myMARYMOUNT

Get To Know New English Department Chair, Heather Bayle

9/22/2015

We had the chance to sit down with our new English Department Chair, Heather Bayle, to talk about her background, her vision for the English department here at Marymount, and some all around fun facts about her life.

Click the link below to read what we learned.

Where are you originally from?

I’m originally from Chicago and I will always be a Midwest girl at heart!
Where did you go to college/grad school?

For my undergrad, I went to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (go Illini!) where I received a BA in English and a minor in Secondary Education. While I was teaching at Shaker Heights High School in Ohio, I attended Ursuline College for Graduate School. I received my MA in Education with a specialty in Reading.

I did my Master’s Thesis on the impact of Socratic Seminars on reading comprehension. My love of student-centered learning developed during my senior year of high school. I enrolled in a Humanities class where a handful of students were chosen to lead class discussions and I was one of them. I absolutely fell in love with the process of Socratic learning. We used this method on everything...the Bible, Greek tragedies, The Declaration of Independence, pieces of art, the whole gamut. It was so inspiring that we were able to look at all of these different pieces through the lens of what we wanted to discuss and what was of value to us, as students.

That one class helped shape my belief that the best and most effective classrooms encourage students to be “producers of knowledge rather than consumers of knowledge.” That’s what makes English such an inspiring subject – there can be different answers to the same question. I always tell the girls, “As long as you support and back up your claim, anything goes.”
How long have you been at Marymount High School?

I’m beginning my sixth year at Marymount High School.
What do you teach in addition to being the Department Chair?

I currently teach AP Language, British Literature Honors and British Literature. I’m also the Head of the Honor Council, which has taught me so much about the value, we as a Marymount Community, place on integrity and living honorably.

At this point, Samantha Hazell-O’Brien, 9^th Grade English and Junior English teacher, had to interject to rave about Mrs. Bayle’s amazing ability to dedicate herself to this department: “She is so concerned about everyone on the team personally and educationally. She gives 100% of her time to students and us as faculty. Even if it means answering emails, texting or responding to anything that comes her way anytime during the day or night...this woman is amazing. She gives her all to us!”

You can say that again! All she needs is a cape and she’s set to go with her superhero style!
Is there anything you’re doing now, or want to do now differently as the English Department Chair?

This year, the department is excited to have more organized and authentic conversations about evaluating students’ written work. All English teachers of all grades will meet to discuss how we would evaluate a specific assignment - what we’d look for and why we are looking for specific elements at each grade level. Our hope is that these conversations will aid our teaching of writing and allow students to progress even more smoothly from grade-to-grade. This quarter, we will begin this process by looking at freshman writing, next quarter we’ll be looking at the sophomore level, and the process will continue through each grade. Our girls continue to excel when they leave Marymount after their senior year, and this process will only ensure that they’re just as ready, if not more than others, when they step out into the collegiate world.
What are you most excited about this year?

I would honestly say that these past 4 weeks have been the best in my 16-year career as a teacher! I’m so excited about the opportunity for this leadership position. I would have never thought I’d be where I am right now – the opportunity to make an impact on students and teachers at Marymount is something that I’m thrilled about.

I’m also excited to encourage more dialogue on campus about literature. One way we jump-started the conversation was to feature current seniors with their favorite novels on a bulletin board in Butler. Each month, I’m going to call on a different grade level to answer a question about literature and feature them on the board. My hope is to encourage a love of reading and a campus-wide discussion of literature.
How is Marymount different than other places you’ve taught? What is your favorite thing about teaching at an all-girls school?

In my opinion, Marymount finds a balance between academic rigor and laughter and I cannot imagine anything I would love more. At Marymount there is a passion for teaching and for the girls that I haven’t seen in a lot of the other communities. And it’s just such a happy place to be. Watching a girl blossom into her best and strongest self and truly find her voice is what I love most about teaching at an all-girls school. I enjoy coming here each and every single day – It truly is my second home.
What do you appreciate most about Marymount students?

Oh, where do I start? Marymount girls have such a sense of excitement and dedication. They have this ability to rise to a challenge and more importantly, WANT a challenge – they truly embrace it! Their spirit is contagious . . . I love everything about them: their humor, their kindness, their intellect, and their desire to learn...they make my job enjoyable!
What are 3 fun facts about you that we can share with the Marymount community?

1.    I started attending Pure Barre classes in February, and in July I made it to Pure Barre’s 100 club, which means I attended one hundred classes.

2.     When I was in 9^th grade, I was OBSESSED with playing and watching basketball (specifically the Chicago Bulls since it was the era of Michael Jordan). All year, I only wore Air Jordans and all things Chicago Bulls. In fact, I still have a pair of my Air Jordans that I’m waiting to give to my niece.

3.     My (now) husband and I got engaged at the Inny Tavern in Ireland right after a night full of traditional Irish dancing. The Inny Tavern is this tiny pub outside of Waterville, Co. Kerry, Ireland that has dancing and live music every Sunday. My grandparents used to go dancing there so when Justin called me to the dance floor and asked, in front of my family, if I would dance with him for the rest of my life, it was memorable to say the least.
If you can have anyone read a book, right now…a book you think that they shouldn’t live their lives without, what would it be?

This is a hard one! I would have to say The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde. I remember that the first time I read it, I couldn’t put it down! I had to read it all in one sitting. I was so memorized with the gorgeous prose and the larger philosophical questions in regards to beauty and morality. It is a timeless novel about the desire to remain young; for a reader, the sacrifices the character Dorian Gray is willing to make to secure his beauty are immensely intriguing. It’s definitely a book that I highly recommend!