New Year New Teachers - Ms. Phung
Ms. Phung working at her computer in her class in the math hall
The Math Teacher Who’s Changing the Game! Ms. Phung , a new math teacher at Estancia is making a big difference to her students in her first year here. She works in the math hall along with other teachers and brings her past experience here to continue her career.
Hearing good things about Estancia through a friend she went to UCI with, she wanted to experience it herself. When Phung saw an opening, “I jumped for it,” she said.
Before transferring to Estancia, she had been working in Inglewood. “When I was working in Inglewood, it was a really long drive. And so honestly I just wanted to get something closer to home.”, she shared. With Estancia being closer to her and less of a hassle to get to, this job opportunity was the perfect fit for Phung.
When asked what motivates her to continue teaching, she said it was the students. “It’s moments when kids are like, ‘Oh, okay! That makes sense.’, because I feel like math is one of those things where if you didn't get it in the past, it's really hard to come back from it.” Phung wants and does her best to teach the students to understand something deeply and build their critical thinking skills. “It’s like a ladder. If you're missing steps, it’s going to be really hard for you to climb up that ladder. So, for me, it’s just wanting to close those gaps for kids.” she explained.
Ms. Phung standing outside her class in the math hall
Phung is passionate about students really developing their skills and encourages them to keep on pushing themselves to be their very best. When asked about her role in her students' lives as a math teacher, she said, “I want kids to be able to build those problem-solving skills and also persistence. Just because you don't get it right away doesn't mean you should stop.” She pushes her students and allows them to grow their skills while also teaching them to never give up.
Ms. Phung shared also shared how it feels to be at a new school, “It’s weird because it’s like being a whole new teacher again, so it’s kind of stressful. I think I’ve gotten to connect with some of the students and staff so that’s really nice.” Connecting with people here has made the transition easier for her and she hopes to grow the connections throughout the rest of the year.
When asking one of Phung’s students, Pamela Gonzalez, if the class helps her feel prepared for the future, she explains, “Yeah, I think it does have me prepared for future math classes because her way of teaching actually makes me understand what’s going on.” She says she feels this class with help her in future math courses because of the way Phung teaches step by step.
Ms. Phung has already made a huge difference and impact on students lives in the first semester of the year. And with the experience and care she has shown the students, she will continue to grow and help out who she can.
