The Future of Education

Deb L. Marciano, Ph.D. is a Professor of Elementary Education at Valdosta State University in Valdosta, Georgia, USA (https://www.valdosta.edu). She works with prospective and in-service teachers in the Bachelor of Science undergraduate and the Masters of Elementary Education degree programs in the Department of Teacher Education.

Deb earned a B.S. in early childhood/special education, an M.Ed. in Secondary Special Education at Rhode Island College (RI), and a Ph.D. in Curriculum & Instruction in Literacy Education at The Pennsylvania State University (PA). She has taken additional course work in Italian language and culture.

She has taught at the elementary school and university levels in Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Georgia (USA). This background greatly enhances her work with teacher candidates, providing practical, hands-on experiences and anecdotes from the field, supported by education theory. Her courses include integration across academic subjects, while emphasizing how children’s literature and the arts can enhance students’ development and learning of all subjects.

Deb is as a Board Member for the Valdosta City Schools Community Resources Committee and serves on a wide variety of university, professional, and community committees. She frequently presents at local, state, national, and international education conferences, and served a three-year appointment as a reviewer on the International Literacy Children’s and Young Adult Book Award Committee.

She has led study abroad programs in Italy, researching approaches and practices of Italian early childhood education, arts, and community as teacher. She is currently developing a note-taking tool to enhance meaning-making between courses material and students’ prior knowledge. Her courses most recently reflect activities to assist teacher candidates in deal with stress relief in themselves and their students to enhance conditions for learning. An overview of her scholarly and personal accomplishments can be found at: https://nittanydeb220.wixsite.com/marciano.

Area/s of Expertise: Literacy Education, Children’s Literature, Teacher Education, Innovations in Teaching and Learning, Developing Creative and Critical Thinking, Family Literacy, Technology in Teaching and Learning, Italian Approaches to Learning, Study Abroad, Stress Reduction for Educators and Learners.