Recess Report Evolves through Research

Every school day, in addition to teaching academic subjects, teachers manage a variety of social issues within their classrooms. From elementary through high school, it can be a challenge to make sure the students get along with each other.

After teaching special education at Iowa City's Hoover Elementary School or nearly 10 years, Ann Allaire (MA '90) moved into teaching in a general elementary classroom. In her seventh year as a first- and second-grade teacher, Allaire discovered a beautiful way to work through friendship problems. She had two students who did not easily play with others or allow others to play with them at recess.

Allaire says she thought back to Professors Gary Sasso, Dave Wacker, and Allen Frank and the special education courses they taught. "They said, 'Look at the situation and focus on one target behavior,'" she said. "So, I tried to keep it simple."

And that simple solution was a "Recess Report."

"My goal was to have all the children play with a variety of friends and be kind to one another," Allaire said. The children were encouraged to play with those other than their one best friend. While playing with others, they were also reminded to continue to be nice to their one best friend.
"We had a Recess Report after the noon recess," she said. "The kids loved telling me who they played with and what they did."

Using research-based positive reinforcement rather than punishment, Allaire's class plan was that if everybody felt good about how they were treating others and how they were being treated at recess, they would all get a sticker on their Recess Report. After they earned 20 stickers, the class would be rewarded with a popcorn party. It took only a few weeks to reach this goal and the children found they were having fun with new friends. They asked to be able to continue the Recess Report even after the goal was reached.

Allaire says there are other benefits of the Recess Report that all teachers can appreciate. "The Recess Report is a positive way for children to get the teacher's attention by sharing good things that happened, so they don't find it necessary to tattle." And it is a way for them to improve their social skills overall.

"The research ideas I studied as a graduate student at Iowa helped me narrow my thinking when I have a situation," she said, "and I've found my research-based special education degree has greatly helped me as a general classroom teacher." -by Jill Fishbaugh

Jean Peterson (MA '91/PhD '95), an associate professor in the Department of Educational Studies at Purdue University, recently received the Outstanding Teacher Award from the School of Education; the Department's Discovery Award for excellence in research; and the national Group-Work Practice Award from the Association for Specialists in Group Work, a division of the American Counseling Association. The group-work award recognizes publications and presentations related to group counseling, scope and practice of group work, innovations in group work, and general contributions to the field.

Willis Harte (MA'93/MA '01) took seven of his Russian-language students from Washington (Iowa) High School to Russia last winter. He arranged for each student to live with a different family in the city of Vologda (300 miles north of Moscow) for about a week and a half. In addition to the home-stay, they spent visited local high schools and traveled to St. Petersburg and Moscow. Harte says the weather was consistently below zero and got as cold as minus 35. The trip was a good way for the students to become world ambassadors. "Some of my students spent part of their summer back in Vologda with friends they made during their stay," he said.

Rebecca Sue Kimmerle (Kaza) (BS '99) was selected 2002-03 Poca (W.V.) High School Teacher of the Year where she teaches physical education, health, and sport physiology. She also coaches volleyball, tack, and tennis.

Kimmerle writes that she has tried to break the negative stereotypes associated with gym class by including both physical and academic components into her classes. "I challenge their minds and bodies by including not only fitness, but also reading, writing, math, health issues, and technology into our daily routine."

Stacy Peterson (MA '99) worked as the academic coordinator for The University of Iowa Upward Bound Project for nearly two years. Upward Bound, a federally funded grant program that encourages students to go to college who may otherwise not think of college as an option, targets low-income and potential first generation college students. Peterson writes that it was a very rewarding experience, but she felt she needed to be in a classroom of her own. Currently, she teaches 8th and 9th grade English/Language Arts at Louisa-Muscatine Community School District. "It is here that I have found my niche," she says. "I absolutely love it-the students inspire me-and they make me laugh."

Jim Jorstad (MS '84) is director of educational technologies at the University of Wisconsin - La Crosse. Jorstad was recently selected as one of the Top 100 Video Producers in the U.S. by AV-Video magazine, placing him among producers employed by Disney, Microsoft, Apple, and Boeing. He is the featured author in the June issue with his article entitled, "Managing Our Most Important Resource (MIR)-Your People," which traces new challenges and strategies of personnel management in technology environments.

