Ronald Duncan

Ronald Duncan, a math teacher at St. Anthony High School in Jersey City, will be honored by Princeton University at it's commencement ceremony next week, for his accomplishments in teaching. May 25, 2016. Mak Ojutiku | The Jersey Journal

For Ronald Duncan, being an effective high school teacher is all about making things relatable for the students.

Duncan has been teaching math at St. Anthony High School in Jersey City for the past eight years, and in that time he's developed a methodology that focuses on a student's individual strengths, to make the sometimes daunting subject more easily accessible for his ninth to twelfth grade students.

"I like to use an approach where I try to understand the differentiated learning styles of each student. What works best," said Duncan, who is also the head of the school's math department.

Ronald Duncan, a math teacher at St. Anthony High School in Jersey City, will be honored by Princeton University at it's commencement ceremony next week, for his accomplishments in teaching. May 25, 2016. Mak Ojutiku | The Jersey Journal

"Because math is oftentimes a discipline that is attached to a lot of phobias, students come in nervous or afraid, so I try to approach in a way that individualizes."

Duncan, a Brooklyn-native and a Jersey City resident for 30 years, has long been recognized for his teaching by his peers and students and today he'll be honored for it by one of the world's premier educational institutions.

Princeton University will be honoring Duncan and three other outstanding high school educators in the state at its commencement ceremony today.

The teachers were selected from Princeton's Program in Teacher Preparation program based on nominations from students and faculty from public and private schools around the state. The teachers will also receive $5,000, as well as $3,000 for their school libraries.

In Duncan's nomination letter, St. Anthony's Head of School Chris Broussard wrote that Duncan teaches "math class with soul." Letting his students listen to John Coltrane, Thelonious Monk and other jazz legends while taking exams is just one component of Duncan's approach to teaching.

If he's teaching a football player for example, Duncan might use audibles and formations to help the student understand what a proper equation or formula looks like and then challenge him to see the relationship between them.

One of St. Anthony's main objectives is giving opportunities to young students who otherwise wouldn't have them. Duncan, says helping those students unearth their potential is a big part of his personal philosophy. He sees the award as something that can give his pupils something to look up to.

"I get a strong sense of pride from the students because we're in this together," Duncan said. "I tell my students often that without them I don't have my accomplishments."

"When I see the transformation of a student, when I see them developing emotionally and just growing as individuals, that's really a big part of my educating philosophy."

To see the results of Duncan's methods, all you have to do is ask the students he's reached.

"Inside his classroom, I sometimes fell down," Maria Osilla, a sophomore at St. Anthony wrote in the nomination letter. "But I looked up and I always saw Mr. Duncan holding a rope. He would pull me out of the hole."