The Wick staff decided to vote on a teacher to be spotlighted in the newspaper. This month, I had the pleasure of interviewing: Upper School English Department Chair, Dr. Root! On October 11th, I sat down with our very own Dr. Root who currently teaches 9th and 10th grade English, as well as 12 grade electives: “Introduction to Critical Theory” and “Legacies of Critical Thought.” Other than teaching, Dr. Root enjoys listening to music. His favorite genres are alternative, rock & roll and country. He recently went to see “Waxahatchee live” in concert as well as Willy Nelson and Bob Dylan over the 4th of July weekend. In addition to music, his other hobbies include spending time with his family, playing Parcheesi, watching the Phillies and going out to eat.
Dr. Root’s passion for teaching is admirable. I was able to learn about his path into teaching and what motivates him to be the best version of himself as part of the AIS community of teachers.
When asked why he teaches, Dr. Root responded: “It’s really the only thing I’ve ever been good at. I get a lot of energy from working with students. I’m really extroverted and teaching allows me to dive into stuff I really care about. Schools are great opportunities to sort of think about who we are and who we want to be.” To me, these words are inspiring and every day in the classroom his energy inspires me as well. Dr. Root’s passion is contagious to everyone around him and it motivates his students to dive deeper into the topics he teaches.
Dr. Root gives us a deeper meaning of what his passion is really about. He says: “To me, studying literature, studying past things that are written I suppose is an opportunity for us to understand better truths about ourselves, which is that we are part of a long tradition of life and that tradition will continue. Literature to me helps remind us what life is for, what its possibilities are, and how temporary the way things are right now. Literature helps us to step back out of the narrowness of our perspective and think with an eye towards meaning and purpose.” This quote gives me a new perspective coming into class and a new way of interpreting the assignments given. In the short time I have had Dr. Root I can see my growth as a student from his teaching methods. I am able to connect the past to the present and think about meaning for the future.
To leave with a valuable perspective of a teacher to a student, I asked about his thoughts on what most students might find weaknesses. Dr. Root responds: “I think whenever you feel anxious or afraid or uncomfortable because you don’t understand something, you are actually in a better place than you were before you had that feeling. Being able to realize that something is challenging can actually be the beginning of things because just because you are afraid or confused does not mean you have to stop.” I encourage everybody reading this to take this as a piece of advice, and to think differently about how thinking something is challenging can actually help us by motivating us and allowing us to open a new door and take a step further.
Q: What do you think is something that most students find as a weakness but you find as a strength?
A: “I think whenever you feel anxious or afraid or uncomfortable because you don’t understand something, you are actually in a better place than you were before you had that feeling. Being able to realize that something is challenging can actually be the beginning of things because just because you are afraid or confused does not mean you have to stop”.
Q: What is it about the things you teach that you think will be useful for your students’ future?
A: “To me, studying literature, studying past things that are written I suppose is an opportunity for us to understand better truths about ourselves, which is that we are part of a long tradition of life and that tradition will continue. Literature to me helps remind us what life is for, what its possibilities are, and how temporary the way things are right now. Literature helps us to step back out of the narrowness of our perspective and think with an eye towards meaning and purpose”.
Q: Why do you teach?
A: “It’s really the only thing I’ve really ever been good at. I get a lot of energy from working with students. I’m really extroverted and teaching allows me to dive into stuff I really care about. Schools are great opportunities to sort of think about who we are and who we wanna be”.
Q: What do you believe makes a great teacher?
A: “Somebody that believes in and cares about their students. Any approach can be great if a teacher is doing it for those reasons”
Q: How do you apply that in your teaching?
A: “In the material I try to find what feels urgent and real and I try to communicate that. Also, by engaging with students I try to think about what they need before I try to figure out what I need from them.” Dr. Root believes “if you can keep the question about why am I doing this in the front”, it helps guide you down the right path.
Q: What is the best piece of advice you have ever been given?
A: “Love what you do! I’m not very good at doing things I don’t like. It reminds me to be true to myself.”
Q: What is it about the things you teach that you think will be useful for your students’ future?
A: “To me, studying literature, studying past things that are written I suppose is an opportunity for us to understand better truths about ourselves, which is that we are part of a long tradition of life and that tradition will continue. Literature to me helps remind us what life is for, what its possibilities are, and how temporary the way things are right now. Literature helps us to step back out of the narrowness of our perspective and think with an eye towards meaning and purpose”.
Q: What is one accomplishment you are most proud of?
A: “Getting to teach at AIS is an accomplishment, an honor really, that I am very happy to do”.
Q: What do you hope to accomplish in the future?
A: “Something that I hope to accomplish in the future is to maintain a positive or affirmative relationship to teaching and life”.
Q: What do you think is something that most students find as a weakness but you find as a strength?
A: “I think whenever you feel anxious or afraid or uncomfortable because you don’t understand something, you are actually in a better place than you were before you had that feeling. Being able to realize that something is challenging can actually be the beginning of things because just because you are afraid or confused does not mean you have to stop”.