Teacher Biography

Historical Fields of Interest

Paleolithic Era, Ancient Greece, Ancient Rome, Early American Cultures, Medieval Europe, the Renaissance and Reformation, the Scientific Revolution, Native American History, the Jefferson Era (1800-1840), the U.S. Manifest Destiny Period (1820s-1860s), World War 1, the World War 2 Era (1930s-1948), and the Civil Rights Movement (1950s-1970s).

Degrees, Credentials, and Certifications

• • Associate of Arts, Liberal Arts (Rio Hondo College, Whittier)

  • Bachelor of Arts, History and Minor in Chicano Studies (University of California, Irvine)

  • CA Single Subject Teaching Credential in Social Science (California State University, Long Beach)

  • Pre Advanced Placement Certification in Social Studies (California State University, Sacramento)

  • (Candidate 2017) Professional Certificate in Teaching Advanced Placement (University of California, Riverside)

  • (Candidate 2018) Master of Arts in Education, option in Educational Administration and the Preliminary Administrative Services Credential (California State University, Long Beach)

Teaching Philosophy

My teaching philosophy is to educate students to respect, accept and embrace history while learning how to become active responsible citizens and leaders in the 21^st century. Teaching history involves creating a classroom environment that is interactive while analyzing world events. Students are taught to comprehend history intellectually, emotionally, spiritually and responsibly by being exposed to various historical perspectives and distinct teaching strategies that promote equality, justice, courage and conviction as a testament to the spirit of humanity and cultural awareness of the world. I enjoy teaching and challenging students as they become academically prepared for university life.

I look forward to servicing the brilliant students at Fontana High School.

"Learn from peoples past courage and sacrifices in order to create a future of hope."

-Mr. Juan Carlos Garate

Fontana High School Supplementary Leadership Duties

• • AP History Teacher (2015- Present)

  • AVID Team Member (2015- Present)

  • GATE Coordinator (2015 -Present)

  • History Department Chair (2016- Present)

  • Odyssey of the Mind Coordinator (2015-2017)

Fontana High School Professional Development

2017-2018

• • (6/19-6/23) AP By the Sea

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Teaching Experience

(2015-Current)

• • Fontana Unified School District

    • • 9680 Citrus Ave., Fontana, CA 92335

      • (909) 357-7600

      • http://www.fusd.net

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(2014- 2015)

• • St. Gregory the Great School (Decathlon Coach)

    • • 13925 Telegraph Rd., Whittier, CA 90604

      • (562) 941-0750

      • http://www.stgregorythegreatschoolwhittier.org/

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(2012- 2014)

• • Our Lady of Fatima School (History Department Chair and Coordinator, ASB Advisor, and Decathlon Coach)

    • • 18626 Clarkdale Ave., Artesia, CA 90701

      • (562) 865-1621

      • http://www.fatimachargers.com

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(2008- 2012)

• • Lynwood Unified School District (Discipline Committee Member and IB History Teacher)

    • (Lynwood Middle School, Hosler Middle School, Lynwood High School, and Firebaugh High School)

      • 11321 Bullis Rd., Lynwood, CA 90262

      • (310) 886-1600

      • http://www.lynwood.k12.ca.us/

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(2007- 2008)

• • El Monte Union High School District

    • • 3537 Johnson Ave., El Monte, CA 91731

      • (626) 444-9005

      • http://www.emuhsd.k12.ca.us/

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Mr. Garate's General Writing Points

In my classes I emphasize writing through the use of essential questions, quick written responses, short answers, essay answers, DBQ questions, FRQ questions, One Pager Writing tasks, and a 5 Paragraph Essay tasks in order to properly examine and evaluate students historical critical thinking skills. Some questions are designed for short answers and others for longer, more complex responses. The questions range in scope and complexity, which is why different questions require answers of different length.

Writing an effective short answer is a learned skill. By "effective" I mean an answer that is historically correct through the use of facts and "succinct." The "succinct" attribute is important for two reasons:

• First, students will learn to operate under time limits and need to use time efficiently.

• Second, students answers are easy to understand and interpret.

Therefore, an effective answer will address the question directly and avoid unnecessary details and irrelevant information.

Effective answers do not need to be long, long answers are often bad answers as it demonstrates the writer's inability to communicate the crucial point or not being able to separate facts from significance relevant evidence. History is not a collection facts but a process of critical reasoning and insightful integration of different historical perspectives that allow the writer the ability to use both factual evidence and personal ideas.

An effective answer will do the following:

• State the major point in the first sentence

  • (Declares an immediate focus and inspires confidence)

• Organize supportive or explanatory material to follow the major point

  • (Helps reader understand your logic and the intent of your answer)

• Use specific terms and careful language

  • (Helps minimize ambiguity in order to avoid misinterpretation of the answer)

An effective answer will not do the following:

• Restate the question

  • (Which wastes time)

• List everything that could conceivably be relevant to the question

  • (Which wastes time and suggests to the reader that you can not distinguish relevant from irrelevant information)

• Place potentially useful statements of fact in random order

  • (Which forces the reader to attempt to identify your logic, usually to your disadvantage)

• Use vague or very general sentences

  • (Which forces the reader to guess what you really mean in your writing).

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A People’s History?

Why should we learn “A People’s History” instead of the traditional narrative?

Answer: To help us think outside of the box using alternative historical perspectives and in order to think critically in history utilizing facts and personal ideas. -Mr. Juan Carlos Garate

http://zinnedproject.org/why/

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Mr. Garate's Educational Charts