Un Maestro como un Estudiante – A Teacher as a Student

I have often said that I like to teach (enseñar) because I like to learn (aprender), because teaching gives you the opportunity to learn each and every day. There are new content ideas to learn in you craft, there are new skills (habilidades nuevas) to learn to help you teach, there are better methods (métodos mejores) of facilitation to learn, there are opportunities to learn more about your students on professional and personal levels, as well as lots to learn from your colleagues as well. Yes, I enjoy teaching because I like to learn and the fact that I still have a lot to learn is one of the main reasons (la razones principales) why I came to Chile.

I have had the good fortune (la buena fortuna) to work with Professor Claudio Pérez, who has been a physics teacher for many years. When we met many years ago (muchos años en el pasado), I found that we had much in common, with only the language barrier, meaning my inability to effectively communicate in Spanish, was the only real impediment (impedimento). As a constructivist educator in science and technology, I have had a number of unique experiences as both a professor and classroom teacher, but in reality (pero, en realidad), I have never had a regular mentor that could demonstrate the craft of teaching (enseñanza) to me directly and clearly. Claudio has a tireless work ethic that also translates into an open door (puerta abierta) commitment to students and faculty alike. He always makes time for others and guides them in their learning in a discovery based manner.

I feel that I have been a good classroom teacher and university professor, but certainly feel that I have a lot more (mucho más) to learn. I could, if I so desired, sit back on my laurels as a teacher and rest in my accomplishments (mis logros) to date. I mean, I have won awards for teaching, been recognized for outstanding accomplishments in teaching and have a large number of unsolicited letters (cartas) from students thanking me for my efforts as their teacher. Yet, in reality, I have a lot more to learn, and still actively seek out examples (ejemplos) and models that I can watch and learn from, even with my years of experience. There is an adage that says you teach how you were taught (enseña como se enseñaron), and I believe that this applies to us all, both the teachers of today and the future teachers of tomorrow. If any change (cambio) is going to happen in my own teaching, it really has to start with me.

That is what has brought me all the way to Santiago, Chile, to leave (salir) the comfort of my home in El Paso and to brig myself and my wife here, so that I can, among other things, find a new way (un camino nuevo) to energize my academic pursuits. Often in my work with Claudio, I get the unique chance to learn both content and process, to gain new ideas and to be supported in my growth (crecimiento) as an educator. He constantly makes time for me as well, his foreign student and colleague, and models ways for me to think about my overall approach to this profession.

Yes, I have come to Chile to teach and do research (investigar), but what I have also gained is the chance to learn at the feet (a los pies) of a master (un experto).