The kids know this too – I was even once told ‘ you’re not allowed to fail me‘ by a smug student when I informed him that his grades weren’t good enough – and one of my biggest worries for them in their future lives is that when they do fail for the first time, it will be at a much higher cost and there won’t be an adult to step in and make everything better. It has now become a teacher’s job to almost do the work for the lazier kids because they’re scared of how the results will look. Modern day teaching, even for those that are employed in effective schools, is not about fostering and encouraging a love of learning and a passion for a subject, it is about getting students to pass an exam or a course using criteria that is set by an exam board whilst being bombarded by data and outcomes, none of which the students will be held accountable for if they fail. Unfortunately, in the real world, I’ve found that many teachers work far harder than lots of their students. It is our job to offer advice, to ensure progress is made, to make learning interesting, to inspire and to listen to their needs. In an ideal world, a teacher’s role is to teach, to support and to guide their students. To put it quite simply, I can’t cope with the pressure, and it’s making me ill. ![]() Today, I took the risk.ĭespite the amazing opportunities I have been offered from my headteacher and support I have received from some of my colleagues over the years, I genuinely can’t remember the last point where I had a consistently positive period of time in teaching. The good has not outweighed the bad for a long time. I’m a firm believer in the idea that total career satisfaction is unattainable for most some days will be good, some days will be bad and others will make you question every career choice you have ever made whilst glugging on a bottle of wine and crying on the cat, but I’ve always presumed that as long as the good outweighs the bad then you’re generally doing the right thing. ![]() During times when heavy deadlines have been looming, insomnia and I have become good friends. I’ve returned home at the end of a day on a huge high after brilliant lessons, and had endless sleepless nights after bad ones. I’ve laughed with them, cried because of them and mourned the few that I’ve lost. ![]() I’ve played the role of teacher, parent, therapist, doctor, personal banker and seamstress to my students. I’ve supervised the day trips, evening performances, week-long UK based residentials and visits to France and America. I’ve attended every parents evening, open evening, celebration evening and awards evening and I’ve hosted or participated in hundreds of concerts. Over the course of my career, I’ve worked with thousands of teenagers, most of whom are wonderful and who I have always had excellent working relationships with, and I feel like I’ve done it all. I’ve been lucky to spend the last three years in an outstanding academy, with an excellent and well-respected principal, a great management team and a lovely faculty. In fact, according to my last three years worth of lesson observations, I’m an outstanding teacher, but I never set out to join this profession – my personal circumstances and being in the right place at the right time meant that I fell into the role rather than actively working towards it as a career choice. ![]() I can say that I’m happy to an extent, but not as much as I know I could be.Īt the beginning of 2015 I made one promise to myself: if things were going to change, it had to be now – I was going to take the risk.įor some, teaching is a vocation. I’ve always played it safe, followed the expected path, and never taken any risks. Within a year, I was offered an opportunity to train as a teacher, and I’ve worked as a qualified music teacher for nearly ten years. I worked hard in school, achieved good grades in my GCSE’s and A Levels, went to a respected music conservatoire and then was lucky enough to find myself in a full-time job as a Learning Mentor almost immediately after graduating. Throughout my life I have done everything that I felt was expected of me.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |