INSIDE EDUCARNIVAL
Professional learning built by teachers, for teachers
While students continued recharging over winter break, Mount Pisgah Christian School faculty returned to campus on Tuesday for a day devoted to professional growth: the fifth annual "Educarnival."
Educarnival, led by Senior Director of Academics Shannon Heotaky, is more than a professional development day. It is a peer-led learning experience designed to strengthen instruction, deepen collaboration, and sharpen the craft of teaching across every division.
The day begins together, with faculty gathered in one room: Lower School, Middle School, Upper School, fine arts, athletics, counseling. Then the campus shifts as teachers disperse into sessions led not by outside consultants, but by their own colleagues.
An Upper School math teacher might sit in a workshop led by a kindergarten literacy expert. A Middle School teacher might learn alongside an AP history instructor. The cross-division exchange is intentional and energizing.
Deepening Instructional Excellence
Across four session blocks, faculty dug into practical strategies that help students truly learn and retain what they are taught. Conversations focused on how to check for understanding, give meaningful feedback, and design lessons that build mastery over time. The goal was simple. Not more content, but deeper understanding.
Rather than chasing trends, the conversations centered on clarity, rigor, and measurable growth.
Designing for Every Learner
Other sessions focused on ways to support students with different learning needs. Teachers shared ideas for helping students stay organized, strengthen foundational reading skills, and connect learning across subjects. The emphasis was on creating classrooms that are structured, supportive, and set up for long-term success.
These sessions were actionable, classroom-ready, and grounded in real MPCS experience.
Student Voice, Agency, and Well-Being
In a rapidly changing culture, teachers also gathered to discuss topics shaping today’s students. Anxiety. Student agency in an AI-saturated world. Cultivating joy and confidence in learning.
The conversations were thoughtful and forward-looking, aiming to equip students not only academically, but personally.
Relationships, Leadership, and School Culture
Knowing that academic excellence and strong relationships go hand in hand, faculty also explored how partnering with families can cultivate healthy classroom culture and develop leadership in both educators and students. Because the impact of a school is measured not only in achievement, but in the community it builds.
Faith-Integrated Instruction
As a Christian school, academic excellence at Mount Pisgah Christian School is inseparable from worldview formation. Faculty engaged in meaningful dialogue about what it truly means to integrate a biblical worldview into instructional design. Not as an add-on, but as a lens that shapes teaching, learning, and living.
Finally, what makes Educarnival distinctive is not just the content, it is the ownership. Every session is led by a current member of the MPCS faculty or staff. The expertise already in the building is recognized, elevated, and shared. Teachers are not just learners, they are leaders, and when our teachers grow, our entire community benefits.