Anna
Herman Badillo
Bilingual Academy |
Anna
Herman Badillo
Bilingual Academy |
What led me into teaching...
As a child, I grew up in a suburb of Buffalo and was privileged enough to receive an excellent education. Seeing the inequities in education across socioeconomic lines and within my own city, I was compelled to join Teach for America (TFA) Buffalo upon receiving my Bachelor’s Degree. TFA’s mission is to close the achievement gap in the United States for students of color and ensure that every student receives a quality education, regardless of race or socioeconomic status. TFA led me to the Buffalo Public School District as a bilingual educator, passionate for the work towards educational equity. Now, as an alumna of the corps, my passion for teaching, and specifically bilingual urban education, continues to guide me through this challenging yet rewarding work! What my current job looks like... I am currently a 4th grade bilingual teacher at Herman Badillo Bilingual Academy in the Buffalo Public School District. It is my third year teaching as a homeroom teacher. I am currently teaching 4th grade science, math AIS, and ELA RTI. Our grade level has departmentalized, which I find quite helpful and convenient. I am able to plan in-depth lessons (in both English and Spanish, depending on the homeroom I am teaching) in just a few subjects rather than all subjects. Being able to focus on just my content, I feel, has made my teaching more effective this year than in the past. My hopes are for this trip... I love to travel for all sorts of reasons, one being that it broadens my global perspective. When traveling, I can appreciate a new culture through an authentic lens of curiosity. I’m anxious to see how bilingual education looks and functions in Colombia. More specifically, I am interested in the differences between the private and public schools that we are going to visit. Leading into this trip, I have many questions in mind, such as: What will each classroom environment feel/look/sound like? What does student engagement look like? How does technology play a role in class? What topics are included in the curriculum? How do teachers scaffold and differentiate their instruction? What are the most common challenges that teachers face? How is the average parent involved in school? We’re lucky to be staying with local teachers; I hope they can be a touch-point for any questions that arise during the trip, in addition to the teachers whose classrooms I visit. Outside of visiting schools, I am super excited to try traditional Colombian food, explore the cities’ historic charm, talk to locals, shop, relax on a beach, hike, and take lots and lots of pictures. Just the excitement of getting on a plane and exploring a new place is enough to pack my bags. I am very happy to be a member of the IPDS Colombia trip! When the opportunity arose to visit Colombia and observe schools with other teachers like me, I was overjoyed! The group of fellow female educators that I am traveling with has been very positive and open-minded during the planning process. I am sure that we will push each other to live each and every moment of our trip to its fullest potential. After getting in touch with my generous Colombian host, my excitement for our trip has reached a new level. I am open to all of the adventures that this trip will bring and look forward to journaling my experiences throughout. I expect this trip to be very rewarding to me both personally and professionally. Stay tuned for my post-trip blog post!
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