Teaching

[PocketLady]

After graduating from university in May last year I was at a loss as to what to do with myself.  After spending all my life in education I had no idea what I was doing to do with my life now.  I spent a couple of months applying for very dull and boring jobs before finding myself tangled up in the exciting but fickle world of poker.  In some respects I had the best year of my life, doing what I please, travelling around the UK and Ireland, and meeting some fantastic people along the way.  But as the months began to draw on I started to feel empty and disillusioned.  Poker had become everything, and nothing else really mattered.  My family was worried about me because all I did was eat, drink, sleep, and play.  It took me a while to realise it, but earlier this year I decided that enough was enough.  I had been living with my mum since I came home from uni so I decided to use the money that I had in my bankroll to move out and get my own place.  I still didn't have a clue what I was going to do with myself, and started applying for more monotonous office-type jobs which didn't exactly fill me with joy. 

Music degrees are funny things.  Obviously the music industry is very hard to get into, especially for me not living in London, so there aren't many specialised jobs where a degree in music is going to be very useful.  One of the only things a music degree is useful for is if you want to become a Music Teacher.  Having done a fair bit of instrumental teaching in the past whilst I was doing my A Levels and my degree I thought maybe I might enjoy it.  Although I never really appreciated it as a kid, I just love the school environment.  I think it's great.  So I decided to apply in July this year, and got accepted on what's called School Centred Initial Teacher Training  (SCHITT) in Luton, to become a secondary school Music Teacher.  Most teacher training courses are run at universities, but this course you learn in schools from day one so it's much more hands on. 

Between June and now I have been living in a flat on my own, with little money (because it all went into buying furniture, paying rent etc), and a crappy work from home job where I type all night for 12 hours straight and then get paid £30.  Sometimes I didn't see anyone or leave the house for a week.  A lot of the time I didn't think I was going to make it to September, and I can honestly say the last three months have been the hardest of my life.  Everything went wrong if I am honest, but I somehow managed to drag myself out of bed every day, because I knew that in a few months I would be starting my teacher training, and that was something I was really looking forward to.  I have several people to thank for helping me get through, without them I'm not sure I would have got there.

So yes, the point of this long post is that yesterday I had my induction day at Challney High School.  Although it was just an induction day I was really worried.  What if something else had gone wrong and I wasn't going to be able to do the course?  What if I hated it?  What if I made myself sound like an idiot in front of all these other graduates?  But as soon as I got there I realised that I didn't need to worry.  Everyone was so friendly, the other trainees and the staff.  I met the three other music trainees (there were about 50 of us altogether, but all different subjects) and we had lunch together and it was really great.  We all got given brand new laptops to keep for the year which I definitely wasn't expecting.  I spoke to the Course Director at one of the breaks and he was telling me how much funding the government is putting into these SCHITT courses.  Apparently they are part of some government initiative to create "outstanding" teachers. 

The whole day just felt right, like this is what I meant to be doing with my life.  I drove back up the motorway with the biggest grin on my face, it was such a good feeling.  The course is going to be very tough, I know that, but at the end of it I am going to have a career, and hopefully something I will enjoy for the rest of my life.  I love music, always have done and now I'm going to be able to pass that on to these kids.  I'm sure there will be days when I feel like crying, and I'm sure the kids won't be angels by any means, but after yesterday it just feels like everything has been worth it.  I'm back in on Monday for another lecture, and then I start at my school for real on Tuesday.  It's a catholic school so hopefully it shouldn't be too bad.  I'd imagine the behaviour at a catholic school is a bit better than at a normal comprehensive.

Sorry for the ramble, but I'm so excited I just had to write it all down!  I'm not a morning person AT ALL and communiting to Luton is going to mean a 6am start everyday, but I don't care, this is what I'm meant to be doing.

[ShatnerPants]

Assuming your SCHITT is for real ( I just can't believe that......) .

But GL with all this.  It sounds like you've got a genuine enthusiasm going.

All the very best in the world to you. Don't be afraid to work hard, even if those around you fall short.  You more effort you put in, the more you'll appreciate yourself, and all that.

    

[Jon MW]

GL for the course, I did a Uni centred PGCE course (but even when you do that 2/3 of it is in school like your one).

To be honest I think the government pushing for this type of course is because it is cheaper and easier to run than the Uni centred one - so hopefully you get the same level of back up as the other type.

I taught maths so I don't think there's too much overlap with your course - but all the best for the rest of the year.

[relaedgc]

Chalney Boys or Girls?

[The_duke]

Apart from the dodgy acronym this sounds absolutely fabulous -- the very best of luck

[sovietsong]

congratulations, gl with the new job!

[PocketLady]

Chalney Boys or Girls?

