 |
|
|
|
Gil Solis
Gil Solis named FHS Teacher of the Year
BY Michelle Alaimo
A day off from work paid off well for Fremont High School teacher Gil Solis. The longtime Social Studies teacher returned to work on Feb.16 to learn his peers had selected him as teacher-of-the year for FHS.
"He was chosen because of the tremendous amount of respect that his co-workers have for his work," FHS principal Pete Tuana said.
Solis has taught Social Studies for 31 years in the Sunnyvale area, nearly 20 of those at FHS.
The FHS graduate said he likes to use a variety of activities in the classroom to keep his students interested. Some of his more popular techniques include a game where students invest in the stock market. Participants buy stocks, have portfolios and can even borrow money to fund their transactions. However, he said he hasn't been able to offer the stock game in his classes the past two years because of the lack of a teacher's assistant.
A father of two, Solis said his teaching philosophy is based on an old Chinese proverb. "I hear, I forget; I see, I remember; I do, I understand," Solis said
"I think the kids have to do the work themselves. The teacher is there to guide them and to let the kids find the answers for themselves."
He adds that teaching hasn't really changed too much over the last 30 years, except for improvements in technology, increased class size and the 90-minute block teaching format. While Solis said he doesn't mind the block format, he said it makes it harder to cover as much curriculum on a day-to-day basis.
Since beginning teaching at FHS in 1981, Solis has been instrumental in the development of world history and English as a Second Language curriculum, Tuana said. Solis previously taught at Sunnyvale High School from 1969 until it closed in 1981 and was instrumental in developing SHS's history curriculum as well.
Prior to teaching in the Bay Area, Solis served in the Peace Corps for three years in East Africa, where he taught lower primary middle school and met his wife, Saida.
|
|
|
|
Sunnyvale, California Since 1994
