METU, EDS 200 Section: 1

Name/surname: Eda Ravza Canayakın

ID: 2567923

Subject: Reflective paper on teacher effectiveness

Firstly, in the film, Jamie Escalante goes to Garfield High School to work as a
Computer Science teacher. After hearing that there is no computer to work on in that school,
he starts working as a math teacher. In the first class, Jaime Escalante (Kimo) reveals his
patience by waiting for students to sit down and pay attention to him, even though it is
obvious that students in that school are very problematic as they exhibit misbehaviors such as
moving in the classroom unnecessarily and mocking their teachers. In the second class, he
uses creativity in teaching by bringing apples in class and cutting them in front of the students
to show fractions in Maths, which shows us his enthusiastic side. He moves around the class
and waits patiently for them to answer when he asks questions to maintain attention in class.
He also uses his gestures, volume and eye contact efficiently to make class more interesting.
When one of the students, Lupe, refuses to take the quiz, Kimo says “You don’t do your
homework, you don’t get a ticket to watch the show.” as having her sat in front of the whole
class represents a show and other students are audience of it in which he creates warm and
humorous atmosphere in the class. Mr. Escalante also conveys his warmth and support by
minding Ana’s situation in which she almost drops out of school as her father wants her to
work in his restaurant, while talking with her father in order to intervene it. In the following
classes, after seeing his students’ potential in subject, he decides to teach Calculus to them
even though Principal Molina and a teacher, Raquel Ortega, reject it. We can clearly see
Escalante’s high expectations from his students in relevant scenes in terms of learning
Calculus, which then turns into a “self-fulfilling prophecy” in the film. For instance, Pancho
gives up easily as he struggles with calculus nearly choosing a job over his education,
however, Escalante convinces him to not give up. After that, he correctly answers a problem
he's been struggling with. Throughout the film, Mr. Escalante deals with his students’
problems in such cases while teaching them the subject in an organized and goal-oriented way
by encouraging them with his clear expectations. Indeed, he performs his teaching profession
in such devoted way that he writes notes on paper and has a nurse slip them to his students so
they can continue studying, after being hospitalized due to a heart attack. Later in the film,
Mr. Escalante encourages his students to retake the exam by revealing credibility when they
are accused of cheating in the Advanced Placement Test. In conclusion, Jamie Escalante
represents teacher effectiveness with his traits like humor, enthusiasm and having higher
expectations from students which results in students’ success in the exam.
METU, EDS 200 Section: 1
Name/surname: Eda Ravza Canayakın
ID: 2567923