National Teacher of the Year to Speak at Walter Johnson on Nov. 16
Rebecka Peterson, the 2023 National Teacher of the Year, will speak to MCPS staff from 3–4 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 16 at Walter Johnson High School in Bethesda. This address is free and open to any MCPS staff member who wishes to attend. Ample parking is available in the Walter Johnson lot.
Her talk will focus on the power one teacher can have. Peterson will share about the teachers who shaped her own life, the stories of her students and how cultivating joy can sustain us in the difficult and beautiful vocation of teaching.
She has taught high school math classes ranging from intermediate algebra to Advanced Placement calculus for 11 years at Union High School in Tulsa, Okla. Amid a difficult first year of high school teaching, she found the “One Good Thing” blog. She credits daily posting there to helping her recognize the beautiful and positive experiences occurring in her classroom, which inspired her to stay in the profession. She has since contributed 1,400 posts to the blog. As Oklahoma Teacher of the Year, she has visited teachers across the state to highlight their important work through the Teachers of Oklahoma campaign.
As National Teacher of the Year, Peterson is using her platform to highlight teachers’ stories of the good that’s happening in education. Teaching is a profession that affords creativity, autonomy and purpose, and she believes that highlighting the stories of joy happening in classrooms across the country will help encourage current teachers and attract new educators to the profession.
Walter Johnson is located at 6400 Rock Spring Drive in Bethesda.