As CHS9 students step into C101, dim fluorescent lights create a painted ceiling with black, purple and blue to emulate a galaxy.
This is a glimpse of the environment teacher Shanna Chang has created to make her students feel excited for AP Human Geography.
Chang spent a significant amount of her life not knowing what her career would be. She attended Irving MacArthur High School and dedicated her high school years towards joining the military by training through ROTC. After graduating in 2005, she joined the Air Force. Due to a knee injury in 2006, she got discharged from basic training and proceeded to leave the Air Force.
Over the next 10 years she explored various careers, dedicating time to find what she enjoyed and what she did not. As she was exploring her interests, her friend mentioned she possessed teacher-like qualities leading her to pursue a career in teaching.
‘“I was actually helping a coworker learn about Abraham Lincoln,” Chang said. “As I was explaining this idea to her, she looked at me and said, ‘Wow, you would make a really good teacher.’ It was the first time I had ever considered it, I was kind of a slacker in high school so I never thought I could be a good teacher.”
Chang has a special bond with both her coworkers and students as they see the passion that she embodied to make a change in others’ learning experiences. Her ability to connect with her students on a personal level showcases her level of understanding and connection, allowing her to actively engage in conversations and create a secure learning atmosphere.
“I admired how much she genuinely cared about her students,” CHS sophomore Reeza Koirala said. “She made sure that she knew so many different ways to explain one thing so that everyone would be able to understand almost every single situation. In general she was just a nice person to talk to,she felt like a friend to me sometimes.”
Chang incorporates multiple learning styles to best fit each student with different strengths. She uses competition as a motivating factor to encourage her students to be the best they can, using a Harry Potter point system throughout the year. Each class is split into the four Harry
Potter houses – Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin – and as students do homework they gain points with the winners at the end of the semester getting prizes.
“I definitely do think that the point system did help me improve because when you’re competitive, the main focus is to get something and do it right,” CHS sophomore Aanya Bhasin said. “I also had a motivation to actually do my work which paid off in the long run.”
With her work ethic and organizational skills, Chang is considered as “the maker” of the AP Human Geography education team. She is in charge of producing most of the assignments and activities. With the dedication and time she spends on AP Human Geography, her passion goes beyond what she does in her classroom.
“The enthusiasm and dedication she has for AP Human Geography is what makes her different from other teachers,” CHS biology teacher Hilary Schieffer said. “She just has this endless knowledge of the content about the subject that I could only ever dream about,”
The classroom that she built is a reflection of her personality. The variety of vibrant colors are displayed through her lights and cartoon posters give insight into who she is out of class. Her desk is filled with textbooks along with play figures of her interests.
“You come in and it’s a good place, it feels good to be there,” freshman Sneha Mittal said. “Everyday when I come into class she finds a way to incorporate her humor while making the class fun. There’s been no other classroom that has been as inviting and welcoming as that room is.”
Chang’s attempt to put a piece of herself into every lesson and everything she does makes learning just a little bit easier for her students.
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