If you are going to be a junior next year at Canyon High School, you already are aware that you have to take English every year. However, many students are not familiar with our school's English department and the teachers you may have next year, so I will help you learn about the department chair, Mr. Albert.
Mr. Albert has been teaching at Canyon for 30 years, and he has been teaching English part-time for 25 years. When he first started teaching at Canyon, he coached football for 10 years. As a teacher, he has taught many different classes throughout all grade levels, including Science Fiction and Mythology when we had those specialized English classes on campus.
In addition to teaching at Canyon, he helped open the first online high school in the district and works with adults who have special needs. Mr. Albert supports these individuals by helping them receive government benefits and support services to aid them with their daily living. During the summer, he has also worked with students with special needs.
Not only did I interview Mr. Albert about school, but I also got to know more about him as a person outside the classroom. When asked what he thought he wanted to be when he was growing up, Mr. Albert explained, “When I grew up, I thought I was going into politics, but I fell in love with reading and stories, and I wanted to share that experience with kids and help them find the love of reading and exploring ideas. I was never a reader, but I was exposed to various classic texts in the English language. I couldn't believe all the amazing things books have to offer. I also enjoyed writing and working with my peers to explore ideas, and I realized I wanted to do that with teenagers to help them… find their voice in this world.”
A piece of advice Mr. Albert has about English is: “First, students that want to improve their writing, I would just say elaborate! Feel free to make mistakes and explore ideas. Also, embrace writing as a way to improve critical thinking and communicating.”
Mr. Albert’s love of reading is clear and extends to his teaching. In fact, one of his favorite books to teach is “Huckleberry Finn” because “it shows what life was like in the South during slavery and shows the hypocrisy that lies in each of us and that we need to be aware of this as we live our lives. It helps us better understand each other and will make us kinder to each other if we listen to Huck.”
However, his ultimate favorite book is “Johnny Got His Gun” by Dalton Trumbo. Mr. Albert stated, “I think it was written in the 1920's. It is a WWI anti-war novel about a soldier that loses his limbs and face in the war. He has no way of communicating. In fact, Metallica made the song "One" about the book. The book is depressing, but it shows the power of the spirit in us, and it shows the bravery that all of us can achieve. It reminds me of one of my favorite quotes, ‘I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear’ by Nelson Mandela.”
Additionally, I got to know about Mr. Albert's favorite part about being a teacher. He said, “First, seeing students graduate and the thrill of moving to the next step in their life is amazing. I also love watching a student struggle with a writing assignment and then they say something insightful in their writing. I love when students create new ideas and they surprise themselves and me, or they make meaning out of the reading that they can apply to their lives and make themselves better.”
As a long-time teacher at Canyon, Mr. Albert has also had great experiences with supporting our sports teams. He shared, “I have a ton of wonderful memories. I remember when Canyon won 46 footballs in a row and beat Hart High in front of 10,000 people at COC. The state championship in football was amazing. Most recently the CIF title in basketball. That is truly a remarkable feat.”
Getting to know all about Mr. Albert helped me gain a new perspective on him and hopefully helped you too. To those who have him next year or in the future, enjoy it!
