Christina Hayward, a nursery school and kindergarten teacher at the University of Chicago Laboratory Schools, was named Tuesday as one of this year's 10 winners of the prestigious Golden Apple Award for Excellence in Teaching.
She learned of the honor, the highest recognition given to Chicago-area teachers, in a surprise visit by representatives of the Golden Apple Foundation. Hayward is the eighth teacher to receive the award at the Laboratory Schools, which has the most Golden Apple winners of any independent school in the Chicago area.
"I want to thank you very much.This is very overwhelming to have so many grown people in my room," Hayward said with a smile as she received a gift basket as part of the honor.Her students shared her happiness as the room filled with teachers, administrators, and members of the community.
"We are proud that Christina has been recognized with this wonderful honor," said David Magill, Director of the Laboratory Schools. "Christina's work exemplifies what the Laboratory Schools experience is all about. Our teachers are passionate about their work and offer outstanding experiences for their students. Our schools have provided leadership nationally to education, and this award recognizes that contribution," he said.
Carla Young, Principal of Nursery and Kindergarten at Lab said, "Christina loves what she does.Her enthusiasm and joy for her students and for teaching fill her room. She knows how to create a classroom where children thrive and learn. She is passionate about helping children learn to solve conflicts and make problems smaller."
In making the award, the Golden Apple foundation said, "Christina Hayward feels the most important facet of her teaching is social and emotional learning. She wants her five- and six-year-olds to learn how to recognize and name emotions, to show concern for others, to make and keep friends, to resolve conflicts and to make good choices. She believes having her kindergarteners learn about the lives and work of Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks, who found ways to change the world-especially powerful since their accomplishments are so tuned to issues of fairness," the foundation added.
Hayward refers to her classroom environment as the "other teacher." She intentionally chooses to engage her students in conversation and asks questions that support critical thinking and problem solving such as, "How can you make the world a better place?" and "What can you do to make the problem smaller?" Hayward treats children as individuals and listens to their voices to identify the ways they reveal themselves, the foundation said.
A total of 972 teachers from Cook, Lake, Will, Kane and DuPage counties were nominated for the award, which was first presented in 1986. This year's 30 finalists, drawn from pre-school through third grade, were chosen in March. The nominees were observed in their classrooms, while their principals, colleagues, students and students' parents also were interviewed.
Each of the 10 Golden Apple award winners will receive a tuition-free, spring-term sabbatical at Northwestern University; a personal computer; a $3,000 prize; and membership in the Golden Apple Academy of Educators. The academy now has inducted 230 expert teachers who work together to ensure that all children have excellent teachers.
The award winners will be honored at a Sept. 25 awards ceremony at the WTTW Chicago Production Center, 5400 N. St. Louis Ave. The event subsequently will be aired as a one-hour prime-time special on WTTW/Channel 11.
American philosopher and educator John Dewey founded the Laboratory Schools in 1896 to test and demonstrate his then-radical educational theories. Currently, the Laboratory Schools serve 1,767 students in nursery through high schools.
Other Laboratory Schools teachers who have received the Golden Apple are C. Randal Fowler (1986, retired), Hanna Goldschmidt (1987, retired), Catharine Bell (1989), Jan Yourist (1992, teaching at another school at the time of the award), Michael "Spike" Wilson (1994), Rosa McCullagh (2004) and David Derbes (2007).
