Out of all the mathematicians, Ms. Paolina Doleva, a Landstown High School math teacher, noted that Einstein was her utmost favorite because he contributed to a lot of the science and math community.
Ms. Doleva, who is new to the eagle nation, is in her first full year of teaching. She teaches Geometry and Algebra, Functions, and Data Analysis (AFDA).
She grew up in Northern Virginia, where she got her diploma at Potomac Falls High School and graduated from Christopher Newport University.
Ms. Doleva enjoys working with anyone in the K-12 range. Teenagers may stumble upon obstacles while learning math, so they might feel discouraged, but Ms. Doleva is always available to assist her students.
Her passion when it comes to math and teaching is to show students the beauty of math and how we can apply it into the real world.
She said, “If you want to go into the clothing design and you want to make clothes, you have to know how to convert between units, right? If you want to do carpentry, you have to know how to measure perfectly because you don’t want to build a desk that has weird dimensions, right? So there’s a lot of applications.”
While learning how to convert units and measure things perfectly, Ms. Doleva uses her iPad to break down everything into little steps and highlight useful information instead of using her promethean board. Her iPad is an essential tool when it comes to her teaching. When it comes to warm-up time, students can actively engage in class by solving the problems assigned on her iPad.
Raelyn Witcher, a Landstown High School freshman currently enrolled in her class, stated, “She’ll explain an assignment instead of just writing on the board what to do.”
Since it’s Ms. Doleva’s first full year of teaching, her co-teacher, Mary Webber, roams around, using her knowledge of math to help students in the classroom. Ms. Webber pulls students out of the classroom to help others in a different room.
Ms. Webber uses her intelligence to add additional information when Ms. Doleva is jotting down notes or solving problems. Webber has different ways of teaching that can impact students positively.
Ms. Doleva switches her student’s seats after every unit test. Witcher mentioned that switching up the seats helps her interact with her peers that she may have not talked to.
Witcher and Webber’s favorite thing about Ms. Doleva is that she asks her students if they understand the assignment and if they are okay. This creates a safe environment for the students around her.
To the students who may have Ms. Doleva in the upcoming school years, others offer up a hopeful message.
“I’ll tell them that they’ll end up having a good teacher who explains and some people don’t learn the same way that another person teaches, but she’s a very good teacher. She’s a nice and respectful teacher,” Witcher said.
“She is always open and helpful. If you ask her questions, she will help. She will give her time whenever you need it,” Webber stated.
