‘Education is not the filling of a pot but the lighting of a fire.’
–W.B. Yeats
Instructor of undergraduate and graduate courses pertaining to democracy and education, elementary teaching experiences, play and creativity, and technology integration.
Teacher Prep Courses
EDEL 100: Education in a Democratic Society
Serves as an initial investigation into teaching and the teaching profession. Participation in civic activities as a way of coming to understand children and various conditions that influence the teaching profession.
EDRD 350: Advanced Reading and Language Arts Instruction in the Elementary Classroom
Designed to expand an understanding of reading and language arts instruction in elementary classrooms. Develops practices that support students’ literacy learning and in planning and implementing a meaningful literacy program in elementary classrooms. Continues an experience-based exploration of literacy education practices.
EDEL 200: Planning for the Elementary and Early Childhood Classroom
Ties direct classroom experience to seminar content. Emphasizes integrating, implementing, and interpreting laboratory experiences.
EDEL 350: Teaching in the Elementary Education Classroom
Departmental themes concerning teaching and learning in elementary schools will be extended. Laboratory experience focuses on classroom instruction, organization, and management.
Graduate Courses
EDEL 600: Basic Concepts in Elementary Education
Examination of current concepts essential for successful teaching and learning in an elementary classroom. Focus will provide a foundation of knowledge to be extended in future graduate work.
ECYF 648: Play and Creativity in Early Childhood
The role of play and creative experiences in the development and learning of young children. Addresses the philosophy, techniques, and problems of providing creative and play experiences for young children.
EDEL 663: Understanding Data to Inform Teaching and Learning in Elementary Schools
Emphasizes the components of assessment as it pertains to the elementary school and to individual classrooms. Also introduces important assessment tools that can be used to design and address instruction.
EDRD 624: Integrating Technology in the Literacy Program
Candidates will explore many different possibilities for integrating cutting-edge technology into the literacy program and explore how technology affects the development of literacy strategies and skills.
EDEL 660: The Effective Use of Technology in the Elementary School
Theoretical understanding and personal skills needed to use technology effectively in the elementary school classroom. General role of technology in education and specific applications to particular uses within the classroom as well as strategies for evaluating resources.
EDEL 676: Research in Elementary Education
Investigation, summary, and interpretation of research in elementary education. Requires each student to write and submit a research report.
Teaching Projects
Online Professional Learning Series (OPLS)
During the Spring and Fall of 2021, Dr. Shively collaborated with a team of designers to create and facilitate an online professional learning series for P-12 educators to address the rising need for training in O-STEM. And during the Spring and Summer of 2022, a team of designers created online professional learning for online literacy.
Over the Summer of 2020, Dr. Shively collaborated with a team of designers to create and facilitate an online professional learning series for P-12 educators to address the rising need for training in virtual contexts.
Creative Teaching Project
Dr. Shively is training elementary teacher candidates to teach in online learning environments as a part of their field experience prior to student teaching. This experience will better prepare candidates to design learning environments when teaching online/virtually.
Professor Garfield
The new Professor Garfield website, written and designed by a team of Emerging Media Design and Development students from Ball State University, offers interactive video lessons on digital literacy starring Garfield the cat, himself! This website gives teachers free access to learning tools and games for teaching digital literacy in their own classrooms. The project and its findings were presented at the 2016 International Society for Technology and Education conference and the 2018 World Conference on E-Learning.
P-12 Educators
Student Testimonials
Thank you so much this semester for all of the respect and support that you have provided for me and the rest of my colleagues this semester. Throughout the EDEL/EDRD 350 course, you have provided me with so much knowledge for me to grow further into my education in our elementary education department. Through all of this pandemic, I know how much in-time decision-making you were required to do and I hope I can be as quick on my feet as you were. Have a great summer!
Rising Student Teacher, Spring 2020
I just wanted to say thank you for being an excellent professor and helping me through this part of the year (midterms)! I hope you have a wonderful spring break and I look forward to the rest of the year!
Rising Sophomore, Spring 2018
I just wanted to reach out and say thank you for your support these past couple years. You’re definitely an amazing model of what a teacher should be. I hope you have an amazing summer!
Rising Junior, Spring 2019
Thank you for continuing to be a professor with passion. Thank you for encouraging me when I feel like I could not do it. The best thing about you as a professor is that you believe in me and that taught me to believe in myself. Thank you.
Graduate Student, Spring 2019
I just wanted to thank you for this awesome semester! Both the class EDEL 100 and my service learning at Burris really impacted me and my desire to be a teacher. I really appreciate how you were always there and available to me to answer my questions. Not all teachers go out of their way to help their students succeed, and I really appreciate it that you did. Like I said, I just wanted to let you know that I was deeply impacted by this course and my service learning, and I wanted to say thank you for all you did to help me to be successful and to grow as a person and a future teacher.
Rising Sophomore, Spring 2016
Kate Shively, PhD 