Chris Murray is a National Board Certified teacher who teaches Social Studies at Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School (Montgomery County). Over the past decade he has taught and created a wide variety of courses while creating and facilitating a religious literacy professional development program. Chris lives in Rockville with his wife and two sons.
Seeing Dyslexia through three sets of lenses
August 17, 2021
From as early as I can remember in elementary school, I had difficulties with words, spelling, and sounds. That difficulty was diagnosed when I was in fourth grade (currently the majority of cases of dyslexia are not identified until at least third grade), but I truly did not begin to understand that it is dyslexia that I have until last year when my son was diagnosed with it. I learned that dyslexia is often genetic, that my father, a successful architect, who, to this day, never reads for fun, inherited it from his father who was never a fan of…
Read MoreSharing your pronouns: Becoming a Gender Affirming Educator
January 28, 2021
On Thursday, January 7 more than 50 educators from Montgomery County Public Schools (MD) continued their journey to a deeper understanding of how gender impacts our students. This PD provided educators an opportunity to learn from experts in the field about ways to make our schools and school systems do everything they can to allow all students to find gender congruence, the feeling of harmony in our gender in their lives. In that session, we discussed some of the key recommendations from Gender Spectrum and GLSEN. They left an impact on all who attended. I want to share them with…
Read MoreWho are American Muslims?
July 30, 2019
Since achieving National Board certification in adolescent social studies several years ago, I have felt a need to continue to educate myself and lead in my specific passion — religious literacy. One religious community that continues to face alarming amounts of discrimination in and out of the classroom is the American Muslim population. This summer I was fortunate enough to be selected by the Institute for Social Policy and Understanding to serve as one of their educators. ISPU conducts objective, solution-seeking research that empowers American Muslims to develop their community and fully contribute to democracy and pluralism in the United…
Read MoreReligious Tolerance: Teaching the Teachers
July 26, 2016
In June, educators from Maryland’s Montgomery County Public Schools made history when they completed an intensive academic study of religion. The course, which rewards MCPS teachers with three Continuing Professional Development credits, exposed teachers to the diversity of religious practice in the region and across the United States as a whole, while giving them the tools and knowledge to return to their classrooms in the fall, empowered to incorporate religion into their lessons and build safe spaces for all students. The course, which features presentations by local religious leaders, academics and politicians, began with a dynamic Q&A session with Montgomery…
Read MoreWatching Dreams Become Goals and Goals Become Realities
June 28, 2016
A decade into my career in education and I felt as though I had checked off all the goals I set way back when I was a novice teacher. I had survived the first year, while meeting, and dating my now wife. Next, I had earned a master’s degree in curriculum design and instruction and then delved into earning a second master’s degree in special education. I added to my skillset by becoming certified in special education, ESOL and school administration. The final box on my list was to achieve National Board Certification (eight years into teaching). But now…
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