The next person of “Arcus Junior” school we would like to present to you is Denitsa Aleksandrova. She is exceptional with her innovative and breaking the status quo kind of thinking. Quickly and undoubtedly she urges us to look beyond what we generally accept as a traditional model of education. She speaks firmly about her different perspective of the world. Not only she stands behind it but manages to go into details justifying the need for it. Her strength lies in her ability to see the big picture and the way things can be transformed using new approaches. Teaching with love and deep understanding of the world she values the most.

Let us introduce you to her professional path. She has graduated “English Philology” from Veliko Turnovo University 'St. Cyril and St. Methodius’. Right after that she starts working in a school in Veliko Turnovo and later in Sofia. After that she continues teaching in a private language school in Sofia. In the summer of 2010 she gets trained as a suggestopedic teacher and soon after that she continues working as a teacher freelance. A few years later she joins the same Waldorf training course for teachers like the deputy director of “Arcus Junior” Biliana Boneva. Denitsa takes part in some volunteer youth projects in Bulgaria and abroad. She is passionate about improvisational theatre and has created improv groups in Turnovo and Russe. She is a co-author of the communicative game for speaking and listening “Darplay.”

Read what she shares with us during our interview with her:

1. What is your motivation to become a teacher?

In the high school I had a literature teacher who I used to listen quite attentively to and could not take my eyes off her. Every word she would say echoed within me. Her look, her eyes, her voice deeply touched me. She was my teacher for 5 years and thanks to her I fell in love with literature, poetry and those hidden messages one can find between the lines, messages waiting to be discovered and understood. I think it was because of this teacher that I felt the power of the good example, of the teacher who is present and makes a difference. A teacher who respects herself and the subject she is teaching. I would say that my literature teacher planted the seed of the teaching job within me 33 years ago.

2. As a pedagogue proficient, when have you felt the need to seek alternative approaches to apply in your work?

I lived in Sofia for 9 years and in 2009 I took part in a training for teachers which was based on the Socrates teaching method for extracting knowledge from the participants asking questions. After the training I somehow rediscovered the main purpose of teaching which is to offer knowledge in a way which makes it alive within the learners. I remember coming back to the classroom (I was teaching in a private language school then) feeling inspired and very motivated.  A month later I came across the first book about Suggestopedia by Prof. Georgi Lozanov and then followed my training for a suggestopedic teacher. I remember starting to speak Spanish a week after studying Spanish in a suggestopedic course! A few years later I discovered also the 3-year course for Waldorf teachers which gave me clarity and understanding about the stages in child’s development.

3. What do you like doing in your free time?

I like being outdoors, spending time with my family and doing things together. I love silence and nature, I like watching nature and contemplating on it. Nature is like a book with many answers written in it by an invisible and loving author. The answers come to you when you are looking for them. In the last years I have been doing some garden work and I love it. It is interesting for me to observe my feelings, thoughts and silence while my hands touch the earth. I love dancing traditional Bulgarian dances and singing. For the last 8 years I have been doing Sacral Body Architecture practice and teach a little group of women in Veliko Turnovo.

4. Challenges?

The challenges are part of the way and I am thankful for them. Being outside the traditional educational system for more than 15 years now I accept the challenge to go back to work in a school. I want to show the beauty of the foreign language to the children in a way I wanted to feel it when I was a child. When I was in grade 4 my English teacher who was very strict told me that English is not a language for me. But now I welcome the opportunity to show that there is another beautiful and relaxing way of learning a language where there is no boredom and fatigue. I also hope more teachers will get interested in Waldorf pedagogy and Suggestopedia and choose to use them in their teaching.

5. What is your vision for the education of the future?

This question reminds me of a story about a teacher who asked the children in her class, “What would you like to be when you grow up?”. A boy raised his hand and said, “Happy.” The teacher hurriedly told the boy that he did not understand the question and he just replied, “No, madam. You did not understand the answer.”

So, in this context “future” is an interesting word. In my perspective it is a state of mind and soul that we create every day and every moment. And in this creation lies happiness. So, the future is now. And the education of the future is now, not tomorrow, not in 10 years’ time. I am choosing to put my efforts in well-organized and developed teaching systems which give children love and create a safe and secure learning environment for children where they feel relaxed. Waldorf pedagogy and Suggestopedia are two teaching systems which have proved their efficiency and productivity. They engage the whole being of the child – the will, the feelings and the mind. They have the tools to relax and to teach using a lot of movement, art, music, beauty, imagery and sense stimulation. They are so precious and I would like to help preserving them and keeping them alive.