Noyce Scholar Profile

Nathan Bridge
Undergraduate major or graduate field of study: Philosophy
Subject area(s) and grade level teaching focus: Mathematics
Category of scholarship/fellowship:
Noyce Teaching Fellow
Name of Noyce institution:
San Francisco State University
Current academic or teaching status:
Math Teacher
School and school district:
International High School/French-American School, San Francisco
Background:
I majored in Philosophy and History at Bucknell University in Pennsylvania. I received my MA in Humanities from the University of Chicago. I taught Political Philosophy and Logic at Harold Washington College in Chicago before deciding to go back to school to study mathematics in order to obtain a California Teaching Credential for Mathematics. I currently teach 7th-10th grade math at the International School of San Francisco.
Why do you want to teach:
I have always loved collaborating with others on projects that I find meaningful. So working together with students to learn mathematics is the ideal job for me.
Describe a memorable teaching experience:
Mine is not a single experience, but a series of experiences with an 8th grade student who told me early in the school year that he was a bad math student. We proceeded to set small obtainable goals, which then turned into him visiting me every other lunchtime office hour and then eventually resulted in him receiving a B+ in the class. The look of pride on his face when he received his grade was inspiring in itself.
What does the Noyce program mean to you:
The Noyce program has provided me with a space to collaborate with creative, like minded, and passionate educators and future educators about topics ranging from the grandest of ideas to minutest of details.