While I basically haven’t a clue what I want to do with my life, one thing I know for sure is that at some point, I want to be a teacher.
I started entertaining the idea of being a teacher when I began high school. I loved the academic environment, and I loved my teachers even more. I was lucky enough to go to a high school with top-notch teachers who enjoyed their jobs, and I realized that I’d like to be the role model that many of my teachers were to me. At around the same time, I recognized that, in a sense, I’d been teaching informally to friends and classmates ever since elementary school. I’d help desk partners with worksheets if I finished early, teachers would ask me to explain concepts to groups of students, and I’d occasionally assist my friends or my little sisters in their homework after school. So I decided to offer private tutoring sessions to underclassmen, and I, unsurprisingly, really enjoyed it, and I think a lot of my students enjoyed it too. I always strive to infuse my excitement for academia into every session.
After graduating, I was lucky enough to be chosen for Princeton’s Bridge Year program in Senegal, a program I’d applied for because of the opportunity to teach abroad. I was excited to have my own classroom and to teach in a such a different cultural context. Teaching in a different country, with a different language, a different education system, and a different student psychology, ain’t easy. There was a lot to be learned, but I’m so happy I stuck with it because of all the wisdom I gained, not only as a teacher, but as a human being.
In short, I have a diverse set of teaching experiences under by belt and a love for education in my heart that I’m excited to bring to Princeton Tutoring.