By Fatimah Nouilati
Staff Writer
Michael Estabrook is a new English teacher at Westford Academy.
Q: What brought you to a teaching career here at WA?
A: Well, I started college as a journalism major. I loved journalism in high school and was on the newspaper for three years. I went into college thinking it was what I wanted to do with my life. I still have an interest in journalism, but when I was in college I decided I did not want to make a career out of it. When I decided I wanted to get into teaching I felt like it fit my personality better than being a journalist, so now I’m teaching and I couldn’t be happier.
Q: Where did you go to college?
A: UMass Lowell.
Q: What classes are you teaching this year?
A: Sophomore and Senior CP English. I like teaching seniors, I taught them last year too. There’s something about seniors, it’s like they have an air about them. It’s fun being in a class with seniors. They’re more open, have more confidence, and feel more comfortable sharing their opinions.
Q: What would you say are your best and worst parts of a day as a teacher?
A: The best part is definitely interacting with students a ton. It makes everything worthwhile knowing you can help students and maybe have a positive impact on their day. My least favorite part is I beat myself up a lot if I didn’t think the lesson went as well as I wanted. Because of my personality I might overthink that a lot and worry too much.
Q: Is there a certain part of English you enjoy teaching most?
A: I like when we have class discussions and how we can talk about what we’re reading connects to their lives, because I think that is the best part of English. It makes more of an impact when you can take something from the characters and themes of what you’re reading. It can help you understand the world better.
Q: Is there anything you’re looking forward to in your here at WA even out of English?
A: I’m excited to just improve. I did my student teaching here last year and there were things that I knew I could’ve done better and be stronger at. I’m glad to be back here and improving on those things. That’s what I’m excited for – learning from my experiences and getting better as a teacher.
Q: Is there anything about you that you would like your students or even the faculty to know?
A: I love to run. I try to do that as much as possible, but with the teaching schedule I don’t get to run everyday so when I get out there I appreciate it even more. I love listening to music, that’s something I try to do as much as possible. At the end when you come home and listen to your favorite music it kind of feels you out and makes you feel better. I like watching movies and talking about movies.