Editor’s Note: This is the first in a series of five stories in honor of Teacher Appreciation Week.
Math has been the subject that I have always enjoyed growing up. Well, that lasted up until my sophomore year when math became more difficult for me. Suddenly, math became the class that I dreaded the most.
After surviving advanced Algebra 2, I am now a junior in Advanced Pre-Calculus and I soon realized that this APC is only harder than Algebra 2. Mrs. Colleen Gogerty is my teacher this year and in the beginning of the year, I didn’t realize how blessed I am with her as my teacher.
“She’s easily one of the most caring teachers at west. You could tell she’s very passionate about her job and does her best to guide her students towards the right path in math and in life as well,” junior Alen Radeljic said.
Gogerty takes all of her students opinion into matter.
“Mrs. Gogerty is not only an amazing math teacher that I’ve learned so much from, but she also connects with her students individually and connects with them in a personal way,” junior Anastasia Webb said.
I had a difficult time in some units such as identities and conics as well as my classmates, but Mrs. Gogerty never gave up on anyone. She constantly pushes her students and rewards them with candy and Cuties (clementines) when they’re under a lot of stress and are in need of a little motivation.
Having Mrs. Gogerty as my APC teacher has rekindled my love for math. I now enjoy taking on problems that I never imagined that I would be able to solve. I have also never considered teaching for a career path, but now, I realized that I’d be lucky to be a teacher one day and make a difference in a students life like Mrs. Gogerty has on mine.
