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Years teaching at DeMatha: 12
Currently teaching: 9th–12th grade English, World Literature, AP English Language and Composition, British Literature, Crime and Detective Fiction
Proudest teaching moment: “Every time I manage to convince a student to read for fun or sheer curiosity is my proudest moment. My colleagues and I have spent several years building up classroom libraries full of high-interest books and trying to foster a real culture of independent reading at DeMatha.”
Teaching philosophy: “Make it interesting and relevant. Without those connections, everybody’s just going through the motions. As a beginning teacher, I focused on teaching the literature. I thought I had to know everything about a text like Macbeth and be able to transfer all of that to my students. Now I realize it’s about teaching the literacy, the transferrable skills of interpretation, argumentation, and discussion.”
Toughest challenge facing educators: “Teenagers, as well as the rest of us, are bombarded with digital stimuli and superficial tidbits to glance at and then move on. I think teachers have to make a case for the importance of an intellectual life, one that involves respectful discussion of ideas with people face-to-face as well as quiet time spent reading, writing, or reflecting.”
Back to What's Up? Teachers 2017
DeMatha Catholic High School, Hyattsville
Years teaching at DeMatha: 12
Currently teaching: 9th–12th grade English, World Literature, AP English Language and Composition, British Literature, Crime and Detective Fiction
Proudest teaching moment: “Every time I manage to convince a student to read for fun or sheer curiosity is my proudest moment. My colleagues and I have spent several years building up classroom libraries full of high-interest books and trying to foster a real culture of independent reading at DeMatha.”
Teaching philosophy: “Make it interesting and relevant. Without those connections, everybody’s just going through the motions. As a beginning teacher, I focused on teaching the literature. I thought I had to know everything about a text like Macbeth and be able to transfer all of that to my students. Now I realize it’s about teaching the literacy, the transferrable skills of interpretation, argumentation, and discussion.”
Toughest challenge facing educators: “Teenagers, as well as the rest of us, are bombarded with digital stimuli and superficial tidbits to glance at and then move on. I think teachers have to make a case for the importance of an intellectual life, one that involves respectful discussion of ideas with people face-to-face as well as quiet time spent reading, writing, or reflecting.”
