Be Suttle
In 2014 Licking Valley High School got a new English teacher, Mrs. Suttle. Before coming to Licking Valley, she taught at Centennial, which is a high school in the city of Columbus. Teaching in two different school settings has given her a way to see what is the same and different between urban and rural schools.
Although the two different types of schools might be displayed as extremely different, the techniques in teaching and handling situations are similar. Suttle says,“Teens just want to be heard, to be truly listened to, to feel as if their voice matters.” With this in mind, she tries to show this to her student with a pen pal assignment between LVHS and the school she use to teach at.
Mrs. Suttle feels that students need to feel comfortable in her classroom so she can help them through situations. She said “ If there are problems with a student, I always approach it with that in mind - trying to have that one-on-one conversation to really listen and figure out the underlying problem. Any situation I have with a student, I will always approach it by focusing on building a relationship with that student first”.
Many of her students say they actually enjoy being in English class not just because of her assignments and how they are relevant to life, but also because of her engaging personality. Jazmyne Robinson said, “She really grabs my attention in class because she cares about her students and is always energetic.”
The students also like that she always helps them when they are struggling with their assignment or when they don’t understand it. Junior Anna West excitedly stated, “ I love how she always gives really good examples of what we are suppose to be doing!” For example, when she teaches her students about quotations she made up the quotation sandwiches.
Teachers are an important aspect of a student's life, so Licking Valley High School is glad to have Mrs. Suttle because “she is such a good teacher,” says junior Camryn Miller.
Mrs. Suttle inspires students to keep going even when life is rough and is a great example of a strong and hardworking person in the education system.
