As the students became tired of the newly learned calculus material, Dr. Chow looked
towards the sleeping class and began screaming, “This is integral!”, as he took a froglike jump forward. Then he looked back and yelled, “Now this is derivative!”, then
took a hop backwards. For the next thirty seconds you could hear “Integral!” and
“Derivative!” down the hallways. He continued to do this until everyone in the class
was moments away from laughing on the ground. This is one of many weird teaching
techniques that Dr. Chow has in his arsenal to make his teaching unique.
Very few teachers impact their students on a daily bases. Dr. Chow is an
extraordinary teacher who not only teaches calculus but also teaches you about his
life. His interesting life is what motivates his students.
Most teenagers don’t quite understand how much opportunity they have growing up in
a successful area of America. What teachers forget to do is to remind students that
they can have a great future if they motivate themselves. Some students at Hunterdon
Central put absolutely no effort in their studies, causing failing grades. Dr. Chow
despises these habits and tries to teach students to become more successful.
Dr. Chow was born in China into a poor, farming family. “For the majority of my
childhood, I did not have shoes,” he said. Like most of his friends, he thought he
would simply go through basic education, then farm for the rest of his life. He had a
great ability to learn and his teachers recognized this. Each year he continually
challenged himself to the point where he had become a genius, or as he likes to call it,
“a crazy person”.
Chow attended the National University of Taiwan where he received his Bachelor’s
Degree. After his schooling was over he began working for telecommunications
technology companies. He’s spent thirty years with Bell Laboratories.
During his time in the world of R&D he was awarded two US patents: one in the area
of video coding technique, and the other in the area of digital cross-connection
technology, according to Consultant Biographies. His patents are advanced and have
even aided the world in space travel. He doesn’t want students to believe the rumor
that he was the one that made it possible for the US to reach the moon. “I had a very
slight role in the trip to the Moon,” he said.
Being a Consulting Member of Technical Staff for Lucent Technologies he has
provided technical lectures in his fields of specialty. According to Consultant
Biographies, he has given training in regions such as Australia, Brazil, Canada, China,
Egypt, Germany, Great Britain, Guam, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia,
Mexico, New Zealand, the Netherlands, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Singapore, S. Korea,
Taiwan, and USA.
What’s so impressive is that he doesn’t teach for the money, but because he just likes
doing it. “Teaching is my hobby,” he continually says. It’s so much of a hobby that
he wrote his own textbook for his calculus, statistics, and discrete math classes. So
much time and effort has gone into his teaching.
He is not only the author of his class textbooks but the author of four published books
on wireless communications. One is Understanding Sonet SDH: Standards and
Applications, which was a best seller in the electrical engineering community,
according to Chow. He’s very generous, so he gives signed books to students who
pass his class. “It’s so nice for him to give out his books, it’s something to remember
the times in his class,” said Ryan Milway.
Dr. Chow is a proud father with a son and daughter. He has taught his ways of
education to his children to ensure they grow up successful. And indeed they did. His
daughter is Senior Vice President of the Premier Client Group which works closely
with AT&T, according to Chow. She has received many awards for her success in
business and engineering. One of the most unique is the Who’s Who in Asian
American Communities Leaders and Legends Award, according to the Asian
American Justice Center.
Even though he’s quite old he still acts like he’s young. Everyday he walks a couple
of miles around his neighborhood in Flemington, New Jersey. He never skips a
day. “The day he hurt himself falling down stairs I saw him walking around the
neighborhood. I couldn’t believe he had the motivation to walk, even with a bruised
face,” said Logan Amato.
Dr. Chow’s ability to motivate a person is impressive. His life story makes you want
to pursue your dream and work hard. From doing consultant jobs, to traveling the
world, he has done it all, literally. He has also written a number one best selling
electrical engineering book. He tops all the wisest people I know: Einstein, King
Soloman, and Yoda.