the students to get the material. Being a college professor, you don’t necessarily have to be good at teaching, but know what you’re talking about.”

To read more about Christopher Castile, see this story published by The Downey Legend.