ARMONK, N.Y. At Tuesday night's Byram Hills School District Board of Education meeting at the District Office in Armonk, a curriculum conversation was held that presented four high school seniors who are chemistry lab teaching assistants.
The four students discussed the teaching assistant role, which enables them to assist first-year chemistry students as they extend their knowledge of chemistry.
The teaching assistants help in classrooms and labs and hold office hours so students can come to them for specialized help with their questions.
"I help other kids enjoy chemistry as much as I did," said Brad Lowenstein, one of the teaching assistants.
"Teaching chemistry makes you learn it 10-times better," said another teaching assistant Ritesh Singh. "It's a lot of fun and bridges the gap between student and teacher."
The other two teaching assistants are Eric Appel and Dorina Cippolone.
School Superintendent Jacki Taylor said the program benefits not just North Castle, but the nation. "We're in deep trouble in this country, which is wanting in science and math. You'll be leaders who will make a difference in the world," she said.
Tim Kaltenecker, the assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction, said this is the third year of the teaching assistant program, which was started by the Byram Hills Science department.
"Ninety-five percent of Byram Hills High School students take chemistry, but they struggle with the concepts," he said. "The teaching assistant program offers peer-to-peer interaction that helps students learn the key concepts."
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