Audio Transcript Auto-generated
- 00:01 - 00:07
Hi my name is Richard Alessia and actually teach 6th through 12th grade
- 00:07 - 00:08
physical education
- 00:09 - 00:15
and that is at noli indian school, it's actually in san Jacinto California.
- 00:15 - 00:17
I actually worked on a reservation on the sub boba
- 00:18 - 00:25
reservation, the suburban band of loose Ennio Indians. So uh this is my video on
- 00:26 - 00:31
why do I teach and so really um when I was in school I
- 00:31 - 00:36
had really two big influences on my life when it came to school.
- 00:36 - 00:43
Um first was was my mom, like she really wanted me to have a really good education,
- 00:43 - 00:45
she wanted me to go to college the whole nine yards.
- 00:46 - 00:49
But and so that was just something that was ingrained in me.
- 00:49 - 00:53
But the second thing was teachers, teachers that really,
- 00:53 - 00:57
really took the time that really went the extra mile
- 00:57 - 01:00
in my life and so I really really held on to that
- 01:01 - 01:05
um as I became an adult and as I started to go to college um was going down another path,
- 01:05 - 01:08
I was going in like the physical therapy arena.
- 01:09 - 01:12
Um And then I just thought back to those teachers and coaches actually,
- 01:12 - 01:13
one was a teacher, one was a coach.
- 01:13 - 01:16
Um One of the teachers, you know, I had in high school,
- 01:16 - 01:20
she was actually a math teacher but she was a former pe teacher,
- 01:20 - 01:20
so that was kind of cool.
- 01:21 - 01:24
Um But anyway again she just really saw the potential in me and so I just really
- 01:24 - 01:27
appreciate it her and just kind of pushing me
- 01:27 - 01:31
to my best abilities and the second person.
- 01:31 - 01:35
Um we called him mr b actually had him as a coach when I was a little kid,
- 01:35 - 01:40
I lived in a small town and so he was actually my little league coach,
- 01:40 - 01:42
we won a championship with him.
- 01:42 - 01:45
Uh His son was my best friend and then it's crazy, he was a teacher
- 01:46 - 01:50
in the same town um and he ended up being my high school varsity baseball coach,
- 01:50 - 01:53
but throughout that time, even from when I was a kid all throughout middle school
- 01:54 - 01:55
into high school,
- 01:55 - 01:58
he was he was a really big influence on me um
- 01:58 - 02:02
from coaching to teaching and just his life in general.
- 02:02 - 02:03
Um you know, being a dad
- 02:04 - 02:05
um and all those things,
- 02:05 - 02:07
so really there's like three things that really stand out to me
- 02:08 - 02:13
when it comes to, why do I teach? The first one is I want to be able to
- 02:14 - 02:14
equipped
- 02:15 - 02:18
alright, equipped. Um My students
- 02:18 - 02:21
uh not just with knowledge but really with life skills,
- 02:21 - 02:28
like really trying to relate um what how how we can take the content especially in pe
- 02:28 - 02:31
and and really related to their real lives alright because a lot
- 02:31 - 02:34
of time that's where the disconnect happens and so I I really,
- 02:34 - 02:38
truly feel passionate about equipping this next generation.
- 02:38 - 02:39
The other ones who are gonna be the next teachers,
- 02:39 - 02:41
the other ones is gonna be the next principles and
- 02:41 - 02:43
the other one's gonna be next leaders in our country,
- 02:43 - 02:48
so I think it's vital um and and and in my heart why I teach is to
- 02:48 - 02:52
equipped really, um, the next generation, the next thing is um,
- 02:52 - 02:54
really to encourage them
- 02:54 - 02:55
honestly.
- 02:55 - 02:57
Uh, my students,
- 02:57 - 02:59
a lot of them most of the time don't really
- 02:59 - 03:02
feel encouraged to kind of have their future in mind,
- 03:02 - 03:03
I guess.
- 03:03 - 03:07
And so really, really encouraging them that they have the potential,
- 03:07 - 03:10
just like my teachers did just like my coach did, he saw the potential in me,
- 03:10 - 03:12
she saw the potential in me and really,
- 03:12 - 03:14
really push me towards that.
- 03:14 - 03:17
So so to encourage them that they do have the skills that they do,
- 03:17 - 03:22
um really have the potential as long as they put the work behind it.
- 03:22 - 03:25
Um, and and and and knowing that there's resources there,
- 03:25 - 03:28
encouraging them that there's resources like myself, the other teachers and,
- 03:28 - 03:31
and so much more to encourage them
- 03:31 - 03:32
that they can succeed,
- 03:32 - 03:35
whether that's college or whether that's a career or whatever the case may be,
- 03:35 - 03:36
but we're encouraging them.
- 03:36 - 03:37
And the last thing,
- 03:37 - 03:38
um, as I wrap it up,
- 03:39 - 03:40
it is really to empower them,
- 03:41 - 03:44
give them the responsibility, see how they do with it, right?
- 03:44 - 03:47
They're never going to really know what it feels like or what it really means,
- 03:47 - 03:48
right to be,
- 03:49 - 03:53
um, a responsible person, right? Unless we empower them to do so, right?
- 03:53 - 03:59
So that's just all behind all the things that we do as teachers is to empower them,
- 03:59 - 04:03
give them that responsibility, um, have that by and have that ownership,
- 04:03 - 04:06
that they can really, really feel like, wow, I accomplished something.
- 04:06 - 04:12
And so that that's really, um, at the core of who I am as a teacher, um,
- 04:12 - 04:14
and my philosophy and,
- 04:14 - 04:17
and pretty much everything that I pour into
- 04:17 - 04:20
my teaching and my students every single day,
- 04:20 - 04:22
I appreciate you guys checking out the video
- 04:22 - 04:24
and the rest of my digital reflection piece.