All About Acorda Home Learn More Inspiration About the Author |
Jonathan Edwin Acorda

Hi! My name is Jonathan Edwin Acorda, or Mr. Acorda for short to my students. I am a Filipino-American born and raised in the Bay Area. I love music (specifically singing), reading, watching shows/series and movies, playing video games, traveling, hanging out with family and friends, and being outside in the sun. I graduated from the University of California, Santa Cruz in 2018 with a major in computational mathematics. I am going on my seventh year teaching.
In my first two years of teaching, I started my teaching credential program at Touro University California and taught math in Sonoma to 6th though 8th grades and an elective class called Student Voice and Expression. In my third year of teaching, I got hired in Vallejo and have been teaching there for the past four (going on my fifth) years. My first year there, I exclusively taught 6th grade math and was the STEAM (Science Technology Engineering Art Mathematics) club advisor. I moved up to 8th grade the year after that and taught math and science. The year after that and since then, I have exclusively taught 8th grade math, became 8th grade level lead, and Student Council advisor.
In my first two years of teaching, I started my teaching credential program at Touro University California and taught math in Sonoma to 6th though 8th grades and an elective class called Student Voice and Expression. In my third year of teaching, I got hired in Vallejo and have been teaching there for the past four (going on my fifth) years. My first year there, I exclusively taught 6th grade math and was the STEAM (Science Technology Engineering Art Mathematics) club advisor. I moved up to 8th grade the year after that and taught math and science. The year after that and since then, I have exclusively taught 8th grade math, became 8th grade level lead, and Student Council advisor.
Reflections on your Journey
When the pandemic/lockdown/quarantine hit in March 2020, I was finishing up my second year of teaching in Sonoma. I had to find creative and innovative ways of teaching math virtually and digitally without the use of whiteboards, workbooks, worksheets, or homework. So I quickly realized that along with teaching the math curriculum and real world/life applications, I also needed to learn and teach 21st century skills and tech tools. Which led me to the Innovative Learning masters program after finishing my teaching credential program at Touro University California. So far, I have learned about different digital programs, AI tools, how to build websites, etc. I am only going on my 7th year of teaching and still trying to figuring out how to incorporate these tools, programs, and 21st century skills into math and my classroom.
Lasting Learning from the Innovative Learning program
Read my reflections from Touro University California's Innovative Learning program on my personal website/blog here: https://jacorda.weebly.com/