Mr. Keith Fowler has joined Naugatuck High School for the 2018-2019 school year as a new history and Contemporary Issues teacher.

Before coming to America, Mr. Fowler attended St. Catherine’s College, which is a part of Oxford University in England.

Mr. Fowler worked in a public high school in England, and Naugatuck reminded him of that. He also feels that Mr. Harris and Mr. Tenney were people he would be “philosophically aligned with.”

Before working at Naugatuck High School, he worked at a charter school in San Diego called Innovations Academy.  It was grades kindergarten to eighth grade, and in that school Mr. Fowler taught English and history.

Mr. Fowler stated that his other school was very different from Naugatuck High School. At his other school “their philosophy was all about internal intrinsic motivation,” which meant that they could not punish the kids nor reward them for any behavior. Teachers had to use other strategies to help their students to achieve.

“You couldn’t have any external pressure to achieve for the kids you had to inspire them to learn for the sake of learning,” said Mr. Fowler, history teacher.

Mr. Fowler is very passionate about teaching history and Contemporary Issues in a way that makes kids think and process information in a manner that is more participatory and interactive.

“Instead of a traditional ‘come in, sit down, open your textbook, study for the test, listen to me lecture’ kind of scenario there’s a big shift towards more hands-on assignments,” said Mr. Fowler.

Mr. Fowler enjoys teaching Contemporary Issues for that reason. He feels that kids should be “acting out their beliefs in society.” He also thinks that the youth should be informed about “the state of modern society.”

In his free time, Mr. Fowler really enjoys playing tennis. He is hoping to get involved with the school’s tennis team.

He also enjoys swimming. Mr. Fowler stated that he swims every morning, and he is currently getting tips from Mr. Walsh on his technique.

Naugatuck High School is happy to welcome another new teacher to the school.