Teacher of the Cycle: Mr. Martin

Paul Martin, the teacher whom we all know as the one who likes Math. He was most of our homeroom teachers when we were in 10th grade and is most known for his fun handshake with his wife, an English teacher, Catrina Martin.

During this cycle, we decided to interview him about all the little secrets he holds for he is well-known for his mysterious aura. I was a student of Mr. Martin’s from when I was a freshman only till my sophomore year when I was also in his homeroom. We share the same passion for rock, or actually, he is more passionate. We have similar senses of humor and I also used to love his son’s favorite band, ‘The Wiggles’. Yet, what are some of the things that don’t come up in daily casual conversation such as other topics (i.e. Cow Pants, patent pending)? This is a deep dive into a little bit more about the quiet math teacher who let all students have their videos and microphones turned off during online school. 

Question 1. Where were you born? 

Lilydale, Victoria, Australia, and the hospital he was born, has since turned into a retirement home so “he can leave where he was born.” 

Some classic Mr. Martin humor there. 

Question 2. What was something that you used to love doing as a child?

He used to love running but now he prefers to focus on running when he’s chasing his son around. 

Question 3. What is something from your childhood that you’ve continued to love doing?

 He acknowledged how basic his answer was going be “Video games”, he stated. But then also added some side notes on his first commodore 64 (a very old computer) that he got when he was eight. He also said it is probably in a box at his mom’s house. 

Question 4. What is the most out-of-character thing that you did in high school? 

This led him into a cycle of how it depends on what his character was like in high school versus what it is now. I think it’s safe to say that was the most in-character thing he has done. 

Question 5. Which trope did you fit into in high school? 

Metalhead. And then for the befit of us youngsters the “emo”, said his brother always described him as angry, how relatable!  

Question 6. Why did you decide to become a teacher? 

He decided to give us a very short synopsis version: In post-grad, he tutored undergraduate, and second-year engineering students. But when he ran out of scholarships, he decided to come to Japan to teach English because “Why not?” The why not was he didn’t like teaching English but enjoyed teaching and so went back to Australia to get a degree in teaching.  

Question 7. What was your University life like? 

“Fun.” He says this easily. He lived with a high school friend and they did a lot of activities with each other such as gaming, playing Warhammer, Dungeons, and Dragons, and video games. They used to live in the city too so they would go watch movies in the middle of the night. He also started getting more active and started cycling. 

Question 8. Where did you meet Mrs. Martin? 

They used to work at the same school before Saint Maur. 

Question 9. When did you know you want to marry Mrs. Martin? 

He said he knew pretty quickly that he wanted to but he stated that there was a moment when he had an overwhelming desire: they went to Chicago to visit some of Mrs. Martin’s family and as they were around the “beach”, the sun started to set and fireflies came out (Mr. Martin’s first time seeing fireflies) and ended his story with the description of it being a “perfect moment”. 

Question 10. What is the craziest thing you’ve ever done? 

When asked this question, Mr. Martin started to go in circles about what is something that is actually crazy and then settles on the story of him jumping on a moving train with his roommate. He then changes his mind and states having a child was the craziest moment. 

Question 11. Favorite thing about Saint Maur? 

“The students and the teachers.”

Question 12. What is the most memorable thing that students have done? 

At his “original” school, a grade 10 student made a comical math textbook. 

Made fun of me for making a math journal about myself. 

Question 13. Favorite food? 

“Abura ramen”, He says quite easily. 

Question 14. Favorite movie? 

“The big Lebowski”, He also states this quite immediately. 

Question 15. We know that your favorite band is ‘slayer’ so what is your favorite song? 

His current favorite is the ‘Final 6’. 

Question 16. Favorite ‘wiggles’ song? 

He decided on a song he describes as “underrated” ‘Meteorology’. How interesting.  

Question 17. Do you have any advice for your students or anything you’d like to put out there? 

“Don’t be afraid to make a change. Just because everything has always been the same, don’t be afraid to challenge it. It’s better to find out you don’t like something before you commit to it.”

Thank you Mr. Martin for being the teacher of this cycle and answering all of my questions!

Addisyn Madeen