Heroes in Education: Derek Taylor

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Heroes in Education: Derek Taylor

Sat, 10/24/2020 - 16:06
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Derek Taylor teaches Physical Science at Ponca City High School and is also a sponsor for the Po-Hi Robotics Club. Taylor and is family are originally from South Carolina and moved to Ponca City in December of 2017.

“We wanted to raise our daughter in a better environment where she could experience working with the land and seeing farmland each day,” said Taylor.

Taylor’s career began as a substitute teacher and an assistant swim coach. The school he worked with told him that he should pursue a teaching certificate and made him aware of the South Carolina PACE program.

“After some thoughtful prayer and consideration, I enrolled into the program," said Taylor. "I was able to secure a job with the district I subbed for, teaching Biology."

For Taylor, his favorite thing about teaching is being able to h elp young adults find their way and hopes to have a positive impact on their lives.

"I love seeing the lights turn on when a student finally unde r stands a difficult concept," said Taylor.

Taylor enjoys making use of technology and having fun with content.

"I try to find YouTube clips that can r elate the concepts to something in the real world," said Taylor.

With his Physics course, Taylor e njoys builds and making things such as catapults and tr ebuchets and to exp eriment with proj ectile motion and simple machines.

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Heroes in Education: Derek Taylor