Prisma is the world’s most engaging virtual school that prepares kids for the ever-changing world of the future. Our team of educators have a diverse background of experience on the cutting edge of teaching and learning, whether they’ve worked in brick and mortar schools or dynamic online environments. In our Meet the Team blog series, you’ll get to read more about the amazing educators behind Prisma.

Tara Ventura joined Prisma in Fall 2024 as an Literacy Learning Coach for Prisma High School. 

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Where are you based? 

I am based in Indianapolis, Indiana! I am from a town right outside Indianapolis called Avon. The greater Indianapolis area has been my home for my entire life. I am hoping to move around in the future and see more of what other corners of the world have to offer!

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Tell us a little bit about your background in education prior to joining Prisma. 

While I always loved school growing up, I didn’t consider a career in education until the last day of my junior year of high school. After my last exam, it dawned on me that I never wanted to leave my history classroom. I immediately changed my schedule for the following school year to include a cadet teaching internship with my former seventh grade social studies teacher. After one semester of cadet teaching, I decided I had found what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. Later, I obtained my Bachelor’s in History and my Master’s in Secondary Education. After obtaining my Bachelor’s, I worked in a public high school teaching World History and AP Human Geography.

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What is your favorite aspect of being a learning coach at Prisma?

Being a part of the community! I love the culture at Prisma. The learners, their parents, and my fellow coaches are the reason Prisma is so fantastic. Coaches at Prisma truly care about their learners, whether they’re having a good day or a bad day. We are all here to get to know learners, celebrate them when they’re up, and pick them up when they’re down. It’s a big family where everyone is cheering each other on, no matter the obstacles. Prisma is a judgement-free school where everyone is accepted how they come. I wouldn’t trade that positivity and connection for the world.

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At Prisma High School, we focus on mastery-based learning, driven by feedback and revision instead of traditional grades. How do you approach giving feedback on writing to learners?

Encouragement, encouragement, encouragement! What makes literacy so special is its subjectivity. It's a firm belief of mine that every learner has valuable things to say. When we are able to successfully convey our thoughts, ideas, and passions in writing, that is worthy of praise. My hope is that learners step away from their feedback feeling positive about both what they have written and my response, and are feeling encouraged before writing some more! 

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Connected to the last question, what effect does it have on learners when you encourage them to focus on revision? 

I’m constantly amazed at how well our learners implement revisions based on feedback! Right now we are practicing writing poetry, and it's been incredible to watch learners consistently elevate their poems with each passing week. Reflection in learning pushes learners to sit with a subject longer and wonder what more there is to know, resulting in a more in depth understanding of the content. On top of that, when we ask learners to receive feedback and revise accordingly, we are modeling the modern workforce, further preparing learners for their futures.

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What is one skill you believe all kids should learn to prepare for the world of the future?

We live in odd times. Our world is digitizing quickly and new technologies such as AI are already beginning to revolutionize the workforce as we know it. The leaders, innovators, and poets of tomorrow will all need to be well-versed critical thinkers; able to question, analyze, and dream up new possibilities.

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What do you like to learn about, or what is something new you learned recently? 

I’m still obsessed with my summer vacation (which was full of learning!). I left the United States for the first time over the summer and had the most amazing three weeks in Mexico and a handful of countries in western Europe! I visited Mayan ruins, the Anne Frank House, the beaches of Normandy, and so much more. It was unreal to go to all of these places after learning and teaching about them for so long! It was a full-circle moment on my own journey as a lifelong learner. It was extra special because I was able to rope my mom into coming to Europe with me!

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