Popper changes perspectives and ideologies one lesson at a time. photo by Evelyn Jackson
Jessica Popper continues to forge a path for passionate and curious students within the TJ community.
Jessica Popper finds passion through teaching Civics and Psychology to a wide range of students. Popper discovered her love of teaching through her desire to work with students and her family’s educational past. She has taught at Thomas Jefferson High School for seven years, and she has been teaching for a grand total of ten. Popper’s mother and grandmother were both teachers, and her uncle was a school principal. Before she started working as an educator, Popper went to the University of Michigan and facilitated creative workshops within juvenile detention centers and prisons. “I knew that I wanted to focus on social justice and, through various experiences in that field…led me into education.”
Popper implements her own beliefs and values into her teaching strategies. The educator believes that all students can effectively learn when they are given a combination of the time and materials they need to thrive. She understands that if students are given the respect they deserve, then they will be able to feel at home in a classroom and, in turn, learn to thrive in educational settings. When asked how she approaches education, Popper explained, “I think it’s just a matter of meeting students where they are at and providing them with the support needed to be successful.” She loves teaching Civics, because she believes that students can implement what they learn into their adult lives. Through Civics, she hopes her students can become more curious about the world, and in turn ask more questions. She thinks that if her students really implement what they learn in her class, they will become critical thinkers.
With critical thinking comes heightened opportunities to successfully implement oneself in society and evolve into good community members. Popper also believes that Civics can help students learn how to effectively vote. “I want them to be curious about the world and to ask questions, I want them to be critical thinkers, to be able to hear or see something on the news and not take it for face value, but be able to investigate it and want to learn more about it.” Within her psychology classes, the educator thinks that the material helps students learn more about human behavior. “I think there is a lot of real world learning that takes place outside of just a textbook and aids them in understanding themselves and others.” Popper also explained that, in the class, she notices a lot of kids experiencing “ah ha” moments. She also highlighted the amount of former students who have gotten in contact with her about how her class inspired them to major in psychology in college.
Popper enjoys teaching high schoolers, especially upperclassmen, because they are similar to adults but still have the ability to learn and shape their future opinions. “I also think that respecting my students and knowing that, especially at the high school level, that they are real people too and that I have a lot to learn from them is really important.” Popper’s understanding of how her students think and interact with the world has helped her become a more personable educator.
Outside of school, Popper enjoys getting outside and participating in classic Colorado activities. “I like to run…I love to hike, I love to be outdoors, I like to ski, travel, camp, I like to see live music.” While she was in high school, Popper explained how sports, especially cross country, got her through the hardships that school brought her. She takes her love of running and helps generate athletic passions for her students. “Running is still really important to me so when (Athletic Director) Anne Rice was looking for a cross country coach…I was like what the heck, let’s do it! I would just like to bring it full circle.” She described that her love of coaching also helps build relationships with her students outside and inside the classroom.
It is no secret that Popper enjoys what she does, and her passion is evident in the way she teaches her content areas. Popper has many aspirations for the future but when she pictures herself in five years she states, “I hope to still be teaching and coaching at TJ!” Based on Popper’s positive impacts on the TJ community and her love for her job, one can agree that everyone else hopes to see her continue making a difference for years to come.
