New teachers and returning classes

Marwa Mohammadi, Features Editor

Returning Classes

Human Rights

Mr. Sandoval

How does it feel teaching the Human Rights class?

“It’s interesting and it’s a lot of work. I’m still learning new, but it’s fun since it’s a change of pace.”

What are your goals for this year?

“I want my students to come out of this class with a better understanding on how people act the way they act and I hope to inspire students to make a difference.”

Speech and Debate

Ms. Baker

How does it feel teaching Speech and Debate again?

“I am glad to have the class back because it is a beneficial class that serves a purpose to all students, including being A-G and NCAA approved.”

What are your goals for this year?

“My goals are to find a way to make video announcements and help the speech students get scholarship money with speech competitions.”

New Teachers

English

Ms. Perez

How does it feel teaching in a new school?

“It is very exciting to be teaching in a new school.”

What new things are you bringing for the kids?

“I have had the pleasure of meeting so many wonderful teachers here who are already doing great things in terms of education!  I hope to bring my own teaching style to that existing level of quality instruction.”

History

Mr. Suarez

How does it feel teaching in a new school?

“There are so many things to be excited about in World History and in US History that I was anxious to start the school year and meet my students. Everyone at West High School has been patient to my basic questions such as ‘where are the bathrooms?’ or ‘where should I park?’”

What new things are you bringing for the kids?

“During class, I try to incorporate current events and relate them to historical events so students can identify relevance in the material. Students are posed many questions and are expected to discuss the causes and effects of those events.”

Biology and Chemistry

Ms. Pagliaro

How does it feel teaching in a new school?

“This is my fourth school that I taught at and it has been the best. The students have been the best especially their positive attitude and energy.”

What new things are you bringing for the kids?

“I do a lot of hands on activity, a lot of outdoor activity, which gets us out of the classroom. The students have a choice on how they demonstrate their knowledge whether it is by making models, writing songs or creating games.”

Agricultural Science

Mr. Dajani

How does it feel teaching in a new school?

“It is thrilling but also scary at the same time.”

What new things are you bringing for the kids?

“My goal is to build the garden facilities so that there is more animal projects for the students.”

Agricultural Science

Ms. Ferrell

How does it feel teaching in a new school?

“It’s fun but nerve wracking to be at a new school. It’s exciting to meet new people and learn new things. It’s hard to learn a new school system.”

What new things are you bringing for the kids?

“I am bringing knowledge. I have been teaching agriculture for seven years. I am also bringing a passion for FFA and agriculture.”

History

Mr. Memory

How does it feel teaching in a new school?

“I have been a long term sub, so it wasn’t much of a big transition.”

What new things are you bringing for the kids?

“I want to bring content that are [sic] relatable to our life.”

Spanish

Dr. Olvera

How does it feel teaching in a new school?

“I think starting at a new place is always scary and exciting. I’ve been teaching for twenty years, but I always feel the same whether I’m at a new school or not because every school year means new students.”

What new things are you bringing for the kids?

“I would like to believe that I will be bringing a love for the Spanish language as well as opportunities for students to interact with people of different countries whose common language is Spanish.”

Math

Mr. Palsson

How does it feel teaching in a new school?

“It feels great to teach at a new school. West seems to be a school where most students are academically motivated, which was not the case in my previous school.”

What new things are you bringing for the kids?

“I try to make math easy to grasp for students by having good notes and by showing through examples how to serve different types of math problems.”