The Seventh-grade Math Teacher Who Guided My Biology Education by Ava

The Seventh-grade Math Teacher Who Guided My Biology Education by Ava - March 2023 Scholarship Essay

The person that has made a positive impact on my education was my seventh-grade algebra teacher. Although sounding insignificant being that I had this educator over five years ago, they have provided me with opportunities through an extracurricular activity that has led me to my career path and my future education goals. This was achieved through their constant support and countless opportunities helping me to expand on an interest I never would’ve known without them.
Now attending college, I reminisce on my memories from seventh grade and see the maturity level we all possessed. There wasn’t a lot of it to work with, and seeing that gives me respect for the patience our teachers took to help us learn. This teacher in particular would always make sure my classmates and I had more than the necessary resources to succeed. He would be preparing us for the lesson at hand, but for the impending life lessons, we’d encounter. The lectures would open with material such as calculating a tip. The lesson would be followed by a real-life application with tips and tricks that I still find useful today. With this material in particular, it was followed by the importance of the common saying of treating others how you want to be treated. In conclusion, there would be an added conversation, in this instance, the gratifying feeling you can receive from going out and making money, the sense of independence you can gain, and the first steps into adulthood. These examples following lessons led me to explore opportunities that would provide me with real-life connections. Starting a job at 14 at a retirement home where I still work today. This has allowed me to make connections with people who are interested in my hobbies and speak with elderly residents that have gone through higher education systems, and even my field of study.
What do you want to be when you grow up? The classic examples of a doctor, marine biologist, or a nurse were always an option, but ever since this teacher invited me to a Science Olympiad meeting after school one day, this set out my education path. Science Olympiad is an extracurricular activity that can be described as an academic track meet. With a rotating schedule of 23 events, there is something for anyone to participate in that fits their strong suits, whether it’s building or testing. This math teacher was the head coach of this extracurricular activity. That is where I was introduced to forensic science and my fascination began. Through the events I participated in, I was solving crimes using skills I practiced each day after school. I was working with solutes and solvents, doing burn tests and chromatography, and experimenting with the way things react. All the resources I could imagine were provided by my math teacher and now coach, who always wanted me to succeed. There was constant support no matter where I placed in the competition, and always pushed me to be the best I could be academically. As I reached the end of the competition season and neared our eighth-grade graduation, the academic value never stopped. Personally, math has never been my strong suit, and even without him being my teacher at the time, the convenience to receive help was always still available.
While in high school, the Science Olympiad program was under a new coach, and with the events being more advanced, I continued with my passion and enjoyed the forensic topics even more. I missed the dynamic our middle school team had, and I had thought I was leaving that all because I was moving on to becoming a freshman at the high school. That teacher reached out to me almost immediately, inviting me to come down to the middle school during their practices to help the other kids participating in my past events. I was ecstatic that I was able to share the knowledge that had been discovered and guided towards me. It was a great feeling knowing that someone believed in me to help the younger kids with something I found truly interesting. Throughout my next four years of high school, and even some time over breaks during my freshman year of college, I continued to help share my enthusiasm while having someone praise me so highly for simply doing what they had introduced me to.
Even as a math teacher, he was able to get me in contact with professors at universities which he had gotten to know through places where competitions were held. He would mention my name and give a short introduction and from there, I met professors who then assisted me in discovering my college goals. Over the past 15 years, from preschool through freshman year of college, I am beyond thankful for anyone who has ever taken the time to teach me the things I know now. The most impactful will always be my seventh-grade algebra teacher who not only taught me the required material but taught me how to implement them into my life to bring me to the high expectation of educational goals that I have set for myself and beginning to achieve a little more each day.