First Year Journey

By Armando Gonzalez

Throughout  all  the teachers at Yerba Buena High School, Jasper Gill, an English teacher, has had a passion and desire to teach since she was a little kid.

For Jasper Gill, she enjoys and has a passion for being an English teacher. It is her first year working at Yerba Buena High School and being an English teacher here.

Before Gill came to Yerba Buena High School, and became a teacher here, she was a tutor at San Francisco State University.Gill was an embedded tutor that would attend freshman level English classes and offered office hours to students who needed to check in with her. Gill also worked at a tutoring center where she would help grads and undergrads. 

As a first year teacher, Gill  loves it here at Yerba Buena High School. She feels that the campus itself has a welcoming atmosphere. It is extra nice to get to walk around campus and enjoy the scenery.

Ever since Gill was younger she had the desire to teach and had told herself that when she was older she would become a teacher, she even had made a poster, talking about a core memory of hers 

Gill: "I actually remember In kindergarten I made  an about me poster  and on the poster i had a picture  of Mrs. puff 

Gill always enjoyed English class. To her, it felt like a whole book club being able to discuss what they read and connect questions related to the real world. 

Gill: ”My cousins got me into reading, I remember getting super into the harry potter series”

To Gill she   felt safe around  her beach and comfortable in being herself .  She always aspires to be the kind of teacher that any student would want. Gill  wants her  classroom to be a safe space for students.

Gill:“I always felt the most comfortable with my English teachers. They were always super cool and gave me the space to be myself .”  

In Gill’s perspective,  it wasn't just a job to her she's with her students.  And to her she isn't just a teacher she's a therapist, a parent, a counselor and a safety supervisor  all in the same role. so much going on and throughout all that you're trying to figure out who you really are. 

When Gill starts off with her narrative unit, she gets to learn about where her students come from   and tell her their background,who they are, and what they are like.To  her  English class is a space where it requires everyone to be open-minded and vulnerable with each other to make a comfortable environment for everyone.

In Gill’s classroom  she feels that there's much more flexibility when it comes to topics and readings, she has themes in each unit that she does. Gill gets to learn so much about her students when she has them reflect on certain topics.

Gill: "I feel like  teaching is  a very rewarding job because you get to see students grow all the way from the beginning of the school year to the end”.