Peter Panacci

Okay, this is going to be LONG, and possibly very boring. I wrote the "Too long; didn't read" highlights above to save some of you, but if you have the time, and are really curious about me, then please read on and I'll be as open as I can. It's incredibly hard to bring into perspective all the experiences that make us unique and that inform our view points, but I hope I can provide some insight into where I come from, how I think, and where I hope to go. Thank you for taking the time to learn about me :)

Well, I was raised in Caledon, Ontario, where my father and mother were self employed ceramic artists. My father was a full time potter his whole life and supported us three children (my brother James and sister April) basically with just his own two hands. I grew up playing in clay, selling my first sculptures when I was 4 or 5, and it's been a huge part of my life ever since. It's how I bought my first Nintendo, and how I spent the last few years as a full time potter. It's also a huge part of my outlook on life, how creativity influences all parts of our lives and that all children are innately creative, they just need the space and freedom to express themselves.

Although I went through the French Immersion school program in Caledon and Bramalea, my youth was largely dominated by gymnastics, where I was a competitive provincial and national athlete. I trained, and also coached recreational gymnastics and trampoline for several years at Gymnastics Mississauga. At 16, due to overuse and training, I had to have surgery for a stress fracture in my elbow; and combined with a lack of any social life (not fun) and a year of physiotherapy, my gymnastics career came to a very anti-climactic end. However, the work ethic, love of sport, competition and drive has always stayed with me.

  I completed my bachelors degree at the University of Toronto, doing a double major in History and Philosophy. I focused on Holocaust studies and 20th century German history, and modern-continental philosophy. As you can imagine, this degree provided me with TONS of job offers after graduation, so I decided to return home and study pottery from my father.

It didn't take long for me to get restless, and I decided to teach English in South Korea for 2 years. My family background is half Korean, half Italian, so I had always wanted to explore and learn more about my mothers culture and history. This was an incredible experience, and I fell in love with Korea, the culture, the people and teaching. It definitely was not all roses though, and I struggled right from the beginning with the extreme differences in the educational system, the stresses and expectations placed on students, and the realities they lived with. I taught in a poor rural public middle school, where the students lives were dominated by screaming teachers, countless exams, and hours and hours of after school cram sessions and memorizing. 

I wish I could say it made me value our educational system more, but the reality is, I had to acknowledge the pro's and con's of both systems. Yes my students were miserable, burnt out and stressed beyond belief, (at just 11 or 12 years old!!) but they were also doing math I couldn't do until late into high school, much more complicated science, and learning 2 or 3 languages at a greater level than most of our core French students ever achieve. They had little to no inter-personal skills, creativity was not encouraged and they had almost no extra-curricular classes or sports. It was a lot to digest (especially the corporal punishment that was still very real and present), and I'm still working through it now. I am grateful though for the perspective and experience it provided me, and it definitely put me on the path to becoming a better teacher.

After Korea, I took some time to backpack through Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam and Japan. I've always loved traveling, but this opened my eyes to countless cultures, ways of living and amazing people. It also showed me how passionate I was about wanting to teach in rural, indigenous areas and help people with little to no resources or support. This also showed me how incredible a career in teaching could be, and it was a large motivation for me to return to school for my bachelors of Education. 

Between all this traveling, jumping around and trying to find myself, I kept returning to pottery and did another year working with my father. I really poured myself into the work this time, developed my own style and glazes, and made a run at being another "starving artist". I'm proud to say I got accepted into some gallery shows, was chosen for the Toronto Outdoor Art Exhibition in my very first year, and really loved working. I also realized how hard it is to be a full time artist, which only made me respect my father even more for having done that all his life. I decided to pursue teaching as something more serious, and moved to Japan for a year while I applied to teachers college.

And so, I spent the last 9 months teaching English at the Minimax International school in Tokyo (http://www.minimax-int.com/). It was one of the most challenging teaching experiences of my life, and also one of the most rewarding. I taught children as young as 3, up until 11 years old, in groups ranging from one on one lessons, to 25 or 30 screaming elementary students. The classes were fast paced, intense and in one large room filled with chaos, learning and fun. After teaching 4 hours non-stop, with 6 other classes going on simultaneously next to you, behind you, and all around you, I feel like I'm ready for anything. 

  More than anything else, teaching at Minimax forced me to develop as a teacher on the spot, to improvise and think on my feet, with students staring and glaring at me who weren't impressed that I was a foreigner or by how smart I was. I had to find ways to reach and connect with them, to gain their respect, and fast!; and it really helped me develop as an educator. I definitely miss teaching there, but I feel like it has brought me to a place where I'm ready for this journey at Ottawa to begin, ready for the new challenges it will bring and excited to see what I'll learn about students, about teaching and about myself.