The Scoop

FACE TO FACE 

 

By: Lina Gomez 10A

 

Every once in a while, we find ourselves in a situation in which we ask each other how is our life different from the life of the person who is next to us. Their experiences, their thoughts, and their way of seeing things are just some of the aspects we think about when that question pops into our mind. Each day, we see how our teachers come to class with the highest expectations and their classes ready; we see how they are willing to give us all of their knowledge for us to become better people and for us to be prepared for the challenges we will face throughout our life.

 

We are so used to seeing them every day that we don’t realize how much effort they put into their classes and their daily living. That’s the reason I wrote this article. We are going to explore the life and the way of thinking of two different teachers from our school, María Cristina Toro, the philosophy teacher of eleventh grade and Julio Cerón, the physics teacher of ninth, tenth and eleventh grade. We asked them some questions for us to get to know them better and here are their answers.

 

Scoop – What do you do for a living?

María Cristina – I’m a philosophy teacher.

Julio – I dedicate my time to education in two different jobs, in one I am a physics teacher but in the other one I am the headmaster of a school, I work with the parents, the students and the teachers. In addition, I am a Civil Engineer; I work with some projects related to the topic when I have the time. Last year I was finishing a Master in Education, and now, all of my free time I spend it with my family. Plus, I have a house in the country where I take care of my animals.

Scoop – What did you study and why?

María Cristina – I studied philosophy because it is my passion, it is my life. I discovered it was my life when I studied philosophers like Emmanuel Kant, Michel Foucault and some contemporaries, some French philosophers. I studied the undergraduate degree in La Salle, and the graduate degree in the Santo Tomás.

Julio – Initially I studied a BS in Physics, later I did a Master in Physics, both of them in the Universidad Pedagógica. Then I studied Civil Engineering, and I did my graduate degree in Environmental Engineering, and finally I did a graduate degree in Educational Managing. Last year I did a Master in Exact Sciences to be updated about the things I am teaching. I have always liked to study and complement my working part with my studying part, and to be updated about all of my work. Engineering is mostly for the field.

Scoop – What is the most important thing you have learned throughout your life?

María Cristina – I love writing about philosophy, education and art.

Julio - I have learned to understand people, to be tolerant, to be more peaceful, and to take good decisions but quickly, with pressure. I have to take quick decisions but with minimal risk because I’m running a school and there are things that I am not allowed to meditate. I have learned a lot about my kids, how to handle a family and how to educate them, they are my life and to see them well makes me feel good, and I don’t care if I have to work more than the necessary just to give them everything they need.

 

Scoop – What do you regret the most?

María Cristina – I regret nothing, all I have done in my life is because I wanted to.

Julio – Maybe leaving aside my Engineering part because I like it, however I hope that God gives me more time to develop it, but I have had a good life and I am happy with what I’m doing.

Scoop – Tell me something that makes me laugh.

María Cristina – There is a joke that says: Mafalda is talking to her mom and she says “Mom, I am a president, you have to respect me” and her mom tells her “Well, I am the World Bank.”

Julio – That one is a hard one. I am a person who likes to do things and I like to have good humor, joke with the people, and have a good environment. Physics are important to me but I think a person can live without them, but it is basic to learn them.

Scoop – What is the nicest thing that has ever happened to you?

María Cristina – I think the nicest thing was to finish my master. I did it about the Augustinian Art in San Agustin, Huila. It was a Thesis that had recognition in the university, and after I finished it, I didn’t care about the grade; it was more than a number.

Julio - Having my children, my wife. Seeing them grow, being able to be with them, and having their companionship is the nicest thing that has happened to me. Although they are big now, I still see them as my little kids because they still need me a lot.

Scoop – What do you think is important for education?

María Cristina – The most important for education is to teach with passion, with respect and because you want to. I would change how the grades are seen, that they were not important because like that, everyone would study just for the love of knowledge and because they want to.

Julio – The most important thing for education is family. The formational part of the family is the most important. Sometimes it doesn’t matter that much the content part, topics and things you see at school, formal stuff, but the most important thing of education is initially that parents educate their kids, and that they really educate them. Then, later, the schools do their part, doing good programs, and being more demanding with our students because life needs challenges, life truly is about challenges and if you don’t teach students, it would be hard for them to have good results; we can’t be the best without good results.

Scoop – Who was your first love?

María Cristina – My first love, my first love, I don’t know. It was a boy that drew beautifully, he drew Manga. It happened when I was fifteen. He was the brother of a classmate from school, and it was great because he sent me roses and drawings, and I am a little cheesy so I like that.

Julio – Maybe at school. No, it cannot be at school because we were an only boy school, but I had a girlfriend that I loved a lot. However, with time you grow older and you establish bonds and relationships. Then, I met my wife and it was something really pretty. We were in a relationship for five years and then we got married, and until now we have had a good time and we still love each other.

Scoop – What goals do you have?

María Cristina – My immediate goals are to perfect my English and learn French, and in ten years I don’t know, I can’t picture myself at that time.

Julio – My goals are to have more time for me because I have dedicated all my life to my work and to everyone else, to make them happy. This does not mean that I will leave them aside, but I want to have more time for me, to my health, recreation, traveling, and doing other things.

Scoop – If you weren’t teachers, what would you like to be?

María Cristina – If I was not a teacher I would have liked to be a dancer, maybe a classic dancer or a contemporary one. I never learned Hip Hop but it would have been interesting to learn how to dance it. I learned to dance when I was little, so I was unsure if I wanted dance, literature or philosophy, and I chose philosophy because I felt that the body is temporary, but the mind continues throughout life.

Julio - Engineering, I love that.

Scoop – How did you find Pachas?

María Cristina – I found it because my dad studied at college with Wadi, they were classmates in the Master, and one time he told my dad that they were looking for a teacher. My dad told me to send Wadi my curriculum, and I did all the process, and Voila! Now I am here.

Scoop – What do you like of the school?

María Cristina – I love the school, I feel Pacha because the principles of the school are really nice. The girls are obedient, they like to study, to read, they have done really interesting projects, and the colleagues are really nice, I like the environment, the conditions, everything.

Scoop – What is the biggest difference between Pachas and the other places you have worked in?

María Cristina – Pachas have quality, and we can demand more from the students. I like that, and it is a quieter place to work.

 

There you have it, these are the answers the teachers told us when we asked them those questions. Now, we know a little bit more about their life and all of their different experiences that will enrich our life. We’ve learned about the different points of view of two different persons from two different approaches. I hope this was entertaining and that you’ve learned from two different people who are really good teachers in our school.