Beyond the Page: An Induction Reflection
By: Jillian Garcia, M.A. Ed.
By: Jillian Garcia, M.A. Ed.
Welcome! My name is Jillian Garcia, and I am a dedicated seventh and eighth grade English teacher and educator. My journey through teacher induction has been a transformative process of refining my craft and deepening my commitment to student-centered learning.
I believe that every student enters the room with a unique story and untapped potential. My mission is to create a brave space where curiosity is the currency and mistakes are viewed as essential data points in the learning process.
In the video clip above from Dead Poets Society, John Keating tells his students: "We don't read and write poetry because it's cute. We read and write poetry because we are members of the human race."
This scene perfectly captures why I chose to become an English teacher. In my classroom, language is more than just grammar and syntax; it is the primary tool through which students discover who they are and how they want to impact the world.
As Keating notes, while fields like medicine or law are noble and sustain life, literature and poetry are what we stay alive for. I teach English to help students connect with the beauty, romance, and passion that define the human experience