Thoughts and Perspective by Ana Avalos

#1 What are the things you are passionate about in your personal life?

aavalos0121 — 2024-01-19 00:05:35 UTC

I’m passionate about making genuine and real connections with the people around me in my life. I care about nurturing my relationships with family and friends, I care about being there for people that I love. I’m also really passionate about music and love to play piano and sing with my musician friends. I love to write as well, and I’m constantly journaling and writing about the things that matter to me.

#2 What drives you in your professional life?

aavalos0121 — 2024-01-19 00:07:35 UTC

Something that drives me in my professional life is knowing that I am making a difference in the lives of the children I teach. I think we can really change how kids view themselves and what they are capable of. Teachers can also provide support and encouragement when there isn’t any at home. The thought that I can help a child succeed not just in my classroom, but in their life really drives me.

#3 Do you think education as an institution is meeting the needs of children and adolescents? Why do you believe as you do?

aavalos0121 — 2024-01-19 00:08:35 UTC

I believe education as an institution does need a lot of improvement and changes to adequately meet the needs of children and adolescents. I think there are many great things about the education system as it is, such as a great focus on meeting specific goals and standards for our students, and resources on how to meet those goals. I also believe there is room to improve this, and to help every individual student feel seen and understood in their learning journey. Learning does not just have to be about proving that we can reach a specific goal or master a specific skill, but learning should also focus on how to provoke students to be engaged and actively participate in their learning.

#4 If you could have a magic wand and change anything about your profession, what would you change and why?

aavalos0121 — 2024-01-19 00:11:24 UTC

If I had a magic wand and could change anything about my profession I would change the way we support teachers in the classrooms. I truly believe for children to receive the best education, they need to have teachers who feel supported and balanced with their work. I know many times teachers feel overwhelmed by the amount of work and emotionally drained by the lack of support and help within the classroom setting. I know this may not be the case for everyone, but if I could change one thing it would be to create a healthier environment for both teachers and students, to not be as stressed and not feel like they have to do everything all at once on their own, without assistance or support.

#5 Imagine that you are near the end of your life, what would you hope to have accomplished?

aavalos0121 — 2024-01-19 00:12:57 UTC

When I am near the end of my life, I hope to have accomplished the dreams I have set out for myself. I hope to have learned a lot through the failures and setbacks, and to have celebrated the milestones and triumphs. I hope to have built a family that I cherish and love. I hope to have healthy and thriving connections in my community and with the people that I surround myself with. I hope to still love music and keep that passion in my life. I also hope that I was able to make a difference with the students throughout my life. I really hope that I was able to work as a kindergarten teacher and focus on teaching essential life skills such as reading and writing. I hope I laid a great foundation for these students to carry on throughout their life. My desire is that my students would have felt seen and understood by their teacher, and that they could look back on their kindergarten teacher and remember she truly cared about them.

#6 What would be the most important things to look back on?

aavalos0121 — 2024-01-19 00:15:41 UTC

I think the most important things to look back on would be that difference I made with the people I came across in life. These people would include my family, friends, community, and students. I want to be someone who was able to make a positive impact and difference in these people’s lives.

#7 What would you want to say about your passions and accomplishments?

aavalos0121 — 2024-01-19 00:16:55 UTC

I would want to say that I’m still passionate about the things I was passionate about in my 20s. I would hope that I was able to truly make a difference in the classroom setting and with students. I would hope that I cared about my community and tried my best to serve it. I hope my accomplishments go beyond certificates and ceremonies, but really mattered and made a personal impact on someone’s life.