How Rocketship Education Helped One Teacher Grow, Personally and Professionally

Today, we’re sharing about Rocketship Education as part of a sponsored guest post.

Imparting education and molding young minds is one of the most exhilarating feelings, especially for those who want to get into teaching. Teachers all over the country contribute to the future development of the country and have a major role to play. While the job that they do is tough, the task of actually reaching out to students and understanding them is tougher. For teachers to have a good impact on their students, a person working in this profession must be able to get onto their level of thinking and must work with the things that their students would be interested in.

One teacher from Rocketship United Academy went the extra mile to reach out to her students with a little help of the institution that she was working at. Rocketship Education is known for offering their teachers a few extra funds with the help of the Professional Development Fund. This is a fund that offers teachers a $1000 which they can then use to further their skills as a teacher. The teachers are given this amount after they complete two to three years working at the schools and can choose a professional development program that they think would benefit them. Even though growing professionally is important to acheive your goals, it is important to have the right mindset and without it you can spiral downwards, this is why if you are struggling with following your path you can always get help from a personal development coach to help you grow as a person.

Choosing A Different Path

Most teachers tend to opt to attend lectures or a conference that is specific to their interests. While this is a common choice, this teacher decided to go down a different path that could help her. Just that year, she had begun working as a full-time English teacher for Rocketship Education. Most of the students that she taught belonged to families who primarily spoke Spanish on a day to day basis. To put her plan into action, the teacher chooses to opt for an immersion program in Guatemala. A majority of her students belonged to this country, which is why she decided that it would be a good place to visit. Her main goal in this was to be able to learn a new language and also learn about the culture and traditions that existed here.

As part of the program, the teacher was put up with a host family. The family would then teach the teacher about the local customs, culture, and way of life. While this may seem ideal, the teacher was well aware that there would be a few challenges that she would have to face during this trip.

The Experience

The first learning experience that she had was when she had to take a Spanish placement test. This was something that would help the organization figure out the level of Spanish that the students in the program are familiar with. This also dictated the level of education that would be imparted. After giving the test, the teacher was placed in a pre-intermediate class. The next week was spent immersed in the culture, all while attending Spanish classes through the day. The host family was also incredibly helpful in this regard because they helped her improve her Spanish, even when not at school. At the same time, the teacher got to see some of the most beautiful sights in the country and got to take in every bit of this incredibly warm culture.

The trip might not have drastically improved the teacher’s Spanish speaking capabilities but did give her a different perspective on what her students tend to go through when trying to learn English. This experience also helped her get a better understanding of the lives that these students lead, and the families that they depend on.

Through this entire experience, there is no doubt that Rocketship Education helped this teacher grow, not only as a teacher but on a personal level as well.