Laughter and conversation are often heard in Room 201 at Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School (MVRHS). In Daniel Soares’ Portuguese classes, this collaborative environment is intentional, building community through a Brazilian approach to teaching that values learning through connection and student voice.
Mr. Soares brings key elements of Brazilian pedagogy into his classroom, including conversation and storytelling, to foster a learning environment where students build community through connection and active participation in class. He believes it is critical that students begin with the stories of their individual and collective life experiences, and share those stories with one another. From that entry, students then begin to explore texts together.
“I see that here in the U.S., classrooms tend to be more silent,” Mr. Soares said. “In Brazil, it’s not ever silent. It’s talking. So the class has to offer more moments for speaking and discussion to build community.”
Junior Duda Rodrigues, who has taken Mr. Soares’ classes since her freshman year, and now is a teacher assistant in his “Portuguese Media” course, appreciates his approach. “He has this really impactful way of teaching, which makes it seem like we’re all just friends with him,” she said. “It brings the whole classroom together like a tight and strong community, because of the way he portrays himself and the way he talks to us.”
Duda added, “It makes us all feel very comfortable in his classroom, so it’s super-easy to be friends with all the people in the classes.”
Sophomore Miguel Mantesso, whose interview was conducted in Portuguese, explained that Mr. Soares’ approach not only builds class community but also helps students develop their cultural identity and pride: “Daniel is a very attentive teacher, and I think this [class] community we have is because of the care he brings into the classroom.”
He added, “Even when I was in Brazil, I didn’t know as much about Brazil as I do today, and that’s because of how much Daniel knows about it, and brings that to us. I feel very proud to be Brazilian because of his class.”
Mr. Soares’ focus on community-building reaches beyond the classroom, influencing not only his students’ experiences with literature, but also his own work with fellow teachers and staff. In February, Mr. Soares led an interdisciplinary workshop for teachers aimed to help them better engage all students, but especially Brazilian students.
“What inspired me to organize that workshop was the fact that in Brazil, the way we understand pedagogy is different from the way pedagogy is understood in the U.S. Once Brazilians come to study in the U.S., they have a different behavior in the classroom. If we are talking about a few Brazilians in a school, [those students] would adapt quickly. But here, a third of the population is from Brazil. So I decided this workshop would be a good way for teachers who are not Brazilian to understand the way we think of pedagogy, to help reduce tension,” he said.
English language learner department chair Jane Sampaio attended the workshop. “Daniel modeled and showed us activities that he phrased as more in the style of learning in Brazil, and really connecting with the kids. So we learned more about ways to take a text, or whatever our subject matter is, and bring more discussion into it, and more opportunities to listen to each other,” she said.
At the center of Mr. Soares’ work, both with students and teachers, is the belief that students learn best through the lens of their own life and in conversation with each other. “This approach inspires us because it’s based on building community. It’s not to see the classroom as a place where I have knowledge, and I share my knowledge with the ones who don’t. Rather, we build community together, and we do that by sharing stories,” Mr. Soares said.