Mrs.Chan's Path to Becoming a Teacher

We all know the awkward situation when we see one of our teachers outside of school. To students, teachers are usually not recognized as real people with real lives. We don’t realize that they have families, friends, and activities that they like to do. All teachers have their own personal stories of how their lives led them to their career path.. Selena Chan is a teacher in the Quincy Public Schools System who has a riveting story of how she became a teacher.

Ever since she was a little girl, she knew that she wanted to be a teacher. However, when she immigrated from Hong Kong, she had to put aside her dreams so that she could take care of her children. Later, after her children were older, she decided to put in the time consuming work of going back to school. A couple years later, she finally got her chance to pursue her dreams.

After hearing about a job posting as a teacher’s aid for Montclair elementary school, she knew that this was her chance. She was right-she easily got the job and once she started teaching, it was a dream come true. She can vividly remember how in the beginning of her career, she was one of the only teachers in the Quincy Public Schools System who was bilingual. Being able to speak both Chinese and English, she was able to translate and help Chinese speaking students pursue an education.

“Since I was one of the first bilingual teachers, I was able to communicate with parents to help them enroll their children into the Quincy Public Schools system.” Selena said when asked about her beginning days of teaching.

She was also able to form deep connections with her students because she was able to speak most of their native languages, which allowed her to teach them English in a more productive way. She describes how fulfilling it is to watch her students grow older and slowly be able to speak English.

“To me, I know I can be the difference in how a kid adapts to American culture. I am always trying to help and be there for the students who have parents that can’t be,” She says.

She is there to teach and guide her students in the most pivotal times of their lives, by being their first interaction with the English language. She is a constant steady presence devoted to making sure that her students are learning and adapting to American culture.