Mr. Barragan is a Algebra 2 and Pre-Calculus teacher who looks forward to students graduating or at least passing this year. He always motivates and teaches them lessons they can use in life while making learning fun and enjoyable.

    Before Mr. Barragan starts teaching he likes to start the class by saying a joke or giving life lessons to help motivate students to try hard.

    “We have reviews throughout the semester. I go through a couple math problems and if they have questions I help them out, then I give them the assignments, I don’t waste time. Sometimes I first start off by saying a joke or a life lesson so they can think and use their brains to help them start thinking before class starts”, Mr. Barragan said.

    Finals are getting closer and students are trying their best to do everything they can to pass their finals.

    “Studying is actually very helpful and cooperative with making a difference on the finals. Studying helps us by having higher possibilities of passing the finals”, Derek Guereca said.

    Two very important tips to help passing the finals is to study those subjects they have most trouble with and to read carefully.

     “Some of the material on the final students haven’t seen in awhile so they haven’t practiced it anymore. A common mistake is that students have not studied, they either haven’t studied enough or they just haven’t studied at all. Also, students don’t know what they need to study but that is kind of our fault as teachers because we are the ones who need to guide the students”, Mr. Barragan said.

    Reviewing before a test is always helpful to students because it helps them refresh their brain and remember how to work the problems.

    “Reviewing is always helpful, but it also depends on how you teach the kids. If you just tell the kids “review” its not too effective because they’re on their own and they are not self-motivated. Me, I do a guided review, where I give them a review assignment and I also give them problems they need to really focus on, I make them get into groups so they can all help each other and teach each other”, Mr. Barragan said.

    Using time wisely is very helpful for students because it gives them plenty of time to focus on the test and they don’t feel pressured to finish.

    “ I like the review and test right away because many times if you do the review in the morning you waste a lot of that time. It does not take all morning to review. A good hour or two is a good amount of time for the review and then the rest of the time for the final,” Mr. Barragan said.