From Belgium to MUSD, teaching is first love for Lisa Brashear

Teacher Details:

Name: Lisa Brashear
School: Maricopa High School
Grade Level or class taught: 10th grade Geometry, 12th grade Honors Pre-Calculus

How long have you taught in Maricopa?
This is the second year I have taught in the district.

Where did you teach prior to this?
In Belgium, Europe.

Why did you become a teacher?
To be honest, I’ve always just had it in me! I love teaching, and I love math, economics and computer science. I studied in these three areas and then went back to my first love, which was teaching.

During the year, teaching is a hard job: correcting tests and homework, preparing lessons, organizing everything, dealing with parents and such makes the job very hard. Having the summer off and some extra days during the year really make it manageable.

Why did you decide to teach in Maricopa?
Working close to where I live is my priority.

What is your approach to teaching?
I’m a very strict teacher with high standards for my students. In the beginning my students really do not like that. But after the AIMS, most of them realize how lucky they are to have a strict math teacher.

Work and practicing is very important, but most important is that my students can show me on their tests and exams that they have the knowledge they need.

It’s kind of like swimming. If I were to set the goal for my students to be able to swim 100 meters, they’d have to practice a lot. I can explain all I want on how to swim, what the best technique is and why. But as long as the students do not practice swimming, they will never be able to swim those 100 meters. The only way I can check whether they can swim is by throwing them into the pool and seeing if they swim or sink. Students, who really studied hard and practiced hard, have to show on their tests and exams that they can do the math in order to pass.

What makes you unique?
Unique, me? Maybe my high standards and caring so much about my students.

What do you like to do when you are not teaching?
Math problems, analyzing the economic crisis, predicting what will happen, reading books, swimming, rollerblading, chatting with Belgian friends, posting pictures and articles on my blogs, facebook, msn…

Do you have any children? Are they in the district?
Our only child goes to Legacy Traditional Charter School because we agree with the teacher-centered curriculum and the high standards.

What is the most memorable teaching or life experience you have had?
How grateful my students were, and even parents were, after they received their AIMS math scores.

Photo by Michael K. Rich