Noyce Scholar Profile
Paul Anserlian
Undergraduate major or graduate field of study: Biological Sciences
Subject area(s) and grade level teaching focus: Biology/life science
Category of scholarship/fellowship:
Fifth year or post-baccalaureate Noyce scholar
Name of Noyce institution:
CSU Stanislaus
Current academic or teaching status:
Second Semester Student Teacher
School and school district:
Escalon High School
Background:
I come from a town of 7,000 people and 30,000 cows. A town where football and baseball reign supreme, even over academics. I always kept good grades and kept above a 3.8, but that did not mean anything here. I went on to college and wanted to become a teacher and change that outlook.
Why do you want to teach:
In high school I hated science. I later realized in college that the reason I hated science was because of the teacher teaching the subject. I grew to love biology in particular, but always striving to learn the reason how things work. I want to become a teacher so that I can change the view of science being boring subject and get rid of the idea that students enter the classroom with of, “I can’t do it, it’s too hard.”
Describe a memorable teaching experience:
The best teaching experience I have ever had is when my first day of teaching I instituted a lesson plan that I had come up with completely by myself. The reason it was the best day in my mind, besides being my own works, is because of what happened at the end of class. I had students from every period asking me what we were doing the next day.
What does the Noyce program mean to you:
The Noyce program, to me, means two things. One, a college education. I would not be able to have afforded to continue on in my college en devour if it was not for the Noyce scholarship. I fell into the gap of my parents “made too much”, but they were not supporting me. Two, I feel like Noyce makes me a better prospect as a teacher candidate for a job opening versus someone who was not. I have been to many different types of conferences and professional development opportunities around the state, and it shows.
