A Shout Out to Inspiring Teachers
Teachers play an integral role in our development from our early childhood years in preschool and primary school and then in high school, as we decide whether we will venture into the science or business fields. Even at the tertiary level, there are those teachers who inspire us to become the men and women of our generation and the next. So on the occasion of education week, News Five wants to highlight some of those teachers.
Duane Moody
“Dedicated to Service, United by Passion, Leading through difficult times – that’s the theme for Education Week and we here at Channel Five want to shout out those teachers who have impacted our lives in some way or the other.”
Ashley Cleland
Ashley Cleland, Marketing Officer, Great Belize Production Ltd./News Five
“The one person that really comes to mind is Miss Lizama from PHS. I remember in one instance, I wasn’t going to take a CXC exam and she made it her business to come and see me at my class and she was like why wasn’t I taking this exam and I explained why. And she was like no, I think you need to take it. I took the exam and I got a one. So for me, it shows that even though you don’t see your potential or what you can do, that teaches us to just push yourself some more and you can succeed.”
Paul Lopez
Paul Lopez, News Five Reporter
“In primary school, I could remember clearly Mister Rosado. He taught me in the last three or four years of primary school and helped prepare for those national exams. He played an integral role in my results in those national exams. In high school, I have Mister Emil Pulido. He was my English/Literature teacher. He was the one who recognized my love for reading, my love for writing and even used my comedic side in school. And then finally my art teacher, Teacher Vanzie who failed me in fourth form and made me have to do summer classes before I was able to get my diploma. She said, you could pass; yo know. I could pass you, I could give you that one point, but I will fail you because I want you to learn that lesson that not everything comes easy and sometimes you just have to focus and give yo best.”
Sabreena Daly
Sabreena Daly, Anchor, News Five
“My aunt Martha Garbutt, a completely superb teacher. She has since retired, two years ago, but it really gives you a change of perspective when you kinda come home to the teacher versus just being in the classroom with the teacher. So you get to basically see the life outside of the classroom where it still continues. Teachers’ work still continues outside of a classroom. If I was to mention a teacher that has impacted me in my youth it would be Miss Venice Sal from high school. She was a teacher in third form; she taught me one of the sciences. Thank you Miss Sal, I still remember you and yes, you were very impactful to me.”
Isani Cayetano
Isani Cayetano, News Five Reporter
“I don’t have a particular teacher to acknowledge. What I would want to do instead is acknowledge my family on both sides. My mother’s side, the Nunez family – all educators. On the Cayetano side – it is also all educators. And collectively, they have played an integral role not only in educating the masses of Belizeans but in terms of prioritizing education for their children and their relative’s children as well. So as we celebrate teacher’s week, I’d want to acknowledge both sides of my family for having done a stellar work, a stellar job in the education field.”
Marleni Cuellar
Marleni Cuellar, C.E.O., Great Belize Production Ltd./News Five
“I have two teachers in my family so I have seen the hard work they have done both in the classroom and when they go home at the end of the day. I’ve been in classrooms during summer breaks, after school and I know how involved and dedicated teachers need to be in their students’ life. I have had a number of teachers that have impacted my life in a very positive way from working with me in elocution contests to training me for monologues and poetry on stage at the Bliss for festival of arts, putting in extra hours to work with me. And as you know teachers don’t get overtime for things like that so they have really helped in shaping me to become the person I am today. If I am to pinpoint one pivotal moment where a teacher/educator really shifted my trajectory, it would be my primary school principal, Mister Acevedo. It is a really interesting story because I was always known as someone who would talk a lot in class – which back then and maybe still today gets you into a lot of trouble. And I always asked a lot of questions and objected to policies that I didn’t quite agree with or didn’t understand or seem to be fair. So I would have to visit him quite often at the teacher’s request. And one day he sat me down and said, you have a lot of different opinions about things in the school; I want you to use it for something positive. He nominated me to be a part of a children advisory group for UNICEF which completely changed the level of involvement that I had as a child in working within the social sector, in working on children’s right issues which became a big part of what I ended up doing when I started working.”
Duane Moody
“But what about you? Let me know which teacher has inspired you.”
Head on over to our Facebook page at News Five Live and share with us that teacher who inspired you.
