I like school. Something that I often hear students talk about is that they hate school, and that they can not wait to graduate. Me on the other hand, I feel safe… like school is just a safe path for my future and maybe that is why I like it. I was raised in Mexico, and I remember always being that student that would raise my hand and participate as much as I could during class time, but when my family and I had to move to the United States, school was not the same anymore. The language barrier and being away from my culture was very difficult for me. I remember feeling so lonely and sad all of the time, it wasn't until I met Mrs. Hutchens that I started to feel more comfortable with the English Language and more confident about my accent.
I met Mrs. Hutchens about six months after I came to the U.S. I was a seventh grader and she was an English teacher who decided to take us (many students who did not speak English) as her “rat labs” since she had never taught any class like that. She was very kind, and patient with us, even though she did not speak much Spanish she made sure that we could understand everything she was saying and also made us feel welcomed in her class.Not only that, but she was also one of the reasons why we started to get more resources as English Language Development (ELD) students. She was also very respectful about other cultures and always made sure we felt proud of where we came from.
Mrs. Hutchens is definitely one of the reasons why I want to become a teacher. I want to make sure students feel welcome and appreciated no matter where they came from or what language they speak. As future educators we need to stand up for our students and make sure they have all they need in order to get the best education experience possible.