Update: Mrs. Roehl has been selected as a semifinalist for the Minnesota Teacher of the Year award.
Jackie Roehl, who teaches language arts to sophomores at Edina High School, is now among 111 teachers in the state being considered for the Minnesota Teacher of the Year Award.
How did you feel after receiving news of your nomination?
Mrs. Roehl: I’ve been working for about 8 years to change the way that classes are taught at Edina so that they can be more culturally responsive to students. It’s nice to know that these changes are being recognized and in that respect I definitely feel very honored.
What is your teaching philosophy?
I believe that all students should achieve at high levels and build on their strengths. I don’t like the deficit model. I like to build on what students already know.
What inspires you to keep on teaching?
My students and my colleagues. They’re a motivated group of people. Sometimes I have to be serious with them but in the end I always end up having a lot of fun. What also keeps me going are when students come back and visit me and say, “you’ve impacted my life.”
What do you hope to achieve with your teaching?
I want to prepare people for college. I want to teach for the long term gain rather than just teaching a class and giving a grade. In addition, I want people to be able to evaluate multiple perspectives. I want students to be able to self-reflect on what they know and what they don’t know which is important when learning how to think critically.
Mrs. Roehl was nominated by colleague Kari Burnside with the assistance of Rachel Hatten.
Next week, a panel of 22 community leaders will narrow down the 111 teachers into smaller groups of semi-finalists and then finalists. The winner of the award will be announced on May 6 who will go on to become a candidate in the National Teacher of the Year Program.