Catherine K. Zeek, Associate Professor and Chair, Department of Education
Degrees: English; Supervision, Curriculum, and Instruction (doctorate); Elementary Education (masters); Business Administration (masters)
Area of Specialization: Literacy

Catherine Zeek's scholarly interests focus on supporting educators as they develop habits of skilled teaching and critical reflection. In collaboration with a colleague, she developed transactional inquiry, a process through which educators read and respond to their own and others' narratives of effective practice, identifying applications to their own teaching. She presents regularly at conferences including American Educational Research Association, National Reading Conference, and American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education. Her articles appear in Journal of Teacher Education, Reading Research and Instruction, and research yearbooks of National Reading Conference, College Reading Association, and Association of Teacher Educators.

Prior to joining the Education Department in 2005, Professor Zeek chaired the Reading Department at Texas Woman's University in Denton, Texas; before that, she taught at Texas A&M University in Commerce, Texas. Her classroom experience includes teaching second and first graders and leading writing workshops for all elementary grades. She has held leadership roles in Rotary International, Phi Delta Kappa, and several school district committees related to literacy.

Catherine Zeek believes that effective teachers communicate the excitement of learning, challenging learners to push the boundaries of their thinking and skills, develop deep understanding of content, and translate their knowledge to new situations. She summarizes her approach to education by paraphrasing William Wordsworth: Others will love what we have loved. We will teach them how.