Boy's, but that's where the training group is based so I'm just there for lectures and stuff.  I'm at Cardinal Newman for my actual placement.

GL for the course, I did a Uni centred PGCE course (but even when you do that 2/3 of it is in school like your one).

To be honest I think the government pushing for this type of course is because it is cheaper and easier to run than the Uni centred one - so hopefully you get the same level of back up as the other type.

I taught maths so I don't think there's too much overlap with your course - but all the best for the rest of the year.

Yeah the fees are only £1200 a year for us, whereas all the uni's tend to charge the maximum £3000.  I'm not sure what the uni based PGCE course is like, but it seems like we get an awful lot of support on this one.  I generally think uni's quite often just tell you what you need to know, and then it's up to you to do the work and make sure you keep up.  The impression I got yesterday is that they are going to drag us kicking and screaming through this course and make sure as many of us as possible pass it (obviously in a nice way).  Before yesterday I thought that maybe this type of course wouldn't be as good as a "normal" PGCE.  You know how it is, they bring in all these vocational qualfications and try and to claim that they are as good as normal academic qualfications, but employers still don't see them as being as good as traditional qualifications.  But with this course I really get the impression that it is going to be as good as, if not better than a normal course.  I certainly hope so anyway! 

And obviously the huge advantage is the long holidays, perfect for poker if you ask me....

[madasahatstand]

Well done Pocketlady and all the best, it sounds great. Working with kids and music is fun and you got the best of both worlds.

I don't think the behaviour at a catholic school is going to be better than anywhere else. Kids will try it on to find out if they can get away with it so keep your foot down from day one and teach that lessons can be fun without ripping it out of the teacher.

Let us know about the challenges you face and how you handle them. I look forward  to your news and well done again

Mad

[ShatnerPants]

Don't know if it's relevant nowadays, but I was told by a teacher a few years ago the best thing she learned was not to smile for the first 3 weeks.

If they get to think you're a cow and get used to doing what you tell them straight away, you can loosen up and relax a bit more with time.

If they think they can push you at all in the first few days, you'll always be fighting them.

Sounds good to me, but then, I've always been a git.

[Tonji]

All the best in your new career.

[Robert HM]

 

Good luck Miss

[Longy]

Gl, i actual went the opposite way to you 3 years ago and left teaching to play poker/ other gambling income.

Like JonMw I did a PGCE in Maths, which suited me at the time as I had come straight out of university and i got almost a years transition from student to real job. It is hard work no doubt, there is a lot of paperwork and a bit of stress while training. Yet you certainly will never be bored in teaching, everyday is different.

To my knowledge a Catholic school is likely to be better a school results and behaviour wise compared to a standard comprehensive. Yet each school is different and alot of how "good" a school is how it is run by the headteacher and senior management.

[Acidmouse]

gl teaching is an awsome job if u get the right kids and school

[taximan007]

I wish you all the very best, and believe me if you NEED to do something it can be done, but only you can do it.

Good Luck and keep us updated

[Jon MW]

...

GL for the course, I did a Uni centred PGCE course (but even when you do that 2/3 of it is in school like your one).

To be honest I think the government pushing for this type of course is because it is cheaper and easier to run than the Uni centred one - so hopefully you get the same level of back up as the other type.

I taught maths so I don't think there's too much overlap with your course - but all the best for the rest of the year.

Yeah the fees are only £1200 a year for us, whereas all the uni's tend to charge the maximum £3000.  I'm not sure what the uni based PGCE course is like, but it seems like we get an awful lot of support on this one.  I generally think uni's quite often just tell you what you need to know, and then it's up to you to do the work and make sure you keep up.  The impression I got yesterday is that they are going to drag us kicking and screaming through this course and make sure as many of us as possible pass it (obviously in a nice way).  Before yesterday I thought that maybe this type of course wouldn't be as good as a "normal" PGCE.  You know how it is, they bring in all these vocational qualfications and try and to claim that they are as good as normal academic qualfications, but employers still don't see them as being as good as traditional qualifications.  But with this course I really get the impression that it is going to be as good as, if not better than a normal course.  I certainly hope so anyway! 

And obviously the huge advantage is the long holidays, perfect for poker if you ask me....

My image of this course is just an image, I don't know anybody that's done one (that's my disclaimer).

On my PGCE we spent a bit of time learning some teaching theory, then a bit of time applying it to teaching some small groups who had difficulty with particular problems. Then the last 2 terms were teaching at 2 different schools. My impression of the school based one was that you were more 'thrown in at the deep end'.

But what you've suggested about the support you're getting makes me think that might not be entirely accurate.

Both ways fundamentally involve a lot of teaching so I don't see the final result being judged any differently.