What do you do and what is most interesting about your role here at Goddard? How do you help support Goddard’s mission?
I teach teachers and students in grades kindergarten through 12 using NASA’s Digital Learning Network, which is our distance learning network. The DLN provides quality educational content to teachers and students across the country via videoconferencing technologies. www.nasa.gov/dln. Our content covers science, technology, engineering and mathematics. I recently developed a series of lessons for kindergarten through second grade that we call “My Big Book About Space.” I also provide educators with professional development content. What is most exciting to me is learning about all the scientific discoveries that NASA makes every day and sharing this information through our learning network.
What makes a good teacher? What makes a good student?
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Photo of Erin McKinley during one of the Digital Learning Network programs at Goddard. Credit: NASA
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Erin and Ghost win a blue ribbon in a jumping event at the National Capital Adult Equitation League's Finale Horse Show. Photo courtesy of E. McKinley
What do you enjoy most about teaching?
I like seeing the look in a student’s eyes when the flash bulb goes on and they have understood the concept.
If you weren’t in your current profession, what would you be doing?
I would be an astronaut. In fact, I actually applied to the astronaut program but was not accepted. I plan to reapply one day. Alternatively, I would be a sports broadcaster because I love sports and now feel very comfortable on camera.
Is there something surprising about you, your hobbies, interests or activities outside of work that people do not generally know?
I ride hunter jumpers, which is horseback riding based on the English tradition of foxhunting and involves jumps and turns of the sort found in the English countryside. I started riding horses when I was nine years old and, after a 15-year hiatus, recently resumed because I realized how much I missed flying over jumps. This past winter, I joined a team at my stable. On March 17, 2013, my teammates and I competed in the National Capital Adult Equitation League's finale horse show.