His Story
Darrell Woods has taught physics for a quarter century, first at St. Thomas Aquinas High School, then at Jackson High School, and since 2001 at North Canton Hoover High School. He calls his students “scholars,” and he expects every one of them, whatever their ability, to push past what they think their limits are.
His classroom runs on projects that sneak the learning in: towers built from straws, cups and an egg carton, balsa wood gliders, mousetrap cars, marble-launching catapults, devices that protect an egg from a twenty-foot drop, and a three-week roller coaster unit called The Adrenaline Rush. Longer inquiries send students on a space exploration, a time travel adventure, or a challenge to invent a lunar sport for a future NASA base. Artists, techies, performers, builders and musicians each find a role, so every scholar contributes to the team.
Although physics is an elective, more than 125 seniors enroll each year. A former student wrote that Woods “never ‘lectured.’ He ‘interacted.'” Parents stay in the loop through his monthly Physics Fundamental Newsletter and are invited in to judge projects and talk about physics in their careers.
Beyond the Classroom
Woods has been a volunteer advisor for Teen Institute, a student-run drug prevention program, for fourteen years. His students visit first graders on three occasions, help the D.A.R.E. officer with fifth graders, and collect letters from younger children for Prom Promise Week. He has also served as science department chair, directing fourteen teachers, and takes part in “Words of Wisdom,” a short daily reflection that opens the school day.
He earned National Board Certification in Science and renewed it in 2008, and he has mentored eleven teachers. He was lead teacher for a multimillion-dollar NSTA grant (SATURN) in Stark County, served on Ohio Governor Taft’s Teacher Advisory Committee, presented at an NSTA regional conference, and trained mentors as a Pathwise instructor. As a DisneyHand Teacher Award winner, he led a year-long professional development program for fifty-eight district colleagues, and Governor Strickland invited him to discuss education issues in 2009. He now serves on the Ohio Department of Education’s Teacher Evaluation Writing Team.
Philosophy Into Practice
Woods’s teaching philosophy starts with a banner in his room: “If you always do what you always did, you’ll always get what you always got.” He never lets teaching or learning become routine, and he aims to rekindle the spark of science wonder students had as young children. He wants them to ask “why” and “how” and never accept an answer without understanding it.
He measures his success in the notes he keeps from former students, including a Stanford essay about the class and a graduate’s farewell: “You didn’t teach just science, you taught us to love it.”
“We weren’t your students, we were scholars. You didn’t teach just science, you taught us to love it.”— Former student, now a teacher in his district
In His Own Words
“My class allows students to explore science and be assessed in so many different ways that failure is only an option to those who fail to try.”— Darrell S. Woods
“I don’t want to just teach science, but to rekindle my scholars’ innate awe of science.”— Darrell S. Woods
“We can no longer settle for being good, but must strive to excel and become great teachers.”— Darrell S. Woods
What Other Said
“He gave us precisely what we needed.”— David Benedetto, former student
“Mr. Woods is not only a great teacher, but also an advisor, a mentor, and a counselor.”— Michaele Watts, nominator and former student
“Mr. Woods possesses the qualities of an outstanding high school teacher.”— Nanette Melert, colleague
“I can truly say he is one of a kind.”— Tony Pallija, Principal, Hoover High School
“He has crafted a “classroom culture” that is a bonus to our school district. … He is truly a “first round pick”!”— Michael R. Gallina, Superintendent