Education is not just the teaching and learning of knowledge and skills but it is the application of these entities in real life contexts. I am on an educational journey – one called teaching; where I am responsible for equipping children with the learning power to not only acquire knowledge and skills but the ability to know when and how to use these outside of the classroom.
As a Newly Qualified Teacher the daunting prospect of me having my own class came on Tuesday….spetember. I was faced with 30 9-10 year olds waiting to meet the new teacher in the school and continue their primary education.
My career move into teaching came when my own nephew started primary school, which in England is when a child is 4 years old, a starts reception. Like I did when I was his age, my nephew loved to learn. I remember thinking what a wonderful thing to be sharing a child’s passion for education as my mother did with me all those years ago. So I took the necessary steps to enter the UK education system, on that I knew very little about other than my own experiences as a pupil/student.
During my yearlong Post Graduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) where I began my teacher training, I witnessed all the rewarding aspects of teaching, along with the monogamous jobs of assessment and paperwork that accompanies it. I even formed opinions about 6 and 11 year old performing in Stand Assessment Tests (SATs) in the UK education industry – which is used primarily for school statistics as opposed to helping the child.
The training was one of the hardest experiences of my life and I never thought that the year would end and I would be a teacher. I never imagined how I would make judgments and state that the children in my class had made progress or even that I would get past the interview stage. But I did. In April 2008 I was offered a job – as a class teacher. I remember the overwhelming feeling of the prospect of having my own class, but then I realized that I would be the one accountable to all that mattered in school – the learning.
My first class were a mixture of children from traditional Asian backgrounds to children who were in the care of family members due to quite delicate parental issues. The school in a small, deprived area in Birmingham, England had suffered problems in the past with non-performing teaches, badly behaved children and those dreaded SATs results which were damaging to the school’s reputation.
As I progressed through the first term the realities began to strike and it was tough dealing with what can only be described as “challenging” behavior. I questioned whether I was good enough for the job, whether the children actually liked me and if I was even in the right job. I would shed tears at the thought of failing and the fact that I was letting the 29 other children down as inside I could not handle what one 9 year old boy was putting me through – verbal and physical abuse towards me and the other children and adults in my class. I had a right to feel safe and secure at my place of work and the children had this too along with the receipt of a good education and so I made that necessary choices and spoke to the head. As time went on I realized that my efforts were not the thing letting the child down it was the school, and as the teacher you also take on the role as social worker, mentor and friend. Those negative experiences that I encounter have all contributed to the teacher I have evolved into – even more determined, focused and certain that I have made the right career choice.
When the head teacher uttered those sacred words “thank you” I knew I was doing something right. The rewarding moments most definitely outweigh any of the negatives of marking, assessing and dealing with children who find it difficult to handle their behavior due to external factors, often outside of school. The evidence of when a child has understood or applied something to their work which shows progress in their learning; the times when parents thank me for something that I have done and when the children sigh when I notify them that I will be out of class. All these positive aspects are the reason I teach and why after a whole year of tears, tantrums and tests why I still enjoy it.
Who is made to teach? My father has said to me on a few occasions that not everyone can teach and that I must have the patience of a saint. Hardest job in the world by the most rewarding one.
Teachers play a role in shaping the next generation, giving them hope, security and life lessons. Instilling confidence and independence and building learning power. Ensuring that they grow up to be resourceful, resilient and reflective on what they can do better. I hope with all my passion, experience and own reflections that I can eliminate the prospect of one of my children being the ones left behind.
There a very few guarantees in life and with the history across the world that has shaped our society’s, the best we can do as adults is to try and provide the best for the children of the future and ensure that some historical events do not repeat themselves. I am in a position as a teacher to shape 30 children’s lives in one year and over a ten year career that is 300 children. What a difference that can make?
A main said to me that teaching is one of the hardest jobs in the world…bit it is also the best job in the world and I am happy that I am one of the chosen ones – a teacher!
