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If there’s one thing we need more of in this world, it’s dedicated teachers. The University of Puerto Rico’s College of Education, believe it or not, is loaded with passionate students longing to be in front of the classroom. One of those students is Celmi M. Morales Maisonet.
I’ve known Celmi since our awkward days in Junior High. Even when we were just friendly acquaintances, it was no secret that there was a future educator among my classmates at Manatí’s Piaget Bilingual Academy. Whether she was helping correct exams for her mother, a Spanish teacher, or casually hanging around to greet newcomers at the school’s open house, teacher Celmi was very much in the making. She graduated high school with honors and completed the first two and a half years of her B.Ed. in English, Elementary level, at the University of Puerto Rico in Arecibo (UPRA). Earlier this year, she got her first teaching job in the middle of her pre-practicum. Now finishing up her last semester at UPR-RP, I got to interview her about her birth-given calling.
Her Campus at UPR: My first question is, where does your dream of teaching come from?
Celmi Morales “Teacher Celmi”: I guess [it comes] from my mom; watching her give class and seeing how all the students loved her, and everything that she did. I’ve always enjoyed that.
Celmi (left) posing with her mom (right).
HC UPR: Why an elementary school teacher? And also, why [teach] English and not Spanish, like your mom? Was that your way of rebelling?
TC: [Chuckles] No, I’ve always loved English. It was always my favorite subject […] So, I said, “Ok, then I’ll be an English teacher.” Then in high school, [at around] eleventh, twelfth grade, I had the debate of, “Will I be an elementary school teacher? Or will I teach high school?” […] I thought, “Well, the little ones: they’re adorable.” Plus, I find that the first grades of elementary are so important, because that’s when you learn how to read and write, especially in English […] The little kids [also] give you presents […] So, that’s how I decided. I decided to do it for the little ones.
Celmi posing with a drawing a student made for her.
HC UPR: So, since you already basically have experience teaching for real, you can answer me this: what is your favorite part about teaching?
TC: My favorite part about teaching is…when you get that Ahh moment. When you’re trying to teach something, whatever it is, to the kids, and they’re not getting it, and then you do [the lesson] differently, and they’re like [snaps] “Ahhh, ok! Now I get it” […] When they have that click? I feel like the best teacher in the whole wide world. So that’s pretty good.
HC UPR: Your students call you teacher Celmi…how come they don’t call you Ms. Morales?
TC: I was in my pre-practicum, and I was with my cooperating teachers […] And, the students actually called them by their names […] To actually let your students call you by your first name is not something I’m used to, ‘cause [people] are [normally] like, “No, you have to respect your teacher, and calling them by their first name is not respecting them” […] I was talking about that with my mom, and [was] like, “I think I want [my students] to call me teacher Celmi, ‘cause I really like my name!” I actually really like my name, and it’s unique! So they won’t confuse me with another teacher, ever! I was [saying] like, “Oh, but then there’s the respect thing.” She [then said], “Respect has nothing to do with your name. You can let them call you teacher Celmi, and they can still respect you.” ‘Cause it’s not about the name, it’s [about] what you let them get away with. So, if you’re going to call me teacher Celmi, [that’s] ok, but you have to respect that I’m your teacher, even though you’re calling me by my first name. But I’m still your teacher, you have to respect me. That is something [one has] to establish since the first day, and [it’s] actually worked! My students have always called me by my name, and they still respect me. I’m their teacher! They don’t really care [whether] they call me by my name or my last name!
HC UPR: What’s a misconception people might have about teachers or teaching?
TC: That it’s easy […] People entrust their children’s education to us. We’re the ones who have to teach [the kids] how to read, write, add, subtract […] to think critically…it’s a lot. If we don’t do a good job, when they go off to college they won’t know what to do. They’ll spend the rest of their lives with that weight hanging over them. It’s a lot of pressure! “Your job is easy, but I put my child in your hands. I entrust you with my child’s mind, but it’s easy. Anyone can do it, but in this case it’s up to you” […] Some people think school is a daycare, and it’s not! We work hard! We do a lot of things!
HC UPR: What would you say to anyone who’s been told, “Don’t go into education, you’ll die of hunger?” Or any of those things that every teacher-in-the-making hears?
TC: You will not diiee of hunger, you will just lose some weight. [Laughter cuts in] I would say to just ignore them. If that’s your vocation, if you really love education, than go for it. We need more teachers that actually love teaching, and love to be with the kids.
Celmi posing with her teaching portfolio, where she keeps her roll book, lesson plans, worksheets, etc.
HC UPR: So what does a class with teacher Celmi look like?
TC: So there’s a lot of singing, there’s a lot of me making silly faces…and it’s really loud! The class is loud ‘cause my tone of voice is very, very loud. Actually, my neighbor, my [neighboring teacher], she hears me. I didn’t know [that] she actually heard me until Sebastián [fellow practicing teacher] told me. He gives a class in the next room, and on Tuesdays, he gives a class at the same time that I give first grade. He told me, like, “I can hear every single thing you say, in my classroom! That’s how loud you are. My kids get distracted because of the singing.” But, you know what? I haven’t toned it down, and I am not planning to.
HC UPR: Where would you like your teaching career to go? Do you have any specific goals within the Education field you would like to achieve?
TC: Ugh, get a job.
HC UPR: Do you wanna be [a] principal?
TC: No, I wanna be a teacher.
HC UPR: Forever?
TC: Yes. Maybe once I’m teaching and I see everything, maybe I’ll want to be a principal, but I don’t think so. I like the idea of being a teacher, being in a classroom […]
Image: Celmi M. Morales Maisonet
Celmi is set to earn her degree in May of 2020. She graduates Magna cum laude, and cites her supervising professor, Prof. Christina Guerra, as one of her favorite educators. I venture teacher Celmi will be that to her future students as well.
For anybody coursing through Education, or any other department, don’t settle for anyone’s calling but your own. If you’re passionate enough, you’re likely to excel.