Anne Marie Bergen, a Cal Poly biological sciences teacher in residence, received recognition for her work in teaching K-12 science this month by winning the Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching.
The annual award went out to 85 teachers across the U.S. states and territories, honoring teachers selected by a panel of educators, scientists and mathematicians.
The nomination process includes being filmed teaching a class and submitting an application at the state level. Up to three teachers are selected from each state to be sent to the national level.
Bergen said she was very excited and honored when she found out she won the award.
“Sometimes it’s just amazing to stop and take stock of what you do,” Bergen said. “I think it gives me a chance to stop for a moment … and just think about the students I’ve taught and the parents and colleagues I’ve worked with.”
Winners get the award and a trip to Washington, D.C. for a ceremony and a chance to meet congressional members and President Barack Obama. Bergen said she loves D.C. and is looking forward to meeting the other teachers who’ve won, as well as congressional members. Bergen will receive an all expense-paid trip, as well as $10,000 from the National Science Foundation. She doesn’t know what she will do with the award money yet.
“I think it’ll just support my scientific activities,” she said. “I’m a learner. I see that as money for me to fund my continued science learning.”
She said she thinks she was selected because her strength lies in having students take an active role in their own learning. Her life’s work is to connect people with the world around them and know what is happening “behind the scenes,” like the photosynthesis going on in a leaf, she said.
“It’s not about memorizing facts or reading and answering questions,” Bergen said. “It’s about actually doing science and having opportunities to work in teams, to talk about your results and to draw some conclusions. I would say the active learning component probably was a part of it, plus the detail that I put into creating a lesson.”
Bergen, a Cal Poly alumna, originally was a liberal studies major, but transferred to biological sciences because of her love of the natural world. She decided to get back into teaching after an internship with the Foothill Horizons Outdoor School.
“As soon as I started to lead hikes of sixth graders for a week, I was totally connected to being with them, to leading them on hikes and getting them interacting with the natural world,” she said. “That was a huge pivotal point for me.”
Her office walls are filled with photographs of past and current students, from elementary school to college, who have participated in her projects and classes. Bergen taught for 24 years at the elementary school level in Oakdale, Calif. and started teaching at Cal Poly last fall. She enjoys teaching elementary school students because of their curiosity, energy, willingness to try different things and their love of life. Bergen also enjoys teaching college age students, and she gets to teach content she hasn’t been involved with for many years.
“When you have to take something and think about how to explain it or present it to someone else, it’ll go deeper inside of you,” she said.
The presidential award isn’t the only recognition she has received over the years. She was Cal Poly’s 2008 Honored Alumna, the recipient of the 2006 Amgen Award for Science and Teaching Excellence, the 2003 California’s Teacher of the Year and the 2002 Stanislaus County Teacher of the Year.
Barbara Shook, the assistant superintendent of curriculum & instruction/technology at Oakdale Joint Unified School District, has worked with Bergen for approximately a decade. She said she is very pleased to see Bergen receive the award because she said Bergen is an amazing teacher who is focused on bringing science into the elementary school curriculum.
“She put in so many hours over the years for our students,” Shook said.
Cal Poly College of Science and Mathematics dean Phil Bailey also said he is proud of Bergen’s achievements and is honored to have her on staff. She is currently helping them strengthen their own curriculum by reworking courses to better suit the needs of students who are planning to be elementary school teachers.
“The reason we’re so proud of her is because of her focus, expertise and drive,” he said. “She has really made a difference.”