I became a teacher because I felt I could make a positive impact on the younger generation. I went through several careers before I found the love for teaching. Once I finished school in 2001, I had a choice either to teach or preach and teaching became my passion. After I decided to become a teacher, two of my cousins decided to become teachers, one in DCPS and the other in Boston.
My beliefs for teaching are to teach students and educate them as if they are your own. If you would not feed your own children false or wrong information then you should not do it with other peoples' children. In addition, a teacher should give 150% of his or her efforts to imparting creativity, knowledge and the ability to think critically to each and every young person he encounters.
I grew up with a hard working mother who took care of three strong willed children. Before my father died when I was 15 he always stressed the importance of education because he didn't have the chance to fulfill his dream.
The students I encounter on a day to day basis relate to each other well. I try to express my expectations to them everyday and they do the same. My expectations are very plain. You come to school everyday, prepared and do you best in every class. You wont hear Mr. Nolen's mouth except to say, "good morning, I see your are having a positive and productive day."
The teacher that impacted me most in my life was my high school English teacher. She was strict, stern and expected everyone to do their best. She gave me five (5) zeros in one day. This made me stop and think about my future and what I wanted to do with it. This had a very positive effect on my future.
Also, when I started at Bowie State University, most of my professors had a profound effect on me because they were so approachable. If I had an issue or not I was able to go their office and just sit down and have a good conversation with them. I am not sure if it was because I was an older student but none the less this made me want to succeed and one day give back to other students what they gave me.
