Folsom preschool teacher earns high marks

Folsom resident Marie Jones didn't exactly realize her life calling right away."I took a career test in high school, and the answer popped up 'teacher,'" Jones said. "And I thought, 'Oh, no, I'm not going to be a teacher. They don't make much money.'"But with time, she came around. For the last 10 years, Jones has taught preschool at American River College's Child Development Center, a facility for parents attending college who can't afford to shell out big bucks for private preschool. Prior to teaching, Jones ran a daycare center out of her home while she raised her own three children."I've been around children all my life," said Jones, the eldest of eight siblings. "This is exactly what I want to do."And she does it well, according to education publisher Scholastic. The company bestowed Jones with its Early Childhood Professional Award late last year. Thanks to the honor, she'll be appearing in an upcoming issue of Parents Magazine."It's the children that come first in Marie's life," said fellow teacher Sue Ahola. "She values parents and co-workers, too. But kids are No. 1. She's been my role model ever since I got into the field."It's the unique characteristics of the pre-kindergarten set that foster Jones' fondness."They make us laugh, they're so open," Jones said. "At this age, they're really, really curious. Their curiosity has not been stamped out yet."They're also particularly impressionable. That's why Jones is an advocate for early childhood literature, an area in which she's performed massive amounts of research, including her in-the-works masters' thesis.By the time children reach first-grade, school becomes much more difficult if they don't possess strong reading skills, Jones said. "We're not talking about knowing every letter in the alphabet (in preschool), but if students are in the upper percentile of the class, they're more likely to do well later on," she said. "They're pretty much set by first- grade."And it's not just the kids who are impressionable at this age."This is the time when we can reach out to parents the earliest," she said. "I think preschool parents are the most receptive."As another requisite of the award, Jones mentors college students who plan to become teachers. One of the obstacles she runs into is assuring the aspiring educators they'll make a successful living financially, she said."It is not a well-paying job," she said. "We're trying to figure out how to revamp this system, maybe over the next 10 years. I'm hoping for advocacy at the state level. I'd like to only see teachers who are highly qualified. We really do need to put an emphasis on preschool."In the meantime, Jones fills her days working, either in the classroom or on her thesis. A marathon runner, her spare time is spent hitting the pavement to clear her head after days of data crunching.She appreciates the nod from Scholastic, but awards aren't what teaching is all about, she said. "I really wish more teaches were recognized, but we don't go into the field to get recognized," Jones said. "We do it for the kids."The Telegraph's Cheri March can be reached at cherim@goldcountrymedia.com or comment online at www.folsom-telgraph.com.