“ This might be the first time you are interacting with high school students since you were one, and it’s an eye-opening experience. They aren’t little kids though. I think the most interesting part of this was seeing them develop and take on academic interests that shaped the way they saw themselves. I think this is the age that I realized I really wasn’t so much of a history person, but I loved biology and English. Throughout the semester, I watched the students feel more confident in saying what they liked and didn’t like. One student really enjoyed learning about genetics because they liked doing math. Another liked learning about emotions because they were interested in psychology. They are at this stage where they are just starting to figure out what makes them tic and we get to bring them all these new concepts and ways of thinking about science.”
“Sometimes I feel as though that when I explain a concept, the students don’t really understand what I’m saying. However, in these instances, I revert back to Mr. Horn’s strategy: I switch it up. I find new analogies, new ways of explaining that are sometimes wacky but still logical, and it does seem to work and engage the students. Thus, I intend to learn and grow alongside the students.”
