 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
News & Events
Spotlight on Students
Martinez Fellow: Joana Chacon
Why do you want to become a teacher?
When I'm teaching it's the most natural thing in the world. I love teaching. I love teaching because I enjoy being with kids. Like my dad, I'm a kid most of the time myself. One of the things I enjoy most is making teenagers smile. They're so serious, but you know there's a kid in them trying to make its way out. I love teaching because of the literature. I know teachers don't make much, but the way I see it is... I'm getting paid for reading books and talking about them. What could be better?
Teachers change the world, you know. Through literature and through a million moments, a teacher can change the life of her students. I speak from experience because a teacher did that for me. When I was in the sixth grade my teacher, Mrs. Hass, told me about the honors program in Chinook Middle School. I had to take a test that would show if I was smart enough to be in those classes. I failed it. I would have left it at that but my teacher and my principal didn't. That next fall I was in the honors program.
It can't be said enough that kids live up to the expectations that people set for them. So even though the test said I wouldn't succeed in Honors, when my teachers expected that I would succeed(by virtue of being an honors student), I did. I want to do for my students what my teacher did for me.
Why did you choose the College of Education?
I chose the College of Education because of their focus on research, their humane approach to teaching, because their program is seventh in the country, and because UW happens to be close to home.
What do you hope to accomplish as a future teacher?
One of the things I'm most excited about accomplishing as a teacher is creating a multicultural curriculum. One of the things I hated most about school was the constant sense of alienation. Because I was in honors/AP classes, for 6 years I was the only student or one of the very few students of color in the class. I went to schools all around the country (in Texas, Arizona, and Washington), and everywhere, honors classes was for white students. Of course this doesn't mean that students of color aren't smart enough, it just means that the system is flawed. My classroom will be an oasis from this kind of discrimination and alienation. In it, students will see what their people have achieved in literature and consequentially, they will see that they too can achieve.
Feature Stories
