Dr. Marcelo Bacha

Subject: Math and Problem Solving

What will my child walk away with? The ability to think critically about mathematical and scientific problems — not just to execute procedures, but to understand why those procedures work and what they reveal about the world. My doctoral training in Materials Science and Engineering at the University of Sao Paulo, combined with six years at an astronomical observatory and two years at one of Brazil’s largest astronomy education centers, gives my teaching an unusually concrete connection to real-world scientific application.

What can families expect? A teacher whose educational philosophy is grounded in Paulo Freire’s conviction that true education provides freedom by teaching students how to learn through critical thinking. I have co-authored a book on telescope construction and use in astronomy teaching, and I bring that same commitment to making complex material genuinely accessible into every class.

What does class actually feel like? Curious, practical, and intellectually honest. I believe mathematics and physics are most powerfully taught when students understand their connection to real phenomena, and I draw on my observatory experience and engineering background to make those connections visible and engaging.

How do you challenge a curious mind? I give students problems that sit at the boundary between mathematical abstraction and physical reality, because that boundary is where the most interesting questions live. A curious student who can execute calculations needs to learn to ask what those calculations mean and what they make possible, and that transition from procedure to understanding is the heart of what I teach.

Credentials and Experience Ph.D. in Material Science and Engineering, University of Sao Paulo. M.Sc. in Material Science and Technology, Sao Paulo State University Julio de Mesquita Filho. B.Sc. in Physics-Education, Sao Paulo State University. Six years as monitor and amateur telescope maker at the Astronomical Observatory Lionel Jose Andriatto. Two years as teacher at the CEU Foundation, one of Brazil’s largest astronomical observatories. Co-author of Construcao e utilizacao de lunetas no ensino de astronomia (The Construction and Use of Telescopes in Astronomy Teaching). Four years of university-level teaching in Mechanical Engineering departments across physics, thermodynamics, heat and mass transfer, CAD, and capstone supervision.