Philisophical Learning A Profile of Jeff Morgan “Con mis maestros he aprendido mucho; con mis colegas, más; con mis alumnos todavía más.”
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eñor Morgan has been changing the lives of countless students by creating a positive learning atmosphere, while incorporating life lessons into his class discussions. His philosophy on life is that the key to happiness derives from your sociality and
how often you engage in personal interactions with others. Having taught Spanish for a total of seventeen years, Jeff has experienced just about every type of student. Consequently, he has learned how to approach his students in a unique manner based on their individual personality. These characteristics are very important when it comes to teaching because, as LouAnne Johnson stated, “Teaching requires a solid grasp of motivational techniques, leadership and conflict resolution skills as well as human psychology”.
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magine that you’re a lems with. Wouldn’t you want action. “Hey, are you okay?” young teenager who, someone to talk to, perhaps a was all that was needed to be one day, is down on their teacher who understands the said to begin a therapeutic
luck. You’ve been holding hardships of a young student conversation. He describes back tears all day, and your such as yourself? Most people how he didn’t have a magic last period is about to begin would never attempt to con- solution to make her feel bet-- you’re almost done! You front a girl who’s silently sob- ter, he just simply empathized open up your locker only to bing in front of her locker as with the girl, adding in a, “that see your melancholic reflec- they’re too scared of what the sounds difficult,” from time to tion staring back at you. This outcome may be. Fortunately time, and was able to make is enough to tip you over the enough, Jeff Morgan isn’t like her feel better. It was at this edge and make you start cry- most people. Jeff witnessed time that Jeff discovered his ing. You have no one to look up this situation first hand and, passion to become a teacher. to or to talk about your prob- sure enough, decided to take
“I connected with that experience, it felt good doing that. I felt like me by doing that. I like that. I would like to work with younger kids. It wasn’t the passion of wanting to become an English teacher, it wasn’t that I was passionate about literature or reading… it was teaching and working with the younger kids.”
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nce he realized that his interest in being a teacher wasn’t only teaching the correct criteria, but rather creating relationships with his students, he decided to participate in school programs that allowed him to become closer with his pupils. One program that the school offers is called Camp Everytown, where a selected number of diverse students “take a profound journey straight into the heart of their being” (Camp Everytown Official Website). These students come from all sorts of ethnic and economic backgrounds, and the focus of camp is to allow everyone to learn the hardships of prejudice and poverty. From time to time, a student will share an extremely personal story in front of all their peers, often causing them to break down in tears. This is exactly the reason why Jeff decides to participate in these programs; he loves to get close with people and show sympathy and empathy towards them. He loves to get to know his stu-
dents on a deeper level, not just an academic one. As he says, “When you get everyone away from the group and school and you give them a chance to say what’s really on their mind, everyone has their difficulties and the things that are stressing them out... It’s just a reminder when you go to class that just because everyone is getting their work done and is smiling, there’s a lot below the surface and it’s always a good idea to work on creating that effort in the classroom and creating the confidence they need to be successful” (J. Morgan). His philosophy of confidence is absolutely spot on. The same idea is exemplified in the book America’s Best Classrooms, in which authors Daniel and Terry Seymour state, “Good teachers understand the value of building a child’s self-esteem, as well as the importance of treating all students as valuable, contributing members of the classroom” (48). Jeff demonstrates these values in his classroom on a regular day basis by giving every student the equal opportunity to learn. Senor Morgan is able to sympathize not only with those who grew up suffering hardships from prejudice, financial, or social issues, but he is also able to empathize with those who grew up with bullying.
Jeff was born in Berkeley and lived there until the fourth grade when he moved to Piedmont, and attended Piedmont High School. Change as a young student is never easy, and especially being in elementary school, it threw his whole social life for a loop. He didn’t know anyone there, which made him feel unimportant and shy. He was bullied from time to time, and though it was never more than a few jokes thrown his way or being tossed into a pool as an attempt at humor, it still made him feel uncomfortable every day he attended school. These experiences have consequently allowed him to relate with his students who are considered “unpopular”. These memories and feelings from childhood have ultimately shaped his desire to create a comfortable environment for his students. As he says, “The two things that have had the biggest impact on me is the teachers and the experiences as a student, and
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it was pretty negative” (J. Morgan). Luckily, once he graduated from high school, he was able to make friends once he was accepted into Chico State. He attended Chico for three years; however, he soon realized that he wasn’t making much educational progress as he was too focussed on unproductive activities. After making this conscious realization, he enrolled in a few Junior colleges before getting accepted into the prestigious school of U.C. Berkeley! Around 1996, he graduated from Berkeley with a credential to become an English teacher, but after a trip to Spain one summer, he realized he had a large interest in Spanish culture. The summer trip soon turned into a full year where he taught English to the children in that area. After this year of teaching in Spain, he returned to the U.S. and decided to enroll in Vermont Middlebury College’s program that helped him receive his teaching credential as a Spanish teacher. Jeff Morgan saw this opportunity as the perfect equilibrium between teaching and implementing life lessons as he states that “the beauty of teaching a language is that you get to discuss ideas and stuff and it doesn’t take us away from our fluency when we talk about real issues that really affect people and topics like that.” From Monday to Friday, you can find Señor Morgan in room 611 teaching his students with a smile from ear to ear. As Jeff teaches a foreign language, I rarely hear any English coming from his classroom, as he makes sure to maintain a strict “Spanish only” rule. From time to time, 4 there will be a break in Spanish
