SAN ANTONIO — Childhood was a struggle recalls Zenaida Rodriguez. As a bilingual studies teacher, she sees her young self in so many of her students who have a language barrier. She works day in and day out to ensure, they never fall through the cracks. Edgewood ISD nominated her for the KENS 5 EXCEL Award where we visited her classroom at so and so school and presented her with the award which includes $1,000 from partner Credit Human.
Hanging at the entrance of her fourth grade bilingual classroom, Zenaida Rodriguez has a daily reminder for her kids. It reads in Spanish,
“Se gana o se aprende, pero no se pierde,” Rodriguez explained as she read her favorite quote aloud and translated it in English, “You win or you learn but you don’t lose,” she repeated.
Always a lesson even when learning doesn't come easy. It’s something Rodriguez knows first hand, "I was born in Mexico,” she recalled moving to the U.S. around the same age as her students now, "I hated it. I hated school."
Her new American school she remembered had little to no support for a little girl who didn’t speak English, “I would sit in a classroom and not understand. It made me feel like I wasn't going to be able to succeed."
Rodriguez says she was placed in the ESL program, English as a second language, “Some people call it the sink or swim."
Determined, she swam and went the distance, all the way to graduate college and even earn a Master's degree. Yes, it was hard work she says but she also recalls a turning point that involved a strong support system. “I saw people who saw something in me,” once again pointing to her childhood, "my fifth and sixth grade, I had an amazing teacher, Mrs. Sullivan and I said, that's what a teacher should be like."
It’s been 30 years but Rodriguez says she still remembers how it felt like it was yesterday.
“Because I know how I struggled with the language, I can relate to them and said this might not be the concept, it’s the language.”
Rodriguez believes a language barrier is more often than not the main reason her students struggle in a certain subject. Sometimes all they need she says is for someone to explain things a little differently.
"She teaches us in different ways,” chimed in one of Rodriguez’s fourth graders who admitted she’s drastically improved in reading as she worked with her teacher.
“We would always do spelling tests,” added a second student. “I would always get 50s but now I get 80s and a 100.”
Rodriguez says one of her most successful techniques is pairing them with the right partner.
“If I know language might an issue, then I partner them so that they can help each other,” Rodriguez adding kids who are stronger in one language can be the most influential models for their partner. “I’ll put them in a small group. I’ll talk to them about it in Spanish but then I’ll bridge the language through visuals to make sure they grasp a concept.“
Her wish is to make sure no student falls through the cracks but just as passionately, to teach them about their heritage, using the traditions they have at home to enhance their learning experience in the classroom. "When we celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month, I always like to talk about where those people came from because it's very similar to our upbringing and if they can do it, so can they,” like Civil Rights Leader Cesar Chavez and Astronaut Jose Hernandez she said.
Her students have studied and used the icons as role models for projects during Hispanic Heritage Month.
Hernandez’ journey inspired the film “A million miles away,” now playing on Prime worldwide serving as inspiration to old and young. Teachers across the country like Rodriguez are pointing to him as an example of what the future could look like for these children, “We learned about all the struggles that he went through and how he was in that NASA program."
All valuable lessons yet her most powerful she admits has nothing to do with history or books. It’s more focused on their self-worth, a memorable lesson she learned at a young age too.
“To love themselves. They're amazing just the way they are and they don't have to change."
Outside of her classroom curriculum, Rodriguez puts big emphasis on STEM programs like teaching Robotics where students learn to build, code, and program their own robots. Rodriguez says not only does it help their problem
Solving skills but also teaches them teamwork as they have to rely on each other to make the robots work. She’s also a volleyball coach for third to fifth grade girls.
This is the KENS 5 EXCEL Awards 25th years partnering with Credit Human to honor local teachers. If you’d like to watch past winners, click on kens5.com/EXCEL.