By Ersha Kumar Sweet, smart, sensitive, and sympathetic- sounds like a wonderful person, right? Well Mrs. Taylor, Honors 11 English and AP Literature and Composition teacher, is as remarkable as they come. A Wilson teacher of 20 years, she has continued to be a leading educator at Wilson High School and a trustworthy role model to students. She has taught multiple levels of English, ranging from CP 10,11, and 12 to AP Lit and Lang. She had figured out she wanted to have a career in language arts back in high school when she realized that English was a class that she truly enjoyed more than other classes she had taken.
“Sometimes I was physically moved by something that we read,” Taylor said, “And I enjoyed the idea that we could talk forever about poetry. I knew I needed this in my life.” She wanted to be in a position where she could utilize her creativity and have each day be different from the next. Taylor had also added that she enjoys being in charge, although that was not her main focus when in choosing a career. Even after decades of teaching the same subject area, her interest and compassion for the course has not waned. Dystopian fiction has always been a matter of fascination to Mrs. Taylor. “It appeals to my interest in science-fiction and technophobia,” she says. “I also think a futuristic society is imaginative, and it’s satisfying to the mind to picture it.” Although her favorite genre to teach is a very futuristic concept, her favorite book is The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien. She says, “The book just makes me drop to my knees. It’s beautiful prose and absolutely stunning.” So is the literature she is able to teach the only fulfilling part of her career? According to Taylor, her favorite part about her job is the students. She says it’s especially worthwhile when she watches the students understand a piece of literature or sees students’ aesthetic appreciation for books. “I think young people are so enthusiastic and hopeful and bright,” she says. “I get to work with some of the best minds at the school, and I feel like I get back what I give.” Usually when students get home from school, they try their best to get school out of their heads. Unfortunately for Mrs. Taylor, schoolwork oftentimes follows her back home. However, whenever she’s not grading papers or reading essays, she’s walking her dogs or spending time with her family. “I’d like to travel," she adds, "but I usually work the entire time.” Her favorite places to travel to are locations with wildlife and friendly people. She’s not the biggest fan of large cities. Students often see teachers as powerful figures, and sometimes may have a sense of discomfort when dealing with that level of authority. However, with Mrs. Taylor, most students don’t have a problem with talking to her about school or otherwise. She’s always ready to listen to whenever a student needs someone to talk to. Junior Piya Pillai, a student of Mrs. Taylor’s AP Lit class, says, “I’ve studied at more schools than I’d bother to count, and out of the hundreds of teachers that have taught me, Mrs. Taylor is easily one of the best. Empathy is not something that can be taught, and she happens to have been born with enough of it to be a Disney princess. She’s the kind of person her students will one day tell their children about fondly.”
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