Spas Gegov
History and geography
Spas Gegov smoking a cigarette at the Builder bistro, a place near the school where teachers usually go to grab a coffee or a quick snack when they have some free time.. (Photo/Trayana Karamihaleva)
Spas Gegov is a 23-year-old history and geography teacher who started working at the Mathematics school 4 months ago. His initial wish was to study art, but his teachers motivated him to study these two subjects. One of his main role models in teaching is his head teacher, Mrs. Sharenska.
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“In my class, there were many students who had gone down the wrong path and did not pay enough attention at school. However, my head teacher, Mrs. Sharenska, helped them find the right way. With persistence and kind words, she managed to get through to them and help them. She could adapt well to every situation, not a single word she said was redundant – it fit right in its place. She knew her material extremely well. Whatever students asked her, she explained thoroughly, gave examples and drew graphs on the board. I even find myself following some of her teaching methods."
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An important lesson he learned from Sharenska is the importance of building a good relationship with students based on respect and understanding.
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"Besides being a great professionalist, Mrs. Sharenska also had a great sense of humor and was a pleasure to be around. This is what I try to do with my students. Whenever I see them, I greet them and I ask them how they are doing. Although there should be some distance between the student and the teacher to establish respect, I believe it’s important to connect with them as people and show that you are a person, too – not someone they should be afraid of.”
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Gegov's history teacher, Mrs. Yana Stoyanova, was also a major inspiration.
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“I was also inspired by my history teacher, Mrs. Yana Stoyanova. The confidence and calmness that showed through her speech and intonation were truly admirable and I knew I wanted to be like that one day. She embodied the essence of teaching – not simply providing factual knowledge, but also to discipline students and teach them important values in life. The student is not just a bucket that we pour information into. They are a candle which should be lit up by something, inspired. And the teacher is the lantern which lights up the way ahead for their students to see which is the right path and not steer towards the fog.”
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Every morning, Gegov wakes up at 5:30 a.m. to catch the bus to school because he lives far away. He is often one of the first teachers to arrive and uses the quiet time to prepare for his class.
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Spas Gegov arriving at the Sergey Korolyov High School of Mathematics at 7 a.m. (Photo/Trayana Karamihaleva)
Spas Gegov reading the lesson he is going to teach before the class. He always does that to be well-prepared. He believes it is important that the teacher not only explains what is in the textbooks, but enriches the students' knowledge with additional interesting facts. (Photo/Trayana Karamihaleva)
Gegov believes it is important to be flexible and find the right approach for every class. In his view, every classroom is a whole new environment, he discovers different strengths and weaknesses in students. He says he often goes into class with a certain plan but ends up changing it depending on the circumstances.
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“For example, I like to start class with a discussion. However, especially during the first lesson, students might still not be fully awake or some students may be late, so it is not always a good time. So, I continue by telling a story to introduce some interesting facts that capture their attention. When I have the students’ focus, I switch back to a discussion. It’s important to get feedback rather than just standing in front of the class and talking by yourself – they will listen to you no more than 5 minutes before they get bored. When you discuss as a group, however, they start asking questions and engaging more, which makes for a much smoother and more productive working process."
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Although Gegov understands how the constant need for flexibility can be a challenge for a lot of people, he finds it interesting and thinks that it would be quite boring if all classes were the same.
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Gegov also believes it is important to establish a connection with students as people.
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"Students sometimes seem to be afraid of teachers. I try to treat my students as people, asking them how they are doing and what they think about different topics. I believe this helps our communication."
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One interesting fact about Gegov is that, besides being a teacher, he is a student, too. He is a fourth-year student in Pedagogics of teaching geography and history at the Southwest University in Blagoevgrad. Due to his busy schedule at work, he often has to miss lectures, but his excellent academic performance during the previous years earned his professors' trust, so this is not an issue.
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Spas Gegov talking to students during the first class. It's very early in the morning and they are still a bit distracted, so he is making a pause to talk to them. (Photo/Trayana Karamihaleva)
“Usually, I am teaching at the school in the mornings, and in the afternoons I go to as many lectures as I can at university. Since I have been keeping up a good performance, missing the lectures for work is not a big problem.”
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Due to his excellent performance at university, Gegov was entrusted with the position of head secretary at the university which also takes up a lot of his time.
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“Whenever there is an official meeting or there are some documents that need to prepared, I am the person who does it.”
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Spas Gegov entering the student government office at the Southwest University in Blagoevgrad. (Photo/Trayana Karamihaleva)
Spas Gegov is checking exams in his office at Southwest University. Due to lack of time, he often has to multitask but he is already used to it. (Photo/Trayana Karamihaleva)
Despite his busy schedule, Gegov says that he does not feel tired at all.
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“My colleagues often ask me how I balance study and work, they think I am crazy. I honestly do not know how I manage. I think that it is probably because I love what I do, I am working the job that I always wanted. So, even after a full day of classes, I want to stay a little bit longer at school.”
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Gegov has observed the changes in the students’ attitude, but he is hopeful for the future.
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“Especially as students grow up, I notice that their attitude towards education and their teacher changes. There should be respect for the teacher who is standing in front of them and providing them with knowledge, but students often get distracted in class or just have different priorities. However, I think this is just a temporary phenomenon. Also, although there are not many young teachers, I have colleagues in the same major who are very motivated and I believe there is a good future ahead for Bulgarian education. I love what I do and I will keep pursuing my dream.”