There is a quiet humility about Farhina Mawani. Her answers are brief and matter-of-fact, and there is no boasting or bragging. Yet, you can see she has an assuredness about her path and her goals and a subtle sense of pride, even though she may not immediately tell you about her accomplishments.
“It has always been my main goal to be a teacher,” she states. This stellar student and immigrant to the United States is ready to launch her career as an educator.* Being a student at the University of Arizona Global Campus (UAGC) in the Bachelor of Arts in Early Childhood Education program is only the beginning for her.
Building the Dream
Farhina loves talking about school and the love for learning she discovered at a young age. “I was born in Pakistan and then I moved to Africa,” she describes. “I went to early school there and then moved to America.”
Her family immigrated to the United States in 2001 when Farhina was about eight years old. Farhina’s parents sought a better life and education for their three young daughters. They felt their children deserved better than the education system in Pakistan, so they sought this in the United States.
Though, making ends meet was a challenge for Farhina’s parents when they arrived. “They did not have enough money when they came,” she says, explaining that her parents took out a loan from a bank in Africa where her father worked and simply tried to spend wisely.
Farhina’s father was able to get a job working at a gas station while her mother stayed home to care for the three sisters.
Farhina (far left) with her father and sisters.
The love of school Farhina had found as a young student followed her across oceans to her new American classrooms. “I had a few good teachers who were very meaningful to me,” she remembers.
She says she continues to stay in touch with her high school guidance counselor on birthdays and special occasions to this day. “She had a really great impact in my life,” Farhina says. “She said I have a lot of capabilities in myself, and I can do whatever I want to.”
It was her guidance counselor who initially encouraged her to pursue her interest in education.
Student and Educator
While Farhina doesn’t know specifically where her love of helping others learn came from, she knows it has been with her since childhood. “I remember in first and second grade when I came home from school, I would sit my toys down, and I would pretend to be the teacher,” she recalls.
Her stuffed animals and dolls became her captive audience for her to impart her wisdom on the letters of the alphabet, sounds, and shapes she had learned in school that day.
After high school, Farhina attended a community college and later transferred to complete her degree at Ashford University, now UAGC, where she expects to graduate in 2023.
Farhina says that she has continued to receive great support from instructors and advisors at UAGC. “I had great advisors who would email for the holidays, birthdays, and just to check up on us, which makes me feel important and that I matter,” she expresses.
Earning her degree online has also helped Farhina pursue opportunities to enhance her education. In addition to her studies, she was accepted to an internship program at a Creative Montessori school in the town where she lives in Alabama. There, she’s able to get valuable classroom experience, and it certainly keeps her busy.
Every morning, Farhina leaves her home around 7 a.m. to take her sister, also a college student, to her campus. Then, she arrives at her internship for morning meetings and to welcome students, and she often stays for aftercare programs. “I’m basically teaching the whole day,” she says. “I leave at about 5:30; it’s a long day.”
Farhina says she uses her lunchtime and any time she has in the evenings to complete her own coursework, recognizing that if she did not have the ability to go to school online, balancing all of her responsibilities would be difficult.
Though, she says she has certainly found her niche in the Montessori education environment, and she loves what she gets to do every day.
Farhina explains Montessori education is led, in many ways, by the student. She describes her role in the classroom as an assistant to the students as they choose what they want to learn. This is where Farhina hopes to focus her career as an educator.
“Even the naughty kids are quietly and calmly doing the work,” she laughs. She says it’s always pleasantly surprising to see a child previously acting out suddenly engaging in their education.
Farhina finds herself in awe of children and the knowledge they hold at such a young age. “I just see how they are soaking it all up,” she says. “When they’re sharing stories, I wonder, ‘How do you know that?’”
She enjoys the curriculum and method of teaching in a Montessori environment. “My brain is working all the time,” she describes.
In addition to the experience she’s gaining through her internship, she says she is making plans for that next step and seeking her licensure, as she understands that her UAGC degree will not immediately certify her to teach. She has already started working with her academic advisor to gather the information she needs to prepare for her future.
Farhina is also using her talents in the CHAMPS Peer Mentoring Program. Since joining the program in August, she has mentored five new students. “It feels amazing because we are able to assist others and gain special bonds through achieving milestones,” she says.
She meets with her mentees every Wednesday to discuss classes and where they’re struggling. Farhina says she knows what it feels like to have days when motivation is lacking. “Even I have days where I don’t want to do anything,” she admits. She is open with her mentees about her day-to-day obstacles and encourages them to take breaks when they need to, adding that her strategies include going for walks or listening to music.
Perhaps the best part about being a mentor is she is able to gain new ideas from her mentees, as well. Just like her role teaching young children, she allows others to take the lead. “We’re exchanging strategies all the time,” she says.
Farhina has also gotten involved with a sorority outside of UAGC where they are planning ways to generate positivity around them through acts of kindness and other community activities and events.
After Farhina completes the milestone of earning her bachelor’s degree, she plans to take her education further and pursue a master’s degree, focusing specifically on Montessori education in early childhood.
While she sees herself eventually developing curriculum and perhaps holding leadership roles, Farhina says she does not want to ever be taken out of the classroom. “My passion in teaching children would be the main reason,” she confirms of her reason for pursuing higher education.
Farhina will no doubt be gifting students with her talents for many years to come.
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Whitney Bradford is a UAGC senior content specialist and former University Advisor.
* An online degree from UAGC does not lead to immediate teacher licensure in any state. If you want to become a classroom teacher, contact your state’s education authorities prior to enrolling at UAGC to determine what state-specific requirements you must complete before obtaining your teacher’s license. UAGC graduates will be subject to additional requirements on a state-by-state basis that will include one or more of the following: student teaching or practicum experience, additional coursework, additional testing, or, if the state requires a specific type of degree to seek alternative certification, earning an additional degree.
None of the UAGC online education programs are accredited by the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP), which is a requirement for certification in some states. Other factors, such as a student’s criminal history, may prevent an applicant from obtaining licensure or employment in this field of study. All prospective students are advised to visit the Education Resource Organizations Directory (EROD)and to contact the licensing body of the state where they are licensed or intend to obtain licensure to verify that these courses qualify for teacher certification, endorsement, and/or salary benefits in that state prior to enrolling. Prospective students are also advised to regularly review the state’s policies and procedures relating to licensure as those policies are subject to change.
Certain degree programs may not be available in all states.