Between Treatment Tables, Books, and Classrooms: How Physiotherapy led me to teaching

 

In our last class of Digital Technologies in Teaching, Professor Fernando Pimentel raised an interesting question: why don’t we have posts written in English on our blogs yet? He also encouraged us to explore more interaction and mobility in these digital spaces.

That question stayed with me.

So I decided to begin with something personal: sharing a little about my journey in higher education teaching. After all, understanding our own paths is also a way of giving life and meaning to the digital spaces we create.

First, let me introduce myself.

My name is Alexsandra, and unlike many people who grow up dreaming of becoming teachers, teaching was not exactly my original plan. I am, first and foremost, a physiotherapist passionate about my profession. And it is from this passion that, for almost 22 years, I have had the privilege of teaching in higher education in the field of health.

You might be wondering: how did Physiotherapy lead me to a classroom?

Perhaps it was genetics. My mother was a literacy teacher deeply committed to her students. Or perhaps it was inspiration—throughout my academic journey I met professors who profoundly influenced my professional path and awakened in me an admiration for teaching.

I completed my Bachelor’s degree in Physiotherapy at the School of Medical Sciences of Alagoas (ECMAL)—now the State University of Health Sciences of Alagoas (UNCISAL)—in 2003.

During my undergraduate years, I was always the kind of student who stayed close to the professors, participating in teaching assistantships and clinical assistance projects. Looking back, I realize that the seeds of teaching may already have been planted there.

Then something unexpected happened.

In April 2004, only a few months after graduating, I was invited by two former professors—today colleagues—to teach a basic physiotherapy course at a private higher education institution.

I remember asking myself a difficult question: Was I ready for such responsibility?

After all, I would be contributing to the professional training of future physiotherapists while still being a newly graduated professional myself.

But with the encouragement of my family and the trust of my former professors, I accepted the challenge.

That same year, I began a specialization in Trauma-Orthopedic Physiotherapy at Gama Filho University, and over the years I continued investing in my development both as a physiotherapist and as a teacher.

As time passed, I realized something important: the more I taught, the stronger my commitment became to offering quality education to my students.

In 2010, I was accepted into the Master’s program at Cidade de São Paulo University (UNICID). Around the same time, I received an invitation to work as a substitute professor in the Physiotherapy program at UNCISAL, the institution where I had studied.

Returning there as a teacher felt like coming home.

In 2016, I passed a public examination and became a permanent assistant professor at UNCISAL. Later, in 2021, I was elected coordinator of the Physiotherapy undergraduate program, a position I still hold today.

Looking back, I realize that my journey into teaching was not carefully planned. It was built along the way, through opportunities, challenges, and meaningful encounters.

For that, I feel deeply grateful— to my teachers, who inspired me;
to my students, who renew the meaning of teaching every day;
and to everyone who has been part of this journey.

In the end, perhaps this is how teachers are truly formed: in the meeting between what we love to do and the desire to share that knowledge with others.