Letters From Teachers:

• Acting to learn, learning to act
• Born to teach
• Passing on a positive impact
• Why do I teach
• Learning together
• Loving the subject and the students
• Leading through our commitments
• Small victories keep me coming back
• Hands-on interaction draws me to teaching
• Awsome students inspire me
• Myriad reasons draw me to teach
• Taking pride in teaching
• Rediscovering the world through students' eyes
• Students' self-confidence is greatest gift
• Making a difference

Jennifer Higa :

Hands-on interaction draw me to teaching

I’ve always enjoyed the feeling of being able to help others, to see the light bulb come on when a concept finally sinks in… These are wonderful experiences that are very much like watching my own children discover new things in the world each day.

Though I’ve started a graduate program in private school leadership in Hawaii where I now work, I don’t see myself becoming an administrator any time soon because I’m too happy having hands-on interaction with students every day. I never understood how my high school teachers could stand to be with a classroom full of little anarchists day in and day out – until I experienced it firsthand. The feeling of helping and making a difference – even in the tiniest things – is addictive. Each time I’m able to help a student discover that she can, in fact, communicate visually and create something from nothing, it’s a rush. Even being that voice of reason she turns to when something outside of class is impacting her life… that’s a heady feeling, even if you don’t have all the answers.

Jennifer Higa
Honolulu, HI

Awsome students inspire me »