The All State

Media Credit: Mateen Sidiq Jaime Escalante spoke to APSU about teaching methods and the need to challenge students, Oct. 22. The event was sponsored by the Hispanic Cultural Center. [Click to enlarge]

On Oct. 22, students from Austin Peay State University and local area schools packed the Music/Mass Comm theatre to attend a guest lecture by famed educator Jaime Escalante.

The lecture was the culmination of a three day event that began Oct. 22 with the first of two viewings of "Stand and Deliver" a 1988 film based on Escalante's experiences teaching mathematics to underprivileged students in east Los Angeles.

Students laughed at Escalante's wit and were amazed at some of the teaching techniques he shared as he discussed the need for ganas, or desire.

"You have to emphasize that education is the key to success," Escalante said.

"Not all kids have the same capacity to absorb information immediately. You have to have patience."

Escalante migrated to the U.S. from Bolivia in 1964.

In 1974 he began teaching mathematics at Garfield High School in Los Angeles, Calif. where "kids weren't interested in high school at all," Escalante said.

Throughout his career at Garfield, Escalante not only sparked interest in math from his students, but many also took difficult calculus classes and passed Advanced Placement calculus tests.

In 1982, 18 of Escalante's students passed the calculus exam, sparking national interest and the belief among many that the students were cheating.

Determined to show that they weren't cheating, 14 of the students retook the test and did well enough to have their scores reinstated.

The events of the situation were retold in "Stand and Deliver" and also in the book "Escalante: The Best Teacher in America" by Jay Matthews.

The event was sponsored by the Hispanic Cultural Center as part of Hispanic Heritage Month, which runs from Sep. 15 to Oct. 15.

"We asked the students who they wanted to see and it was a unanimous vote," said Nicolette Rougemont.

"[Escalante] promotes the mission of the campus," Rougemont said. "He not only inspires the students but also the teachers."

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