Teacher Focus - Mr. Jimenez

Math is notorious for being the subject that students are the least confident in and where they often give up because they are not a “math person”. Many times, this happens because a student stops trying for many reasons. At Patriot High School, we have our fair share of math teachers who go above and beyond to ensure the success of their students. 

One of these teachers is Mr. Jimenez, who teaches AP Calculus AB and Math I. He is a relatively new teacher who surpassed all expectations of what ensuring students’ success in an AP course looks like. In fact, in his first year as an AP instructor, his students earned a 100% pass rate on the AP Calculus AB exam. 

When asked about his anticipation leading up to exam scores release day, Mr. Jimenez described how anxious he was to see the results and how he remembers the moment exactly. He couldn’t sleep, and when he finally woke up and saw the time was 5 AM, his first thought was to check the scores. He logged onto his computer and saw not one single “2” on the report, he was elated. He credits the success of his students to their belief in themselves. He thinks it is incredibly important for students to believe in themselves and to be confident in their learning abilities. In his own time as a student, he earned above a 4.0 GPA and taught himself Calculus. Because of this, he can recognize the capabilities of a student, and hopes that the student can also see it for themselves.

Speaking of self confidence, Mr. Jimenez shared that he wants all of his students to leave his class feeling confident in themselves. He shares how once students reach college, they find out a bit too late, how much different it is from high school. In college, professors do not have to spend outside time helping students understand concepts, and most professors don’t give extra help to their students. Mr. Jimenez feels that students, while still in high school, need to grow their concepts and take advantage of the extra opportunities teachers offer while they still can. 

Mr. Jimenez strongly believes in group work. He shares how math is the type of subject where you can know how to solve the problem, but struggle to explain the steps of how to solve a problem. By working with other students, this forces individuals to deepen their understanding of certain topics by explaining thoroughly with words how to solve different problems. It also allows for students to learn different perspectives and ways to solve problems.

On top of being a full time teacher, Mr. Jimenez enjoys rock climbing, completing puzzles, and hanging out with his wife. A fun fact about himself is that he learned how to solve a Rubix cube in the 4th grade, and now he can solve one in under a minute. 

In closing, Mr. Jimenez is very passionate about not only teaching his students, but also helping them unlock their confidence in their own learning. He wants all of his students to reach success, and success comes from hard work and dedication to your learning.