Shanda Banks Dixon has been in education for just five years, but has already made a mark at Vicksburg Junior High School, where she teaches eighth-grade science. 

Dixon is a finalist for the Vicksburg-Warren County Chamber of Commerce’s Educator of the Year award. One elementary and one secondary teacher of the year will be announced at the Chamber Luncheon in February. The winner of each award will receive $1,000 from Ameristar Casino and the runners-up for each award will receive $500 from Mutual Credit Union.    

Dixon earned a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree in biology, as well as a master’s degree in workforce leadership, from Alcorn State University.

She said, even in a discipline like science, creativity in the classroom is important for both teachers and students.

“A lesson that describes me as a teacher would be the mimicry/camouflage lesson,” Dixon said. “Students were tasked to think outside the box and be creative in their own ways; there was no right or wrong. Each student was thrilled to showcase their ability to camouflage. This activity promoted creativity and they all exposed their creativity. I believe that you are capable of doing whatever you set your mind to, and this activity showed that.”

Dixon said making connections to real-world situations is another important task in any classroom.

“Connetcing students to the real world involves creating scenarios with real-world issues,” she said. “We achieve this by watching videos, open discussions and articles.”

And Dixon said she uses a number of methods to foster the creativity and real-world connections the students need to employ in order to succeed.

“I use formative, summative assessments to analyze student performance,” she said. “Since students learn differently, I have to use different lessons that cater to different learning styles. I also create a safe and inclusive learning space for my students. These measures have led to some improvements in student confidence and academic performance, but I still have some work to do.”

And that work is what it is all about for Dixon.

“I want to positively impact my students’ lives,” she said.