2 teachers from Hawaii
are honored by president
Two Hawaii teachers, Pascale Pinner, of Hilo Intermediate School, and Timothy Cantley, of Sacred Hearts Academy, received $10,000 Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching this week.
They were among 95 teachers who traveled from around the country to spend the week in Washington, D.C. to be honored by President Bush.
"This is an absolute thrill," said Pinner, a science teacher who gives her students intriguing exercises such as investigating a classroom crime scene, and incorporates Hawaii's natural environment into her curriculum.
"We're surrounded by ocean, but the kids haven't really learned about it," Pinner said.
"We do a lot of physical oceanography. And we have an observatory, but the kids haven't been exposed to it. So I take the kids to do nighttime stargazing. They're enthralled with the heavens."
Cantley, who teaches math, says that teachers need to be disciplinarians and set rules, but they also should make their subject engaging.
"Above all else, you have to show enthusiasm," he said. "You can't just go through the motions. ... I do some weird things to get the students involved and laughing."
Because many students come to him after struggling with math, he starts at a near-remedial level to ensure they taste success and will gain confidence and work harder.
The Presidential Awards program was established by Congress in 1983 and is administered for the White House by the National Science Foundation.
The 2003 awardees are all secondary school teachers. Teachers in kindergarten through sixth grade are eligible for the 2004 Presidential Awards. Anyone may nominate a candidate. For details, visit www.paemst.org.