FISD Secondary Teacher of the YEAR
Norbert Freckmann Ph.DI
studied at the Southwest Texas State University at San Marcos (18 credits;
GPA 4.0; 2001-3), at the Technical University of Braunschweig, Germany (Ph.
D; 1986-1992), at the State University of New York at Albany, NY (M.A.; GPA
4.0; 1982-3), and at the Technical University of Braunschweig, Germany
(M.A.; 1979-1985). I worked at the Department of English and English
Linguistics at my hometown university in Braunschweig as student tutor;
teaching assistant, lecturer, assistant professor (1985-1999) and I have
been teaching at Floresville HS since August 2000. Outside of teaching, I
play soccer and badminton, perform mathemagical tricks, listen to Jazz, try
to solve the New York Times crossword puzzles and hear and watch my
daughters perform. I have been nominated three times for Who’s Who Among
America’s High School Teachers and my UIL students and teams have won
district competition all three years I have been coaching it.
I love the daily interaction with my juniors and seniors. I
enjoy teaching, sharing knowledge, inspiring young adult minds to lifelong
learning. I feel rewarded daily when I see my students’ smiles as they grasp
important ideas, when I hear their “Now, I see!”, “That’s so cool,” or “Hey,
I can do this!”, or when they raise their hand to suggest an
alternative solution, a more effective approach to a vexing problem. I show
students that I notice them, treat them with kindness and respect and
actively listen. I really try get to know them. I earn their respect as a
very patient instructor who works incredibly hard and strives for
excellence. They notice that I explain clearly by adopting a step-by-step,
non-intimidating approach to concept presentation. I believe I am teaching
effectively because I compliment and praise a great deal but also critically
analyze students' work and provide thoughtful, corrective feedback. My
students and I enter student-teacher relationships with high expectations.
They know I aim to objectively and accurately assess their progress. And I
serve all this with a great sense of humor.
I am interested in teaching enduring, big math ideas, which have
lasting value beyond the classroom. I want the students to fully
understand core processes at the heart of the discipline.