Teacher Treks: Inspiration from Great Teachers, and Wanting to Help Others
Erick Fuentes, a native of San Miguel, El Salvador, was inspired during his university years by great teachers to want to someday become a teacher himself as well. During those educational years he learned that what he wanted to do most was help others and become a role model of sorts. This is his story.
HOUSTON, TEXAS/WASHINGTON, DC — As the end of the school year arrives, I can reflect on the amazing experience I’ve been through at Columbia Heights Educational Campus or CHEC.
There have been challenges, personal rewards as well as plenty of things to learn about the way the school functions, getting to know new students and of course adjusting to a variety of learning techniques and cultures.
Located in Washington, DC, the demographics of the students at CHEC is tilted 61% to Hispanic/Latinos, followed by 34% to Afro-American/blacks, and then 2% to multi-ethic, 1% to Caucasian/white, 1% to Asian/Pacific Islander, and 1% to other, according to data posted to CHEC’s website. With a student population that is predominately Latino, the biggest problem hasn’t been to teach them Spanish.
In the school setting, one of the most difficult challenges was to teach Spanish Language Heritage to students who didn’t know a lot of English and whose native language I didn’t speak either. Another small obstacle to overcome dealt with the behavior of the students, and how parents are involved in the learning process here in the USA.
In terms of finding the best way to comply with my academic goals, a lot of training and guidance from my peers was necessary. They’ve been a lot of help and even allowed me to observe their classes, all the while teaching me about the CHEC school system. Additionally, they shared with me their experiences, including how they had dealt with student misconduct in the past.
Easy Transition to the USA
In the personal setting things were a bit easier. Since I had visited the USA before, the transition from my native San Miguel, El Salvador to Washington, DC wasn’t that noticeably hard, other than learning how to get around the city and learning how things functioned at my new school.
Washington, DC continuously offers family friendly and affordable activities, which have offered my family many opportunities to try new foods, learn about new and different cultures and discover more about American history.
While my native tongue is Spanish, I started to study English when I was about 16 years old. I had always liked languages and wanted to communicate better with other people, so the decision to study English was an easy one. Later, I was inspired during my university years by great teachers to want to become a teacher as well. During those educational years I learned that what I wanted most to do was help others and become a role model of sorts.
More Successes Than Challenges
CHEC — located in the heart of the nation’s capital, and part of the DCPS or District of Columbia Public School system — offers world language studies in Arabic, French, Italian, Mandarin Chinese and Spanish (dual immersion) as well as student exchanges to countries from Brazil, China, Guatemala, Haiti, Indonesia, Italy, Mexico, and Paraguay, to The Bahamas.
The DCPS system is clearly different from what I was used to in my native country. Here, I’ve had to learn to work based on projects, teach reading and writing, and help students comprehend the main ideas of selected passages.
For instance, there were times when I could see my student’s progress in the writing and speaking domain by having them participate in different activities and projects that the school has as part of its curricula.
Additionally, listening and participating in the meetings with my colleges helped me learn a lot, and I expect to continue learning more this coming year.
What I have really liked and learned from my teaching experience thus far is realization of the importance of creating different scenarios and evaluations that allow students to show their progress. But, I must say that I’ve definitely had more successes than challenges.
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The BTE Teacher Treks series is a collection of short stories from educators native to countries ranging from Colombia and Honduras to El Salvador and Costa Rica, and teaching subjects spanning mathematics to social studies. The series profiles their challenges and triumphs teaching and living in a new country and sometimes in a new language. (Writing, Editing, Proofreading, P. Don Pitts Twitter: @PietroDPitts) Instagram: pdonatello Linkedin: P. Don Pitts)
