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Why I Want to Teach

California’s students are among the most diverse learners in the nation, linguistically,

culturally, and economically. One teaching strategy does not—and should not—fit everyone; one

size does not fit all. But one philosophy does: that is, the process of learning to close-read, write,

and organize can be demystified and broken down into steps so that each student in the high

school English classroom can be successful. Although not every student will achieve at the same

level, they can all achieve proficiency and, more importantly, not have their egos reduced while

they are in the process.

Let me use a metaphor. If a child is learning to ride a bike, it is not good to give them a

bike that is too big for them and then to try to help them ride it, running alongside them, holding

them up. Every time the trainer lets go, the rider falls off, growing more and more frustrated all

the time, thinking that they cannot ride the bike because the task is too big. But if the trainer gave

the child an appropriate-sized bike and put training wheels on it, the child will be able to ride the

bike with training wheels almost immediately; the training wheels are helping them balance. In

just a very short space of time, the training wheels can be removed and the child is riding

independently. Although teaching and learning are more complicated than riding a bicycle,

nevertheless the general idea is the same: the teacher gives the student support until they are

ready to work on their own.

I have used this method successfully by giving an assignment that was high challenge but

also high support. It was a close read of a complicated passage in Steinbeck’s ​The Grapes of

Wrath ​for students who were not in Honors or AP; most were not deeply interested in close

reading. And I’ll be honest: a close read is always a challenging assignment, particularly for high
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school students who are still learning to think critically. Students were given the topic sentence

and two sample concrete details. They were to add two more concrete details on their own, add

commentary, and write the concluding sentence in order to create a full extended paragraph. I

could tell they gained confidence. The next time we did an extended paragraph, I only gave

students the sample topic sentence, as a model. Many students wanted to write their own topic

sentence; they did not want the training wheels on anymore. They knew they were ready to ride

without training wheels. However, those students who wanted to use the sample topic sentence

had the option to. Furthermore, no student had to know who was still using the provided topic

sentence and who was not. In this way, instruction was differentiated, which is important for a

heterogeneous and inclusive classroom.

As someone who has chosen the teaching profession for their lifelong career, I am deeply

committed to the idea that the process of writing and analyzing should be demystified so that

everyone learns the process and can become proficient at it. Not everyone can be a fine writer,

but everyone can be a good writer. Everyone can learn to be a good writer when the assignment

or assessment expectations are modeled and when the supports are then gradually removed so

that students are riding on their own. Paradoxically, providing high support with high challenge

leads to more true independence.