By Maxine Smith
This past Monday, I had the pleasure of meeting Señora Vazquez, who teaches honors Spanish three, AP Spanish Language and Culture, and AP Spanish Literature and Culture.
We met in the Language department, and then headed to w a quiet alcove to talk.
Señora Vazquez spent most of her summer training and preparing for her first “official” year at Lovett. She did some AP Literature training and then spent ten days grading AP Spanish exams. Then, she headed to Spain for some more training for another AP class. At the end of her trip to Spain, she was able to visit with her family and go to the beach.
Last year, Señora Vazquez filled in for Ms. Mitchell halfway through the semester., “It was a crazy semester,” Señora Vazquez said. She explained that it was probably one of the hardest things she’s done. “This is my 14th year teaching, and that was probably one of the hardest,” she said.
Starting new anywhere is arduous, but starting somewhere new and half way through the semester is even more challenging, especially when it came to AP Language. “For AP, there’s a very set schedule you have to follow,” se said.
Señora Vazquez is excited to do things at a slower and more efficient pace this year as she won’t have to race to catch up most of the year. She hopes that her students will have more room to learn this year since she will have more time. “I want my students to learn and have fun while learning,” said Senora Vazquez. She wants to try and make her classes more dynamic and exciting.
When I asked Senora Vazquez what her fears were, she said, “I don’t feel like fear is the correct word. I think challenges is probably a better word,” she added, “Teaching two AP classes is not easy.” She knows she will have a lot of grading and work, but she said she “takes pride in the fact that students want to continue learning.”
When I asked her how she felt on her own first day of high school, she said she felt small. “I was scared but also excited and nervous,” Señora Vazquez said.
Though her first day of the school year as a teacher is a different feeling, she said, “It brings me back to my own experience.” Whenever anyone asks her why she teaches, she says, “Because of my own experiences.” She wants to improve what she saw could be better as a student. “By being a teacher, you can choose to make it different,” she said. Señora Vazquez remembers the classes she didn’t like and some that she thought were boring; now, she is trying to make her classes different from those unpleasant experiences. .
