Over the years, we’ve asked many students why exactly they love University High School’s three-week January Term, but we’ve never really asked why teachers love January Term. During the second week of January Term 2017, we asked some of our teachers to tell us what they enjoy most about this special time of year.
Note: Each teacher’s name is listed with the subject they teach during the regular school year as well as the J-Term course they are teaching this year.
What UHS Teachers Love About January Term
Luke Crawley, Science Teacher, The Glass Class
“January Term is my second favorite thing about University High School. Mentoring and J-Term are the two things that really set us apart. As a teacher, I like getting to teach a different topic during J-Term. I usually learn something new myself. I tend to like the classes where students make something, so sometimes you can’t do this during the regular semester because of the 45-minute classes. Even having doubles isn’t the same as being able to come in and work on something for eight hours straight. For these types of classes, I think you get even more value out of the time during J-Term.”
Tom FitzGibbon, History Teacher, Law & Justice
“January Term is a great change of pace for us as teachers because we can really go into a lot of detail with our curriculum. For me, particularly as an AP teacher, I often feel like I’m flying through the material and don’t have time to lead in-depth discussions or get into a really interesting topic in a lot of detail. But in J-Term, I can do that, which I really like. It’s also really fun to collaborate with my coworkers. I’m having a lot of fun teaching Law & Justice this year with Nancy Webster, and I’ve had a lot of fun teaching with other coworkers in the past. We don’t get a lot chances to collaborate during the school year, so it’s just really fun to be able to do that here.”
Moises Gomez-Pastor, Spanish Teacher, The Inca Civilization
“January Term definitely breaks the routine. Not just for us, but for students as well, you can tell there’s a different energy in the room during J-Term. And I think that’s a very positive thing. For everyone to be in a class they chose, you know it’s something they are passionate about to some extent. You can sense that in everything we do.”
Carolyn Bradley, Science Teacher, Oceanic Studies: Belize
“What I really like about J-Term is the chance to collaborate with other teachers, to work closely with them developing curriculum and activities and lesson plans. I like the freedom to try different things. I don’t feel as constrained about hitting particular curricular checkpoints, so I can try different ways of doing things and see if they work. I also like that I can teach subjects that I don’t get to teach the rest of the year. It’s nice to say, ‘This is a cool idea; let’s explore that for three weeks.’”
Erica Posthuma-Adams, Science Teacher, Hidden New Orleans
“My favorite part of J-Term is that I get to know students that I normally wouldn’t get to know on a deeper level. If there are kids who don’t excel in science but who might excel in the humanities, I get to see that side of them, and it’s so nice to see students in their element, being their real selves.”
Chris Morrison, Math Teacher, Life Hacks
“J-Term gives us a chance to work with other teachers and a chance to work outside our discipline, outside our regular classes. That is really nice. The schedule gives us flexibility to bring in speakers or go to places and do things that we couldn’t do in the regular semester because of time constraints. It also gives us as teachers a chance to learn a whole bunch of new stuff. We don’t always know everything about a topic before the class, but we learn it, and that makes it kind of fun.”
Anna Seldner, Spanish Teacher, The Inca Civilization
“One of the things I really enjoy about J-Term is the autonomy to do something that’s outside of my primary field or expertise. I have loved, in this year’s class, working with Susana Bollinger and Moises Gomez-Pastor, because even though we work together to some degree in the Spanish department, sometimes we don’t have enough time to coordinate as much as we’d like. We naturally fell into a rhythm and pattern of who does what, where, and how, and we feel comfortable enough with each others’ teaching that we can be in and out and each do what we need to do. Also, though this J-Term was intense in terms teaching myself the information before I taught it to students, it’s definitely been rewarding because I feel like I got to do something different and new. And that feels good.”
Jake Thurman, History Teacher, Film & Culture: The Sundance Film Festival
“What I like about January Term is that it gives teachers and students the opportunity to delve into subjects they don’t normally get to explore. It keeps me as a teacher intellectually engaged. It’s an excuse to learn more about something that I already care about, and then I get to share it with students. I also like having the same group of kids all day long. You really get to know each other pretty quickly. I feel like something that takes a week or so to happen in a semester class – like students feeling comfortable enough to talk back and forth and have actual discussion – happens quicker in J-Term because we spend so much time together.”
Alicia LaMagdeleine, Assistant Head of School & English Teacher
“What I like about January Term is the flexibility and freedom to go where the students lead me, even moreso than in the regular semester. The time frame where you’re with the same group of kids all day every day allows you to pick up a side thought and spend a lot of time on it that you hadn’t really thought about being part of your lesson. The other thing I love is just the chance to get out and off campus, to learn about the world while in the world, as opposed to while sitting at your desk.”
Collin Lawrence, History Teacher, Sports & Society
“This year, I’m teaching Sports & Society, which is a class I designed. There’s a sense of empowerment because it’s a class with topics that I am interested in that I also think students are interested in. There’s a lot of buy-in from the students because of that. What is also really cool about J-Term is that I have students in the class who are also in my World History class. In that class, they might not be fully engaged or might not be great about doing their homework, but in this class, they are fully engaged and do amazing work on their homework because the topic is something they can relate to. The other great thing about this class in particular is that sports has given me a vehicle to have conversations with students about race, about gender, about all of these hot button topics that they might be uncomfortable having conversations about in another context. But in the context of sports, they are comfortable and can relate to it and talk about it.”
Stacey Summitt-Mann, Science Teacher, Oceanic Studies: Belize
“One of my favorite things about J-Term is being able to collaborate with a coworker and having multiple perspectives to teach the same idea. A lot of times J-Term classes are interdisciplinary, so we pull strengths from each teacher to give students a broader and deeper view of the topic we’re teaching. The other thing I love is having the same kids every day for the six hours we’re teaching. We get really close with those groups, and we’re able to get them really interested in and focused on the topic.”
Callie Hartz, Theatre Teacher, Broadcast Journalism
“I like that we really get to dive into one topic during J-Term and explore it nonstop for days, as opposed to just touching the broad points of it and hoping the students can retain the material for four months. I also like that students get to learn about a unique topic that they wouldn’t get to focus on otherwise.”
Anna Shailer, French & ENL Teacher, Hidden New Orleans
“I like working with teachers outside of the world languages department during J-Term. It was kind of an adjustment at first because I don’t usually teach literature – I usually just teach grammar and language – but it has been cool to do something new.”
Justin Blanding, Health & PE Teacher, Sports & Society
“J-Term is a good way to meet students that I normally wouldn’t see during the regular semester. And the concentrated time together allows me to actually get to know them. I also like learning new material about topics that I normally wouldn’t be able to explore.”
Susana Bollinger, Spanish Teacher, The Inca Civilization
“I like that the pace of J-Term can feel quite relaxing, especially during the travel portion of a class. It’s a lot of work, and it’s an intense few weeks, but when you’re with people you feel truly comfortable around, it can be a relaxing thing.”
Meredith Van Rooy, Art Teacher, The Glass Class
“J-Term allows me to work with teachers I normally wouldn’t get to work with. It also brings in students that might not otherwise take my classes, so I get to know more students. And I get to know them a little better and be more social with them because we’re together all day, every day. It’s more concentrated time together, especially in the travel classes.”
Are you a student, alumnus, or parent with fond memories of J-Term? Share them with us in the comments below!