Many people find math very difficult or simply useless. While most do agree basic math like adding, subtracting, multiplying and diving is needed, when it comes to high school math, students find it completely useless and super stressful. Comments like “we will never use this outside of school” are often heard but do you ever wonder what it must be like for teachers to hear those comments. Ever wonder how does someone even decide to be a math teacher. What must it be like to be the teacher behind these lessons, to hear these comments, to teach these lessons. In this case, what must it be like for Ms. Sharpe who is one of the various teachers at Hawkins who isn’t just a teacher, but also considered a woman in STEM which has been considered a male dominated field for the past century. Well I decided to get an inside scoop on behind the mathematician and here we are with our very own beloved Hawkins math teacher, Ms. Sharpe.
“Well to start off how are you Ms. Sharpe” – Interviewer (Lucero )
“I am doing very well today thank you for asking” – Ms. Sharpe
“ Well to start off I think one question that anyone would ask a math teacher would be did you always like math” – Interviewer Lucero
“Well yes and no, I didn’t like it when i struggled with it but I had a really good math teacher in the 7th grade that I think truly instilled the idea that it is okay to struggle in math, you don’t have to be good at it to like it.”- Ms. Sharpe
“That is awesome. I do believe having a good teacher plays a big role in your understanding of math but did you always kind of know you wanted to be a math teacher.” – Interviewer Lucero
“Yes I did actually. Oddly enough I specifically said I wanted to be a high school math teacher and well here I am.” – Ms. Sharpe
“Wow! That is so cool, and now as a teacher since well students have really negative feelings on math and its use in the future, how do you as a teacher try to get your students to connect to math” – Interviewer Lucero
“Well of course you aren’t going to use the Pythagorean Theorem on a daily basis but well I try to connect math problems to real world situations. Even then, I think we shouldn’t just focus on the numbers and formula portion of math but the critical thinking behind it, which is something that will definitely be used in the future.” – Ms. Sharpe
“Yes definitely. Now as a women in stem, math standing for the M in stem, what is a downside of pursuing a career in stem which is commonly known as a male dominated field.” – Interviewer Lucero
“Well for me luckily math in general was filled with more women than anything, but some of my filler classes like coding and design were more male dominated. I often found myself being the only woman in those classes which was uncomfortable and sometimes awkward. There were times were I would be looked down on as well but then again, my core classes of math had a variety of people.”- Ms. Sharpe
“That is unfortunate but luckily it all worked out. With that being said, what is an upside to being a woman in stem” – Interviewer Lucero
“Well I would say an upside is the knowledge I have acquired in this field and the people I have met. Despite some hardships, I loved the process of it all and I wouldn’t change it for anything” – Ms. Sharpe
“Yes of course knowledge is power. But what about on a personal level, whats it like to mention you are a math teacher to friends and family.” – Interviewer Lucero
“Gosh, I always hear the same thing , of “I hated math” or “how can you like math” or “Id hate to be a math teacher” but then at times I hear things like “I wish I had you as a math teacher” which is so weird because they don’t even know how I teach. I usually get labeled as some big nerd when really I just know formulas and numbers but other than that, there isn’t much of a big fuss.”- Ms. Sharpe
“Thats good, and now lastly to close off, is there anything you want to say to those who hate math or find it too difficult.” – Interviewer Lucero
“Well you don’t always have to be good at math to like it and it really is okay to not understand certain concepts , just continue to try and try, but just remember math isn’t necessarily everyone’s thing so don’t stress.”- Ms. Sharpe
“Thank you for those wise words Ms. Sharpe and thank you for this insight on behind the mathematician.” – Interviewer Lucero
Here with the advocate news, Lucero Hernandez signing out.
