The Heart of Teachers
Diana Arenas
What is the best part of your job?
Working with the kinds and getting to know them as individuals.
Is teaching what you thought it would be?
No not at all. When you are in college you focus on teaching the kids but in reality there’s more to that. You don’t think about what kids come to school with, their issues at home and etc. So you don’t get taught that in college and I think that’s the hardest part. It’s not really what they learn it’s that they are little humans so they deal with all of this.
At what point did you decide that you wanted to be a teacher?
I remember when I was seven years old and I would act out school with my cousins. Although in middle school I decided to go for nursing but it just didn’t work out. So I decided to go back to teaching and I can’t see myself doing anything else.
What is the best and worst experience that you’ve have so far?
I can tell you more best experiences than bad. I think the worst is when kids come in and tell you what they are dealing with. As far as the best it’s like every day. You see it more when you’re absent and you come back the next day and they miss you. They see you as a remodel and that is the best.
What are the hopes for the generation to come?
A lot of kids are smart with everything especially with technology. So basically being allowed to make mistakes as long as you correct them. There is this saying that the student knows more than the teachers. I really believe in that because sometimes I don’t know things that the students will know. Just setting that in the classroom, where the teachers also make mistakes.
Alejandra Casiano
What is the best part of your job?
Knowing new students every year.
Is teaching what you thought it would be?
It’s a little bit more stressful.
At what point did you decide that you wanted to be a teacher?
When I was in 11th grade I met a teacher that was very patient and dedicated. I was like no, I want to be like her.
What is the best and worst experience that you’ve have so far?
My best is moving form a 5th and 6th grade classroom to a 3rd grade classroom. Just working with younger kids.
My worst experience is working with a classroom where parents don’t help. As well as kids who don’t care about education, and you get frustrated, so you try to do your best. I wanted to give an impact to those kids but I feel like I didn’t do that.
What are your hopes for the generation to come?
For them to have more Spanish resources for bilingual education. As well as teachers to be more open minded about using technology in the classroom, because that’s where we are headed.
Wendy Morales
What is the best part of your job?
I think the best part is when you see students learning. When they get that light in their face because they understand. I believe it’s the most rewarding thing.
Is teaching what you thought it would be?
No, definitely not. Its two separate worlds from theory and the actual reality. In school they teach you one thing and in reality you just have to act and do it. Then wish for the best.
At what point did you decide that you wanted to be a teacher?
I was pregnant with my 4th child and I was volunteering because the teachers would always complain about my son misbehaving. So I decided to go and see what was going on. At first I was only there for half an hour then it turned into an hour. Pretty soon I was there all day Monday- Friday. I became good friends with the teacher. So I really liked the environment in the classroom.
What is the best and worst experience that you’ve have so far?
The best is having a connection with students and having an impact in their lives.
The worst would be dealing with certain parents. I find it difficult to face that part in my career. As well as dealing with certain attitudes, the work, the testing.
What are your hopes for the generations to come?
For them to be independent. That they want to be curious and want to learn. Lately they just want the answer and I want that to stop. They find learning boring and I want them to find fun in it. I was curious when I was in school, I wanted to learn. Now students just think that they are doing you a favor if they learn something. So I really want that to go away and from them to get that curiosity back since its dead at the moment.
Bertrand Perdomo
What is the best part of your job?
The best part of my job is my students. They are all participants, they all want to learn and become better scholars.
Is teaching what you thought it would be?
I thought teaching would involve being able to just teach the content, but in reality you have to teach it differently. Since everyone does have their own way of learning. They have different backgrounds and habits. So no it’s not the way I imagined it, However I didn’t know what to expect but for 3rd grade I really had to learn what it was going to be like.
At what point did you decide that you wanted to be a teacher?
I was in my freshman year in college. I taught throughout college Algebra 1 with 8th grade students but It didn’t work out. So I worked a different job for two years until the opportunity arose for me to get a teaching career in NM. So I moved from Las Angeles and started teaching 3rd grade.
What is the best and worst experience that you’ve have so far?
The worst was when I had a behavior student. I was afraid that he was hurting himself and I was really concerned about him. It took time to figure him out. There was a moment when I had to carry him out of my classroom. Although help usually comes, but that day it didn’t come in time, so I had to carry him. It may have not been the best idea, but it was what was needed at that time. Not just for his safety but for the rest of the students in my class.
The best was me giving back to my community. As a young Latino male I think it’s very important that these children get to see that. The good days are that the kids see that I am a good example. That my kids see that I look like them and that they look like me so It helps them to want to learn and excel. So that they can graduate and go to college. The good days are when they are paying attention and have great focus.
What are your hopes for the generation to come?
My hope is that if they are part of the lower class or working class. In other words, if they are growing up poor I want them to be the generation to break out of the cycle of poverty. I don’t want them to have to raise their families in poverty. So my hopes are that they are able to get a great education and a good job. So that they can take care of all the stuff that they need to take care of. So I want them having a bright future so that they have a better life than their parents. I just want them to have dreams and conquer them.
Christopher Perkins
What is the best part of your job?
It’s just seeing the kids come to school in the morning or to my class and they have a big smile on their face. Coming in ready to learn and just create music and absorb the magic in it.
Is teaching what you thought it would be?
Absolutely not. The teaching aspect is fine but the paper work and dealing with the parents is a little hard.
At what point did you decide that you wanted to be a teacher?
I knew I wanted to be a teacher at the age of eight. Everyone in my family were teachers so I just knew that it was something I was going to get into. Even at an early age.
What is the best and worst experience that you’ve have so far?
So far I haven’t had any bad experiences.
The best is seeing some of the student achieve something. With them being like “oh I can do this” so I will always respond, “Of course you can do it.” So I’m still learning and absorbing different attitudes and getting to know the kids. The best is getting to be able to teach.
What are your hopes for the generations to come?
To know what music really is. Since the classical music and jazz; the original music, is dying out. So that they just become music lovers. Not just to follow the trends and what they see on TV, but to be able to touch it instead of just walking by.
Benjamin Rivera
No available interview
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