3MT Contestant Spotlight | Joy Nugent

"I was drawn to Hood College’s grad school program because of their blended learning environment. I was very interested in an on campus graduate school experience, where I would still have connections with my departmental advisors and professors as opposed to learning completely online."

Joy Nugent, Curriculum & Instruction M.S. '20

Program

Curriculum and Instruction (M.S.)

Department

Education

Alumni
Graduate School
Graduate Student

Academics
Research
Education
Awards

05/19/2021

Hood College’s 6th annual Three-Minute Thesis (3MT) competition, an internationally recognized event in which graduate students use one slide and three minutes to present their chosen research topic, was held virtually this spring due to COVID-19.

Joy Nugent, a recent graduate of Hood's Curriculum & Instruction program, won the people's choice award for her talk on "Primary Sources in the Middle School Classroom." Joy is currently teaching Language Arts and Social Studies at Frederick Adventist Academy, a private school in Frederick, MD.

We spoke with Joy to get some insight on why she chose to compete in Hood’s 3MT and how her experience in the Curriculum & Instruction program prepared her for the event.

Why did you choose Hood College and the program you are in?

I was drawn to Hood College’s grad school program because of their blended learning environment.

I was very interested in an on campus graduate school experience, where I would still have connections with my departmental advisors and professors as opposed to learning completely online.

The evening and hybrid class schedules were also very convenient to my life as a busy teacher.

Why did you pick to speak about Primary Sources in the Middle School Classroom?

I originally chose this topic because I am passionate about making Social Studies relevant and interesting for my students.

I’ve talked to many colleagues who are at a loss for how to do that, so I wanted to implement this in my own classroom, but also share with others about how successful it was.

Once I did the research, I couldn’t stop talking about it, especially how effective it was and how well the students responded to this new method.

What did you enjoy the most about the 3MT event and how did you prep for it?

I never really got a chance to present my master’s thesis in front of a “live audience”, so this was such a great opportunity to share all of my hard work.

I didn’t realize how much I enjoyed doing this research until I started prepping for this competition.

When I began practicing, the words just started flowing out, and I wanted to share so much more, but was only limited to 3 minutes.

It challenged me to focus on the most important and impactful parts, the parts that I never want to forget; how my students responded to implementation, how it changed my teaching in such a meaningful way, and how I will never go back to the way that I taught before.

Any other information/fun facts that you would like to add?

This was such an amazing experience that far exceeded my expectations.

I loved that my friends, family, and colleagues could learn more about my research and what I had spent the last year working on. I also really appreciated the support, training, and preparation provided by Dr. Boulton and the graduate school department.

I felt very prepared for this, and I’m extremely grateful for the experience!

Inspired by Joy’s story and ready to #GOFURTHER in your career? Learn about Hood’s graduate programs, including Curriculum and Instruction, by clicking here.