Tanjuanika “Nikki” Moore
Union City, California
Special Education Teacher
James Logan High School
Trips as a Global Glimpse Leader:
2022: Dominican Republic
2023: Ecuador
What drove you to become an educator?
I started out in General Education for elementary school and quickly realized that it was kind of fast-paced for me. Then I had some opportunities to visit special education classrooms when I did a teaching program in high school. So that’s what piqued my interest! Then I went to grad school for special education and it “just fit perfectly”. So I’ve been here for a while and I’ve been loving it! People ask me all the time if I’ll ever go back to teaching general education, but in special ed, I get to teach kids fun things like how to deal with money, how to properly communicate with friends, how to behave when they’re out in the community, so it’s really fun teaching those skills to my students.
Why do you think it’s important for young people to develop a global perspective?
It’s important because they don’t realize how different other cultures are. By getting a different perspective, they can be more appreciative of what they have and what they don’t have. Getting to experience a different culture or a different environment, they can learn so many different things and take home what they have learned, build confidence, learn what they can do in the world, and how they can help. They get to know that they’re important and needed in the world and figure out what their path can be as they get older. Global Glimpse definitely shapes the students by helping them see what they’re capable of. It gets them to learn more about other cultures and get involved with other opportunities that they might not have considered otherwise. Getting exposed to what else is out there is really good for students to learn if they want to be a leader and what their role is in society.
What are some of the growth and development you noticed in yourself and your students during/after Global Glimpse trips?
The leadership aspect of the trip stood out to me- how these kids get into the mindset of leading other students and leading as “teachers”. When they get to be Leaders of the Day and get to lead other high school students that are just like them and try to keep them focused, entertained and me just getting to fall back, it was really profound to watch them take control. I noticed that the kids who were a little bit shy at first, had grown, were talking to multiple people, and had made friends with everyone by the end of the trip. I really loved seeing the kids engaging with the locals, even exchanging social media with them, so I know that they made lifelong friends!
In the process, I definitely learned to become a better listener. Listening to what the kids have to say, what they want, and what they’re capable of, and sitting back and listening to what all they have to offer instead of me just trying to guide them. They surprise you with how much they know and how much they can contribute to different conversations!
