Q&A

How did you find out about Teach For America? What is the story between when you first heard about the program, and when you wound up applying?

I first heard about Teach For America at a conference for Tau Beta Pi, the engineering honor society. The TFA representative spoke about the need for teachers with a STEM background. After hearing about the program, I did additional research online and decided to apply. It was a fairly easy decision. I had most of my application documents prepared since I was applying to graduate school at the same time.  I was also looking to spend some time away from engineering between undergraduate and graduate school.

Describe your first day of teaching. What emotions were you feeling? What struggles did you have to overcome that first day/first year?

The first day of school went by quickly and was a blur to me. I remember feeling anxious and excited to start teaching the students and to hopefully make a positive change. One of the main struggles my first year was dealing with classroom management. My lesson plans would go off track because of interruptions and disengagement. This got better throughout the year as I developed more consistency in the enforcement of my classroom rules and incentive system.

What would you consider your biggest success as a teacher? What achievement are you most proud of?

My biggest success was forming and coaching the robotics club at my placement school. The team consisted of all sixth graders and was part of FIRST LEGO Robotics. The students designed, built, and programmed robots to accomplish various missions. Even though it was the first year, the team did well enough in the regional competition to make it to the state competition.

How – if at all – do you use the skills and beliefs you developed while in the corps?

I feel that the mindsets and long term planning skills are applicable in almost any field. In my specific field of engineering, things in the field are almost never exactly as what’s designed. So the mindset of locus of control and being to think on the fly has helped my career. Additionally, the skills of long term planning come into play with project planning. It’s important to plan backwards from major deadlines, just like you would backwards plan individual lessons from major learning goals.

When you think back to your time in the corps, what surprised you most about your experience? What do you wish that everyone knew about TFA that might surprise them?

The camaraderie and support of your fellow corps members surprised me the most about my TFA experience. I had the belief that teaching was more of a solo effort since usually you are the only one in front of the classroom. However, the support of the fellow corps members in all aspects of teaching, from lesson planning to classroom management, was a huge help. I want everyone to know that they’ll meet some great people and formed amazing friendships while in TFA.

Anything else you believe would be valuable to share?

I want to share that TFA is not an easy experience. There will be hardships given the circumstances that corps members are put in. However, I believe that going through the corps experience will make you a better person. The lessons learned and experiences gained outweigh the difficulties.