Je pète le feu – I’m farting fire! This is a common French phrase that is heard in Robin Oliver’s class. As soon as you walk into his room, you’re overwhelmed by the number of posters on his walls. Mr. Oliver, the current French and PPS teacher, is certainly a talented polyglot, speaking languages like French, English, Spanish, Italian, and Latin. While most teachers only teach one or two subjects, Oliver teaches four subjects.
This year, Oliver teaches French IV, French V, and AP French. Last year, he taught French IV as a stand alone class, and French V and AP French were combined into a joint class. This year, French V, AP French, and French IV are in the same class at the same time. The administration wanted to get rid of AP French and French V because there are so few students, so he was meant to only teach French IV this year. However, that would have threatened the French program. “If we don’t offer the high-level courses like AP and French 5, then we’ll lose even more kids, and that’s just not fair,” he said.
Along with being a French teacher, most of the classes Oliver teaches are the IBCP Personal and Professional Skills (PPS) classes. PPS is technically a social studies class, but it covers deeper topics that connect with students on a much bigger scale. In PPS, you have a guided study and four big projects across the span of two years. But why would a French teacher teach a social studies class? It’s a language thing, in class, students have to prove that they’ve made progress in the language they’re studying. It also allows for a connection with each other, as you’re talking about your opinions on hard topics. “The thing I’ve learned to like about PPS is it’s kind of nice to get to know your students in a more deep and profound way when you’re talking about things like failure and implicit bias,” he said.
All in all, Oliver is good at his job and likes doing it. Whether it’s helping French IV students with conjugation, AP French students with their reading, or leading a conversation with PPS students about real-life situations, his skills shine in the classroom.
