Welcome to Dr. Makala's Webpage!

WELCOME!!!!!!!!!!!
 
BIENVENIDO!!! - Spanish
Добро пожаловать!!! -  (Dobro pozhalovat`!) Russian
Irasshaimase!!! – いらっしゃいませ Japanese

Bienvenue !!! - French

    We are thankful for a great term last semester! I am excited for 2024 and look forward to a  peaceful and productive rest of the year. Cheers!!!!!
 
  This is my fifth year as an educator at Thomson High School (THS). I will be teaching environmental science this semester January - May 2024). I have previously taught forensic science,  biology and supervised an edgenuity credit recovery class in algebra, and geometry concepts, E 9/10th grade lit/comp, chemistry and biology. I am also interested in anatomy, physiology, slavic languages (Russian and Ukrainian), and economics / business studies.
 
  My Schedule for the Summer: August - December (2023) Semester:
 

1st Period

Planning

2nd Period

Environmental Science

3rd Period

Environmental Science

4th Period

Environmental Science

 

  I am married and have three girls. The oldest is a Doctor (Pediatrics) taking a fellowship in psychiatry at Medical college of Georgia, Augusta University. The second is a Dental Medical Doctor / Surgeon , Tufts University Dental school in Boston and taking  dental residence in Arizona. Our last born is a freshman in  the school of Pharmacy at the university of Georgia in Athens. "Gooo Dawgs! Sic'Em! Woof! Woof! Woof!"

 

   Before joining the faculty and staff at THS, I have acquired over twenty-five years of versatile management and administrative experience in research, education, and administration programs and or projects leading to drug therapy discoveries in Sickle Cell and  Leishmania diseases. Specifically, as an Augusta University faculty member, I planned, prioritized, and conducted immunology, blood disorders, Diabetes, and infectious diseases research in an international setting (South, Central, and Eastern Africa, UK, Japan, US)  yielding universal reputation as a subject matter expert (SME) and resulting in many international peer-reviewed research publications:

 

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/?term=makala+L

 

and several book chapters.

 

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/278652120_The_Hemoglobin_Regulatory_Regions

 

https://augusta.openrepository.com/handle/10675.2/315968

 

Additionally, I incorporated “out of the box” thinking while maximizing productivity and performance and eagerly embraced the concept of sharing knowledge and experiences for the betterment of others. 

 

Graduation Year

Degree (Major)

Institution

1996

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
(Mucosal Immunology)

University of Bristol; Bristol, England, UK

1988

Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) 
Master of Veterinary Science (MVSc)

National Agricultural University of the Ukraine, Kiev, Ukraine, USSR

2009

Master of Business Administration (MBA) 

Augusta State University, Augusta GA, US

2022

Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT)

Augusta University, Augusta GA, US

*None-US Degrees verified by Joseph Silny and Associates.

 

   I enjoy teaching because it allows me to interact with students and is a logical extension of the research I have accomplished. I have learned that students must meet an instructor half-way to reaching their goals as a student. My goal as an educator is to encourage all students to actively participate in-class activities.

 

  My philosophy on teaching and student evaluation are to give students many opportunities to demonstrate what they have learned instead of what they do not know. This allows me to identify students who are having problems in class, and ensure that such students would have the opportunity for extra-help. Furthermore, my overall teaching philosophy is based  on two principles which are supported extensively in the published literature, namely that:

 

(a) active student learning strongly influences student-learning outcomes, and 

(b) assessment procedures strongly influence student acquisition of knowledge

 

Contact Information:

 

The best ways to contact me are:

  • Email: makalal@mcduffie.k12.ga.us
  • Google classroom / Remind: (see the codes to the right of this page)
  • You may also call the school at 706-986-4200.  However, you will receive the most immediate response from email and/or Google classroom / Remind.

 

Classroom Expectations:

  1. Be Respectful
  2. Be Responsible
  3. Be Ready to Learn

   My classroom is a community. First and foremost, I value the addition of every voice, unique perspective, and the rights of each individual to learn. I believe in protecting that community. Therefore, we will abide by the THS Student Handbook and we will exceed expectations. But, more importantly, we will protect each other's right to a safe space to be heard and a safe learning environment.

 

Discipline Philosophy:

  1. Talk to the student
  2. Talk to the parent
  3. Detention
  4. Conference/Referral
 
WELCOME VIDEO!
 
 

Posts

Google Classroom Codes 2023 Summer Semester:
 
Environmental Science 2(A)
2nd Period - uydimgb
 
S Environmental Science 3(A) & Environmental Science 3(A) 
3rd Period- ui6nrew
 
S Environmental Science 4(A)
4th Period- jid6k2k
 
 
Homeroom 11 - 5 (A)
jarzekm