A Bucks County Community College Professor of 13 years and former high school teacher of 20 years, Beth Tentilucci has dedicated her life and career to training the teachers of the future.
Tentilucci, 56, a lifelong resident of Bucks County, grew up in Langhorne. She first resided on farmland that later became the Oxford Valley mall.
Then she moved to a neighborhood next to St. Mary’s Hospital in Langhorne. She has been married and has two adult children.
While she lived in Langhorne, she did her undergrad at Temple University in Philadelphia, her masters at Holy Family University and is currently working towards her doctoral degree in education at the American College of Education.
Tentilucci also previously taught in Neshaminy school district for 20 years, including working at Neshaminy High School.
Her mom was a teacher, which influenced her a lot, but her “biggest influence was teaching future teachers at Bucks” Tentilucci said. She said it is important that future generations of teachers are well prepared.
In her early K-4 education class, she has the students do projects on developmental growth for preschool and elementary school kids. The focus is on what 3–5-year-old kids would learn at that age.
She runs a classroom where students actively participate and work in groups on projects.
The students can be creative, and come up with videos or images of what the preschool students are learning in class and doing to develop their learning skills.
Her main goal is to get her students a better understanding of what their futures will be like as teachers.
Tentilucci said she “is very passionate about teaching and differentiating education in college and other higher education institutions.”
She said it’s important that students from diverse backgrounds understand what their assignments are asking of them.
This could result in improved enrollment retention. The college has been hit hard by an enrollment drop as a result of the pandemic.
Her students seem very engaged and energized. In her class, she gave out examples of past projects her former students did.
One of Tentilucci’s students, Yasmine Nicholas, an early education, described a typical day in class.
“We go in, and she asks us about how the students’ morning or weekend was as well as going over important terms that the students learned from the textbook,” Nicholas said.
Nicholas added, “Her class is very heartwarming and welcoming- she connects to the students and does it for the heart to help educate as well as support others as well as taking the time to get to know us and make the time to help us succeed…”
The class projects are related to a child’s early development. Tentilucci said “the projects are mostly about searching books related to developing a child’s skill within the non-stages such as self-esteem, emotional competence, social competence, physical development, cognitive development, emergent, writing and reading skills as well as art, music and dancing skills.’’
Tentilucci gives students projects for kids ages 3-5 so they can develop skills at a younger age, and so that the students can learn the differences between every child.
Most of the classwork is mini-assignments based on observing the development of young children.
“The data the class records and collects taught us on the different types of observation methods used in our future careers when teaching,’’ Nicholas added.
Tentilucci told her students, “Separate social learning from emotional learning with the younger kids at first.” This learning exercise will help the student teachers understand how young kids pick up what is being taught to them.
The class learns listening skills for the kids in kindergarten and early learning to get a better understanding of how they learn, and what they comprehend. She gives the students a good explanation on what the assignments require the students to do.
If there is one thing Tentilucci has learned, “it is every student discovers a greatness of theirs during their career,” she said.