By David Soberanes-Rivera
Unbeknownst to most Gators, there is a high ranking math expert on campus – from teaching at LSUS to teaching Algebra II and above, Mrs. Allison Simon has surpassed many expectations, showing great results from her AP Calculus scores.
Mrs. Simon’s day-to-day may be different compared to other teachers, but all of that does not have any impact with her being a Department Chair, because it’s something she loves doing, causing no burden to her.
“Being the Math Department Chair doesn’t necessarily help me teach my students, but more like: I am the department chair because I have a lot of background knowledge of math,” Mrs. Simon said. Being someone with so much authority means that you also gain much wisdom, and sharing this with her students and other teachers is key for a great learning environment.
When asked to elaborate on her AP Calculus scores, Mrs. Simon said, “So, I had all fifteen pass – 100% pass rate- so I was really excited about that.” The AP tests are graded on a 1-5 point scale, 3 being considered passing and anything below that considered failing. “Eight of them made a five, seven of them made a four, and one of them made a one,” said Mrs. Allison when asked about the scores.
Since she is able to teach her students for three consecutive years – if they take Algebra 2, Pre-Calculus, and AP Calculus – there is a sense of comfort allowing Mrs. Simon and the students to start fast on the material. In her class, most of the work they do is collaborative. They do work with the goal of making sure that everyone gets a chance to learn something new.
Mrs. Simon makes sure that the students have a deep understanding of the material they learn in class, instead of learning a bunch of formulas that do not give them all the information they need. Following the curriculum gives her something to work towards, but she feels like students need to focus more on the material and understanding the ‘why’ of every question rather than focusing too much on their grade.
The goal of school is to learn, and it is Mrs. Simon’s pleasure to help her students get closer to that goal. Her methods are fun, entertaining, and group oriented – a great environment for learning.