Well, well... let's have a look at new members of the GZAAT community. As most of you know, the school has some new teachers in the high school. Interviewing them appeared to be a very interesting and fun experience, so let’s get right into it.
Vasil Godabrelidze
Vasil Godabrelidze is a new teacher in our Math department. He received his master’s degree in mathematics from University of Alaska. When he moved to Georgia his first job here was as a math teacher in our Junior High and this year moved to high school. Even though he lives in the family of teachers he never wanted to become one. He assumes that the best thing about being a teacher is to see the results of your work.“It is really nice when you see that you’re contributing to the next generations of the country” he states. While Talking about his teaching style he said, “I am trying to let everyone express their opinion and I value it when students listen and appreciate each other’s ideas. I am trying to be as much open to students as I can, so they won’t hesitate to ask me questions and discuss their weaknesses with me”.
As he says, teaching in high school and in junior high are completely different. It is harder to gain students attention in junior high because they are less determined. Also, considering students come from different environments there are problems of misbehaving. “So, I really honor and appreciate the job that teachers in junior high do”.
His favorite thing about our school is freedom for the teachers. “This system gives the chance to teachers to rearrange curriculum, adapt it to the needs of class, and use their own methodology”. When I asked him to describe our school he said:” it is the oasis; oasis in the middle of the desert”.
Khatuna Tskhadadze
Khatuna Tskhadadze is a new teacher in our English department. She’s been teaching for twenty-two years in university. She taught Italian language at first and then switched to modern Italian literature in Tbilisi State University. As some of you know she taught elective in Italian language in our school. Also, she translates the literature. As she says there is no free time for translators, they use their “free time” to work and to concentrate on the text. Currently she is working on a book of Italian writer Italo Calvino. When she needs relaxation she visits the swimming pool, as she says swimming helps her to think.
She considers her job to be a privilege; loves sharing and learns a lot from young people. She especially enjoys teaching literature, because as she says this job is about reading books and discussing them which she really likes; and especially enjoys exchanging ideas with young people who are really interesting.” I really consider myself lucky and privileged. When you teach young students you somehow never get old, mentally I mean, because young people’s opinions are definitely different from people of my age. Also, teaching young students is interesting from the linguistic perspective. The way students talk is certainly different from the way I talk. So, because I am a translator it is always interesting for me to observe the vocabulary of my students” she states. She considers grading the worst part of being the teacher. “Young people are so interesting, there are no good ones or bad ones; or right and wrong opinions, especially in literature, and people express themselves in different ways. So, evaluating everything in terms of grades is really depressing”. She always tries to motivate her students and admits that it is a hard time for all of us. She understands that students are worried because they can’t go out to see friends or because they have to cancel some plans, but she advises to look at the bigger picture and to think about people who are having more problems in their life. She considers that empathy towards others will help students to overcome their difficulties. As already mentioned Khatuna mas really appreciates discussions and exchange of ideas, so it won’t be surprising that her favorite thing about our school is freedom of expression.
Kato Tsuladze
Kato Tsuladze, who is a new physics teacher at our school, graduated from our school and went to Smith College, then transferred to Free university where she got her bachelor’s degree in physics this August, and now she is doing her master’s degree in Ilia University. She loves theater and wants to learn how to write theater scripts, reading, cinema and basically arts. She was not certain which way to go,towards arts or sciences, but in the end she chose science. When she was at school she really liked her teachers, not only the ones she had at school, but her private teachers that she had in arts and other subjects; so, they inspired her to get involved with this profession.“When I graduated from high school and said that I wanted to become a teacher people were very surprised. One story that comes in my mind about inspirational teachers goes back to time when I was a senior. We were covering Otar Chiladze’s book and discussing how that one character never acted and was always passive. One day when the whole block wanted to go outside and asked our teacher about it she said no; she said no about 5 times and then said that those of us who wanted to go were allowed to leave. But when we stood up, she added that those of us who would go out will get an E. Some of us still went out, some stayed. And then, she added that we were reading this book to learn that we should take responsibility for our actions, and that every decision that we make will have the consequences. So, this is one of my favorite examples; she somehow without planning it transformed the material that we were learning in the book into a real-life situation. So, this is one of the most inspirational stories for me. The teacher was Nino Ghambashidze” she tells in the interview.
She gets happy when she sees that students really understand the material. The biggest change that happened after her graduation is junior high, which has a different approach and teaching style from high school. Harkness table is her favorite thing about our school from both, student and teacher perspective. Also, when she was the teacher she really loved that there were not only the same fifteen students in every class, but she was with different people in different classes. In her opinion the word that describes GZAAT best is family.
Mariam Khidesheli
Mariam Khidesheli is also an alumna of our school and is the new English teacher. She taught an elective course in cultural philosophy last year at our school. She decided to try herself in literature because she writes herself and thought that it would be interesting if someone who writes would teach literature. She is a very artistic person,loves art very much, and also enjoys doing handmade things. People who don’t know her outside of the school, especially students, would be surprised to find out that Mariam loves joking and having fun, even though she is strict on the lessons. She considers that being a teacher is a noble job, “even though it is a little selfish because you enjoy the process of teaching very much, especially when your students are really engaged and interested, being the teacher is the noblest job. It is really nice when you have an opportunity to transfer your knowledge and to learn from your students”. She says a “good day” at school is the day when she sees that students are really interested and involved in studying and really comes out of the class excited. She is always organized in class and tries to plan everything ahead. So,because she values discipline she seems strict. When she was a student her favorite part of the school life was assembly meetings on Fridays, where the whole school gathered together and discussed the whole. “This place was always very special for me and to be a teacher at a school where you graduated is very personal. I was the student when Guivy was alive, and Don was principal. This place was so special for me back then that it felt like I was going to Hogwards. And I think that this feeling, feeling that this place is different and every student does something special is still alive. Only word she uses to describe our school is home.
Edited by: Keta Tavartkiladze
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