speaking, and he will use English to make his students laugh and smile through occasional jokes and cheap references. During my second interview with him, I asked him what his main methods were to keep his students laughing and having a good time, and he responded, “Well, I think it [all] goes to my character, I’m a very social person, and I like other people to be comfortable and happy. It’s just a natural way, it’s how I behave whether I’m teaching or having friends over for dinner. It may also be connected to the idea that I didn’t have such a great experience in high school, and so I wanted to make it better for other people. I don’t want it to be class after class of feeling put upon and stressed out and uncomfortable, I want people to feel comfortable” (J. Morgan). His theory is that, by creating a comfortable and welcoming classroom environment, the students will be more inclined to speak fluently and to “take risks that [they] weren’t willing to take when [they] felt insecure or defensive” (J. Morgan). Echoing this sentiment, Roberta Ford, Colorado Teacher of the Year, believes that “it takes an indefatigable sense of humor to be a great teacher.” Jeff is able to accomplish this goal through his humorous side that allows him to brighten his students’ moods on a daily basis. The teaching profession, even though it holds many advantages and joys, can be extremely difficult and irritating from time to time. Being enrolled in educational courses from pre-school to senior year of highschool, I and many others can attest that there’s always one “class-clown”
who feels the need to be disruptive and inappropriately playful while class is in session. These students can turn any teacher’s day from pleasant to gloomy in a matter of seconds. However, Señor Morgan sees these students in a different lighting than most teachers. When I asked him how he viewed these disruptive students, he responded, “I think that often one of my challenges is that I sometimes do let my emotions, when I’m frustrated or upset, bubble up or come to the surface…” (J. Morgan). The point of view that differentiates himself from other teachers is that he says how their disruptions are usually caused “when we just can’t understand each other.” Rather than avoiding confrontations with them, he views them as viable learners and attempts to motivate them in a respectful manner. Furthermore, he says, “My biggest obstacle is to try and motivate kids who are not doing the work, but I found a way to make sure I’m always respecting the kids and their choices in attempt to motivate them without denigrating them.” That way, “even though I’m not perfect at it, if something happens, it doesn’t personally destroy the relationship…” (J. Morgan). You’d think that after seventeen years of teaching, he would have seen it all, but he admits, “Every year I’m learning something with teaching -- every day, and not just superficial stuff, I really am, it’s a constant process. Just like as a father, or as a son, you continue to grow” (J. Morgan). Even though there exists a common belief that teachers live at school, Morgan lives a balanced life. As a matter
of fact, he prioritizes his family greatly over his job. He is married to his lovely wife, Cecilia, with whom he cares and nurtures his amiable son, Dante. When it comes to family, Jeff and Cecilia work as a team to make sure they’re providing the proper care for their son through activities and building countless memories. They enjoy playing at the park, going to the movies, dancing, listening to music, running and simply sitting together and talking with Dante. Perhaps their favorite activity is going to the beach together. Cecilia explains, “Usually we enjoy going to the beach, when we’re on vacation, that’s usually our number one thing that the three of us want to do. We can stay there forever… the beach is very important for us as a family” (C. Morgan). My heart melted as both Jeff and Cecilia explained their kind and genuine family values to me - they resembled a perfect family. One thing that influenced my opinion was when Jeff reminisced about how he remembers “that when Dante was born I would have family members who would tell me ‘don’t pick him up so much, they get dependant on all that cuddling and nurture,’ but our philosophy at our home was that it’s never bad to care for someone, and it does actually give them more of an opportunity to become independent in the long run because it gives them that confidence and security that they need” (J. Morgan). Cecilia, having grown up in Peru with strong family values, has been an extremely influential
partner for Jeff. “Beyond just the satisfaction and joy of spending time together since we share the same values, [marriage has] also been very influential on my career and a lot of values that I have are reflected in Cecilia, and I’m continuously shaped by her” (J. Morgan). The most outstanding part about their family, perhaps, is that they are not only creating a healthy bond with Dante, but they are doing so through exercise! Cecilia started running around four years ago and when Jeff saw this, he was motivated to join her. They’ve been training ever since, running half marathons, running up hiking trails and generally running whenever they can. Positively influenced by his parents, Dante competed in his first race, a one mile marathon, when he was only five years old! Cecilia explained to me how Dante loved running and has been practicing with Jeff ever since. All of this inspiration and family bonding is what makes Señor Morgan the happy person he is today, so it’s easy to under-
stand why he wants nothing more out of his life than to grow old with his wife while they raise their son. I asked him what he hopes to accomplish in the future, perhaps if there was a goal he felt obligated to accomplish before he retired, but once again, in seeking a straight answer, I received another philosophical response: “I don’t envision it in terms of a specific accomplishment, but rather more of an evolution or a continual growth. I think one of the things that brings satisfaction to life is that constant sense of contribution, connection and growth… and I have a family and situation that allows me all those three things” (J. Morgan). When Dante leaves, however, Jeff and Cecilia hope they can move to another country, one that’s preferably Spanish speaking, such as Peru or Spain, because they enjoy the atmosphere so much. But in the meantime, he smiled to me and said, “I don’t have any big accomplishments, I don’t want to write a book or do anything rather than simply raising my child and enjoying my family and teaching” (J. Morgan).
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Work Cited Morgan, Jeff, Personal Interview, Sept. 21. Morgan, Jeff, Personal Interview, Oct. 4. Morgan, Cecilia, Personal Interview, Oct. 12. Louanne Johnson. Teaching Outside the Box, New York: Aug. 2005. Seymour, Daniel, and Terry Seymour. America’s Best Classrooms: How Award-winning Teachers Are Shaping Our Children’s Future. Princeton, N.J.: Peterson’s Guides, 1992.
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