Nettz wins PM’s Teaching Excellence Award

Dean Netto, aka Nettz, is an emcee, teacher, and member of Hip Hop Headucatorz. This year, he was the recipient of the Prime Minster’s Award for Teaching Excellence. Here is an interview he did about receiving this accolade.

“If you are excited on Monday morning to show up, then this is the right place for you.

Don’t be afraid to get messy.

Don’t be afraid to try new things.

Don’t be afraid to make mistakes.

A factor that contributes to student success would be engagement. If they don’t believe in what it is they’re learning, then the chances that they’re going to retain it, will be a lot less.

One of the best practices that I use in my classroom would be getting students to get up and get messy with the math.

Get up there and try things. Be wrong.

Erase it, start again

And also try to find new ways to solve problems that may not necessarily be what it is I’m, “quote, unquote,” looking for.

It’s important for students to develop technological skills because it gives them feedback. Immediate feedback of what it is that they’re doing.

In my class we use a graphing software called Desmos. And it allows the kids, right away, if they’re working on solving equations or they’re working on graphing, or they’re working on a real-world problem that requires them to pull data out. It gives them the answers. It gives them the graphs right away. It allows them to know that they’re doing it correctly or allows them to revisit and critically think about where they’re at in the process.

If you decide that this is the profession for you, you’ve made an incredible decision to change the lives of so many people.

The message that I have for my students, change is inevitable. You have no idea where your life is going to take you. Focus on creating and maintaining good habits because that is what’s going to get you to where you want to be and that’s what’s going to make you successful in life and at the end of all of this,

I got you.”