their students and pretend that there are no problems. My experience as a teenager strad-
dling both worlds helps me see things that other teachers do not see. I am always suspicious
when students walk into school with designer clothing that I know they cannot afford. I get
concerned when a bright student misses school because her mother cannot take care of her
baby.
Every day I battle to figure out how I will help my students succeed. I ask myself, “What
must I do to get through to them and make them understand that education is so very im-
portant in today’s world?” I have my students write personal essays about themselves and
their backgrounds. From these essays, I have learned many wonderful things and some not
so wonderful things about my students. I write back to them sharing my life story. At first,
they were all curious to know my age because I was very young to be a high school teacher. I
told them I was 21 and I finished college in 3 years, because I was determined to make a
change in this world.
I always remember that I was once in their shoes. I contemplated dropping out of high
school many times, but luckily I had teachers who went beyond their call of duty. I hope to
do the same for all students. We must listen to what they are saying, not how they are saying
it, if we want to help them succeed personally and academically.
***I Hated Teachers Who Were Controllingby Jennifer Bambino
Jennifer Bambino is a White, Italian American, young woman who earned her teaching certifica-
tion as an undergraduate. She grew up and attended public school in an overwhelmingly White,
middle-income, suburban community. In high school, Jennifer hung out with a rough working-class
crowd. She hated teachers because they were controlling. She believes that if she had a teacher
like herself when she was in high school, it would have saved her from some of the pain she went
through as a teenager. Jennifer student taught in the predominately African American suburban
school district where she is now a middle school social studies teacher. To her surprise, she dis-
covered that the adolescent turmoil and alienation from school that some of her students experi-
enced was amazingly like her own when she was their age.—Alan Singer
I chose to teach minority students because I can relate to where some of them are. I still re-
member an eighth-grade girl I spoke with briefly while waiting in a principal’s office to be in-
terviewed for my first job. The girl was crying. She was accused of threatening another girl
and was suspected of carrying a razor blade in her mouth. The young girl had problems at
home. Her parents were both dead and she was living with her grandmother. She sounded
as if she had no one at home she could talk to and just needed some attention. She reminded
me of how I felt sometimes when I was 13. My friends and family think I took that job because
I wanted to save kids. Honestly, on my first day, I thought I would save all 180 of them. On my
second day, I hoped I would be able to get through to at least 1.
The most important job of a teacher is to understand and relate to the kids. You have to
be able to reach them first so they can really learn what you expect them to. You cannot or-
der them to learn, but you can motivate them to seek success. Kids want to be in my room.
Students who rebel against other teachers behave with me. Some of my students need nur-
turing and I provide an environment to help them feel they matter. I set high expectations
for my students, and may seem demanding at times, but I am also very caring. One of the
44 CHAPTER 2