SUNNY GAKHAL

3030 Lynn Court * Arlington Heights, IL 60005 * sg7c7f24@westpost.net *

(224) 567-0431
Energetic, interactive Secondary Teacher, with an excellent mix of domestic and
international experience, focused on motivating and encouraging students to exce
ed beyond expectations.
HISTORY * SOCIAL STUDIES * ENGLISH AS A SECOND LANGUAGE
SUMMARY OF QUALIFICATIONS
* Educated adults in English language reading and writing skills by developing u
nique and personalized tutoring programs to match the varying proficiencies of t
he students.
* Designed original unit plans on topics such as the civil rights movement that
incorporated a modern mix of media including video documentaries, poetry, and fi
rsthand accounts.
* Demonstrated the ability to address the requirements of teaching special-needs
students by gaining an understanding of the student's unique situation and adju
sting the lessons accordingly.
* Cultivated a learning environment that addressed cultural barriers to educatio
n by adjusting teaching habits to conform to the needs of the students.
* Uniquely integrated technology and graphically enhanced lessons using PowerPoi
nt and Photoshop, leading to an increase in student engagement in comparison to
previous experiences.
* Bilingual: English and Punjabi (intermediate)
* Computer Proficiency: Microsoft Word and PowerPoint, Adobe Photoshop CS, and I
nternet
EDUCATION AND TRAINING
MASTER OF ARTS IN SECONDARY EDUCATION June, 2010
DEPAUL UNIVERSIRTY Chicago, IL
3.78/4.00
BACHELOR OF ARTS IN HISTORY November, 2006
DEPAUL UNIVERSITY Chicago, IL
3.40/4.00
TEACHING CERTIFICATIONS
* Illinois Secondary Teaching Certificate (Type 09), Middle School Social Scienc
e Endorsement, Senior High School Social Science and History Endorsement, Illino
is (current)
* Conflict Resolution Education in Teacher Education Certificate, DePaul Univers
ity, Illinois (current)
* Golden Key Leadership Certificate, Florida State University, Florida (current)
* Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) Teaching Certificate, The Intern
ational TEFL Corporation, Phuket, Thailand (current)
CLASSROOM TEACHING EXPERIENCE
STUDENT TEACHER January-March 2010
WILLIAM TAFT HIGH SCHOOL Chicago, IL
A Chicago Public High School that is a member of the International Baccalaureate
and has an enrollment of approximately 2,500 students.
* Instructed 10th and 11th grade Social Studies classes.
* Developed a "Slave Narrative" project using technology to emphasize imagery an
d emotions associated with slavery leading to a greater student appreciation for
slave conditions.
* Created an original five-week civil rights unit plan, incorporating the impact
on African Americans, Native Americans, and Latinos that was well-received by s
tudents.
* Spurred classroom creativity by challenging students with intriguing bell-ring
er activities that transitioned them into the daily lesson.
* Structured daily handouts that followed a singular template that allowed the s
tudents to categorize their work and keep sequential records, significantly impr
oving student organization.
* Integrated the College Readiness Standards test approach, including questions
associated with historical images, into weekly content quizzes to better prepare
students for futures assessments.
* Coordinated weekly ACT-style assessments allowing the students to practice the
unique method of ACT questioning, leading to increased response times and awar
eness of questioning trends.
ADDITIONAL TEACHING EXPERIENCE
* Teacher Volunteer, Maximo-Nivel Service Learning, Carpio, Costa Rica, November
2009
o Prepared English literacy lessons that encouraged children of various proficie
ncies to learn and participate in literacy development in both group and collabo
rative settings.
* Teacher/Trainer Certification Program, The International TEFL Corporation, Phu
ket, Thailand, July 2008
o Engaged in 120+ hours of study and nine plus hours of observed teaching practi
ce with groups and individual students of varying levels of English language pro
ficiency.
* Teacher Volunteer, Read to Learn Adult Literacy Program, Palatine, Illinois,
September 2006-April 2008
o Established personalized tutoring plans for adults to address varying language
proficiencies.
ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENTS AND CURRENT ASSOCIATIONS
* University Presidential Inaugural Conference Scholar, Illinois
* Member, Pi Lambda Theta International Honor Society in Education, Illinois
* Member, Kappa Delta Pi International Honor Society in Education, Illinois
* Member, Golden Key International Honor Society, Illinois
* Member, Phi Alpha Theta History Honor Society, Illinois