His classes have become so popular that siblings fight for the laptop screen to learn from this costumed teacher.
LA PAZ, Bolivia — Sometimes, Jorge Manolo Villarroel is Spiderman. Sometimes, he’s the Flash, or the Green Lantern.
But he’s always a teacher – one who lives out his childhood dreams by dressing up as superheroes for the locked-down students who attend his virtual classes.
His classes have become so popular that siblings fight for the laptop screen to learn from this costumed teacher. They, in turn, often offer him tech help.
“They arrive to the virtual classes before me and the first surprise is to guess which superhero will appear on the screen,” said Villarroel.
At 33, Villarroel speaks with the passion of a child. His modest room is filled with the masks and costumes of his characters, along with images of Christ, several Roman Catholic saints, revolutionary Che Guevara and his parents.
Villarroel, who lives in a poorer neighborhood of the Bolivian capital, teaches art at the San Ignacio Catholic School in a wealthier area. His students range from 9 to 14 years old.
“Hey teacher! You have to anchor the image… Go to the screen of your cellphone and look for a small one,” a student told Villarroel; the teacher, dressed as the Flash, explained to his youngest students how to put together a mosaic of geometric figures using colored leaves.
