Editor’s note: To read profiles of all 2018 Blackboard Awards honorees, click HERE!
Ronie L. Mataquel
Grades 9-12 Common Core Geometry, Algebra 2,
College Algebra & College Math Focus
John Bowne High School
Tell us about some of the special joys and challenges you’ve experienced as
a teacher.
One of my special joys as a teacher was when I made the fateful trip to the United States of America to work as an international teacher. The bitterness of leaving loved ones behind is a reality that every Filipino craving for a greener pasture can never conceal. In frustration of being away from my family and adjusting to this environment, I ventured into other odd jobs. A few months later, I felt the hunger of going back into the classroom, and wound up in the Big Apple. This experience gives me joy because the challenges I’ve overcome has given me the lifetime opportunity to change lives.
Please share a special project or achievement that you are particularly proud of from this year.
For the past five years, I’ve been teaching Math College Focus, a remedial class for students who are not college ready. I prepare students to take the CUNY placement exam. I used an online tool to help students practice specific topics to master the concepts and to track their individual progress. I am proud to say that my remedial classes have the most students passing the CUNY exam!
What keeps you motivated and committed to being a dedicated and hard-working educator?
In my limited capacity as a teacher, it is very difficult to measure the impact we’ve made on students until we hear them utter simple words of appreciation. To hear them express that what they’ve learned in the four walls of my classroom proved worthwhile is very rewarding. To make a difference in students’ lives is beyond compare. That’s what makes me motivated and committed and I do it with joy, one student at a time.
What do you love about your school?
Known for its agriculture program, John Bowne High School is a school uniting many cultures of teachers and students of multi-racial origins where I feel I truly belong. JBHS is a home that honed me to be who I am today and provided me with good leadership and an opportunity to grow as a teacher.