"Knowing how to utilize the technology is only part of a successful formula," Jorstad says. "The key to success is simply the effective management of people; creating team members who focus on quality, are passionate about their work, motivated, and are managed effectively to yield superlative results."

Jorstad recently received the Media Communications Association's Special Achievement in Soundtrack Design award for his program, "Running with Emotion," a documentary for his daughter's high school cross-country team. He also received a national Telly award for the program.

Jorstad has been instrumental in the design and implementation of UW-L's instructional media. One of his proudest accomplishments is the Ken Burns-type video, "The Battle of Bad Axe," which earned many awards and was shown statewide on Wisconsin Public Television.

Duane Kruse (BS '70) is chief of environmental programs for the Incirlik Airbase located near Adane, Turkey, for U.S. air stations in Izmir and Ankara. Although he is no longer in teaching, he writes that he still does a lot of educating about environmental regulations on U.S. facilitates in Turkey.

Ron Petit (MA '74) is a therapist and owner of Afton Alternative Associates, a health and wellness center in Lakeland, Minn. The therapists have recently integrated Brain Gym®, a tool for neurological development, with structural family therapy and have received good results. They also offer counseling and manual therapies to clients dealing with depression, stress, anxiety, or personal injuries. Brain Gym® is available for ADD, ADHD, and LD children, and the center offers classes on the technique, as well as continuing education courses and workshops. For more information, email the center at:

Luke Boone (MA '51) retired as professor emeritus at Northwest Missouri State University. Boone received the Educational Communication and Technology Foundation's 2002 Diamond Mentor Award.

Richard A. Ploegen, Ed.D. (MA '58) retired this summer after serving 50 years in Iowa public education-45 years as a superintendent and area education administrator and five years as a classroom teacher.

Janet Rodell (MA '36) received the Bethany Conservation Commission's 2003 Conservationist of the Year Award in Bethany, Conn. Rodell was honored for the parcel of land that she and her son donated to the Bethany Land Trust. Known as "Rodell's Roost" for the wide variety of bird species sighted on the property, the land provides a key linkage in the trail system. Rodell directed the Gesell Institute nursery school in New Haven for eight years and remains on the board of directors of the Gesell Institute of Human Development.

Three UI Alumni Taste the Golden Apple

Brian Sewell (BA '95) was one of five Golden Apple Award recipients, recognized for his outstanding teaching in the Rockford, Illinois, public schools.

Sewell, an 18-year teaching veteran, is a physical education specialist at Walker Elementary School, who believes it's important to develop children mentally as well as physically, and works to promote an environment that is as inviting as possible for children with varying degrees of ability.

He makes important links from the classroom curriculum to the physical education curriculum. "After taking methods classes in elementary reading, math, and science," he said, "I saw many ways to incorporate those subjects into my teaching."

He incorporates reading by having my students develop a physical education word wall. "We spell words instead of counting while doing exercises to improve spelling scores," he said. He integrates math by having students calculate averages, percentages and target heart rates. "We jog different shapes in gym class such as triangles, parallelograms, and octagons to introduce students to geometry," he said.
As a coach at the elementary, middle and high school levels, Sewell has always held his students and athletes to high standards, emphasizing the fact they are students first and athletes second. "I want to develop smart athletes, good citizens, and physically active adults."

Two other elementary education alumni, Marcy Ring (BA '93) and Meghan Sweet (BA '97) were selected as finalists for the Chicago metropolitan area Golden Apple Awards for Excellence in Teaching. Ring, a teacher at Suder Elementary School in Chicago, and Sweet, who taught at Greenwood Elementary School in Waukegan, Ill., were recognized for their outstanding commitment to their students and their profession.

Ring says the greatest teacher isn't always the one who does the greatest things, but the one who motivates others to do great things. "Despite the neglect and violence that often color my students lives, I empower them to value and celebrate themselves as learners and individuals as they explore their untapped world," she said. "Their glow and their magic, in turn, motivate me to become a better teacher."

Sweet was nominated by a student who felt that she provided a safe environment where he could take risks and grow as a learner. "He said he liked how he had a choice in some of the things he learned about," she said, "and this made him excited about learning."

The Golden Apple Foundation is a not-for-profit organization whose members believe that every child deserves excellent teachers. In recognizing the profound impact of teachers like Sewell, Ring, and Sweet, the foundation honors The University of Iowa for playing a role in their development.