This book includes a plain text version that is designed for high accessibility. To use this version please follow this link.
Page 36

CHANGING CAREER

A fresh start

As the recession continues to bite, teaching has become an increasingly attractive career option for people seeking a job that’s both rewarding and secure. The Training and Development Agency for schools reports that enquiries have risen by 50 per cent and applications by 10 per cent. Here, four NUT members explain why they changed career to become teachers.

The former chef
Julie Cowan teaches food studies to Key Stage 3 and 4 pupils at Admiral Lord Nelson school in Portsmouth. She originally trained as a chef and worked in the hospitality industry for 13 years.

I was working in missions in Mexico and was offered a job as a teacher in a primary school. I felt I couldn’t accept a job teaching unless I knew what I was doing, so I went back home to Australia to train, with the ultimate aim of going back to Mexico – or somewhere else in the world – to teach.

During 2004 and 2005 I completed a Bachelor in Education with Honours at the University of Newcastle in New South Wales. It was a compressed programme, with one year taken off because I had done chef training and the other three years crammed into two. On arriving in the UK, I undertook the overseas teaching training programme through the Isle of Wight teacher training centre.

Teaching is a great job so long as you can remain organised and keep up with the paperwork – which is ever-growing! I enjoy sharing my professional knowledge and skills with my students and seeing them develop their own. I also appreciate the school hours and the holidays.

Pay is certainly more than your average chef would get, holidays speak for themselves and it’s so rewarding when you see students apply their learning, both inside and outside of school. Even though there is always work that can be done at home in the evenings, you generally have the choice to put it down and have ‘me’ time, whereas cheffing does not always give you that privilege. The only thing I miss about cheffing is the buzz I’d get from doing 120 covers in an hour and half.

I joined the NUT because I knew that it was a large, well respected union in the UK. The union is now assisting me regarding immigration rules and regulations.

Teaching is a great career move if you feel passionate about working with students and helping them develop, not just in your subject area but socially and emotionally as well. It’s not for everyone though, so think through your motives before launching into your new career.

The former website developer
Dan Went used to be a web/digital developer. He now teaches design technology to 11 to 16 year olds at Leventhorpe School in Sawbridgeworth, Hertfordshire.

I used to work as a website developer for a small branding agency. I joined straight from university, where I’d studied design technology, and stayed for eight and a half years.

I’d been feeling that it was a dead-end job. I was bored and constantly clockwatching. People kept saying: “Why don’t you become a teacher?” so I thought I’d look into it. My parents were both fantastic teachers, so growing up I saw the positive sides as well as all the hard work. My wife’s a teacher as well.

I trained with the London North Consortium. I was on the Graduate Teacher Programme and worked at my old school in Enfield, which I found a struggle as it’s a fairly tough school. Although what I learned there was valuable, it was more about behaviour management than teaching. It was nice to know some of the staff from my days as a pupil, though.

In my old job I worked 9am to 6pm with five weeks’ holiday a year. As a teacher, my official working hours are less and holidays far more, but actually I spend longer working. I knew that would be the case, having spent most of my life living with teachers. On the plus side, my new career is far more rewarding and offers opportunities for career progression.

The biggest difference I’ve noticed is my emotional commitment to my work. If a website goes wrong, who cares? – you can just start again in the morning. But in teaching you’re dealing with human beings and mistakes can have a far greater impact. You can’t afford to go wrong.

The kids make the work massively rewarding. The best moments are when you see them light up; when they realise they’ve done something well.

My pay is about half what it used to be. It’s less than I was expecting, partly because I’ve taken a job outside London and so don’t receive London weighting. With a family to support, it’s a real struggle.

To anyone thinking of coming into teaching, I’d say, don’t fool yourself that’s it’s an easy job. People think it’s all 3.30 finishes and long holidays, and it’s not!

Continued on page 37 Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52
Produced with Yudu - www.yudu.com