Boston University School of Education

2 Silber Way
Boston, Massachusetts 02215
www.bu.edu/sed

January 18, 2017

I am pleased to write a letter of recommendation on behalf of Tristyn Mandel, who is applying to BU Study Abroad. I
have known Tristyn since Fall 2015, when I was her instructor for SED SO 566 Historical Literacy, 5-12, which is a
required component of her teacher preparation program. This course covered the essential components of teaching and
learning in history education, with a focus on historical inquiry, historical thinking, and multicultural history. This course
primarily focused on lesson planning within the discipline of history, as well as the integration of the other disciplines of
social studies within the history classroom. Tristyn did well in the course, earning an A- for the semester.
Tristyn is intelligent, thoughtful, caring, and hard working. She displayed all these qualities in SO 566, where she designed
thoughtful and well-organized lesson plans and reflection papers. An example of this was her lesson plan on the Sacco and
Vanzetti Trial, where she had students answer the question: If you lived in the 1920s, would you have supported the trial
verdict? Students used primary source evidence to engage in a formal debate on the trial. It was engaging and showed a
strong amount of organization and thoughtfulness. Beyond this one assignment, Tristyn has strong academic skills related
to writing and analysis, which she displayed in the course analysis papers. She has also been on the Deans List for three
consecutive semesters.
Tristyn is also thoughtful, passionate, open-minded, and embraces multiculturalism. She is the exact type of students I
would recommend for an experience learning in an international context. She often thinks about her own cultural identity,
as well as how other peoples cultural identities may differ. This was especially the case with the students she has worked
with, where she routinely designed lesson plans that helped students develop both cultural mirrors and windows. In
my course, she wrote a paper on the importance of incorporating all students identities into the curriculums in. She
showed a deep understanding of culturally relevant teaching, with a sophisticated view that when working with students
from other backgrounds, it is important for students to listen and learn about how they see the world. She advocated for
making every lesson discuss issues of inequity or help students not only understand other social groups, but themselves.
She wrote, The benefits to be gained from devising a history curriculum designed to cater to the needs of a multicultural
society are numerous for both minority children and white children; it not only empowers them to challenge stereotypes,
but also enables them to confront historical misconceptions.
Tristyn is also a leader. She is part of a group of students revitalizing our BU History Educators Club, serving as Secretary
and a member of its Executive Board. The History Educators Club is a forum from undergraduate students interested in
history/social studies education. As Secretary, she is responsible for maintaining effective records and ensuring meetings
are well organized. This included organizing an event this fall, the Halloween Pumpkin Carving Event, where she was
responsible for organizing the meeting, including getting the necessary supplies and ensuring the room was restored to its
original appearance.

Tristyn Mandel is intelligent, thoughtful, caring, and hard working. She is a leader, who embraces multiculturalism. She
has shown her academic abilities as a student in our social studies teacher preparation program. I strongly recommend her
for BU Study Abroad. If you would like to speak further, please do not hesitate. It is best to call me at my office phone
number 617-353-3924 or email me at cmartell@bu.edu.
Sincerely,

Christopher Martell, Ed.D.

Clinical Assistant Professor
Program Director, Social Studies Education
Faculty Director, Secondary Education
School of Education, Boston University