Raketta Foxx: Every child has a voice that adds value to the conversation
Updated: Nov 22, 2022
Raketta Foxx of JCPS Virtual Academy passionately believes in each student's individuality and makes it her mission to ensure they know their voice is important.
Sharing the title of the eldest of five with her twin sister and working as a babysitter throughout her teens means that Raketta Foxx has always worked with kids. From a young age, that's where her passion was and although she started out in college as a pre-med student, she realized that education was the path she wanted to take after her roommate, an elementary education major, encouraged her to check out her course.
Now in her 14th year of teaching, Raketta teaches eighth-grade math and always tries to incorporate as many fun and interactive elements into her teaching as possible. "I'm a firm believer that competition is great inside the classroom," she said. "It really ignites a spark within kids." Likewise, Raketta believes strongly in meeting students where they are. She said this helps bridge the gap between her and her students and shows them she cares from the very beginning.
Expanding on this, Raketta said that day one in her classroom is all about getting to know her students, sharing information and learning about their likes and dislikes, whether related to math or not. Through this, Raketta said she gains insight into their different learning styles and caters to them accordingly. She also strives to ensure every student's voice is heard, believing every voice has value in the conversation.
Over the years, Raketta has greatly impacted her students and transformed how they think about education, themselves, and their capabilities. She recounted a story of bumping into a former student when buying a car; he worked at the dealership and told Raketta that she was the turning point in his school career. Commenting on this, she said, "It may break my math heart to admit they might forget Slope Intercept, but I just hope to have a positive impact on them."
Photos courtesy of Raketta Foxx