MetEast High School

Teacher of the Year

2006-2007 Teachers of the Year

Mr. J Thompson

Teacher of the year is a great honor, and every teacher at MetEast deserves the honor. I teach my students among other things that the sky is the limit and the issues in the city should serve as motivation for them to further their education and return to the city with aspirations of changing the culture of the city to be a more positive and productive community. I tell the students about my learning experiences and struggles growing up in Camden with hopes that they will realize that there is nothing that can stop them if they put their mind to it. Again, it is an honor to be selected not once but twice, and that this means I am touching the lives of the students that I educate.

Mr. Turkot

Mr. Turkot’s Philosophy

It has been an honor and a privilege working at MetEast High School. Being an advisor I have had the opportunity to work with students on an individual level. In doing so, I have been able to help them strive to meet their potential, both academically in advisory and professionally in the pursuit of their passions and interests through internships. It has been a unique experience for the students of MetEast and a pleasure for me to have been a part of that experience. It is with the up-most confidence that I can say that our students will be successful in whatever future endeavors they undertake and it is with anticipation that I look forward to seeing them make a difference in the world.

2005-2006 Teacher of the Year is

Mr. J. Thompson

Ms. Ghidiu

Ms. Ghidiu's Philosophy

It is my belief that each student learns differently, yet each student must have a grasp of the same types of learning in preparation for entry into the real world. As such, my teaching philosophy involves teaching in every different modality, and teaching students about the ways they learn best.

I know that students are most engaged, when the learning is active. As such, I employ discovery learning as often as possible in the classroom. Not only are students excited about discovery learning, but they will hold the lessons they gain from this type of learning for much longer.

Discovery learning also contributes to my goal of creating life-long learners. I want my students to enjoy learning, to seek it out at every turn. To work toward this goal, I do my best to find out what each student is interested in, and build their learning goals around that. By pursuing a passion, discovering new and useful information, students engage in the world around them, and begin to understand how to learn.

Finally, it is the goal of my school, as well as my own goal that each student be taught one at a time. This means that I will make time for one-on-one teaching for each student every week—both inside and outside of the school. My hope is to devote at least a half an hour a week to each student. During this time, I can diagnose, tutor, counsel, and support each student. In this way, we will come to depend and trust and grow with each other for the four years we are together.