In 2015 I decided i was going to write my Higher portfolio piece about a group of professionals  i believed to be hugely undervalued by society….. teachers. i wanted my teachers especially Miss Duncan to see how much i valued everything that they did not only for me but everyone at the school.  So here it is the moment i am sure you have all been eagerly waiting for, my fifth year higher English essay entitled “Workload Wages and Woe”.

Workload, Wages and Woe,

How many movies have you watched where the theme of the story revolves around an outstanding teacher turning around the life of an under-achieving student through their inspirational teaching? Ask any parent what the most important factor is when choosing a school for their precious offspring and the answer, undoubtedly, would be the quality of a school’s teaching staff. It is this essential ingredient that is crucial to the potential life-changing decision pupils have to make. Parents want their children to experience the best education possible. Why else would affluent parents be willing to pay considerable sums of money to privately educate their children? In today’s competitive dog-eat-dog world, educational success and qualifications can mean the difference between successfully securing a university or college place, leading to employment as opposed to joining the army of claimants waiting in line for their turn to sign on at the benefit office or stacking the shelves at their local supermarket. The First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon, agrees that the education of the younger generation is pivotal to the continuing success of our nation. So why do we still continue to pay teachers considerably lower salaries than other professionals?

There are many who argue that there are other “perks” to this career path and the people who choose this profession are fully aware of the salary scale prior to embarking on their career. Critics cite that no other profession has the luxury of a six week break during the summer months as well as a full two weeks “off” to enjoy both the Christmas and Easter celebrations. In addition to the holiday entitlement comes a shorter working day, a final salary pension, job security and a wealth of opportunities to choose from. They argue that No other degree or post-graduate course offers a guaranteed paid work placement for a year after graduation and therefore a guaranteed employment history to add to a CV. Sounds like the dream job?

The reality of life at the “chalk face” is, however, very different. In the challenging society we live in today, teaching is a difficult, demanding and, at times, dangerous job which all too often passes without appreciation and, as present salary levels confirm, totally undervalued. Whilst school walls provide the environment where lessons are delivered, it is mostly at home, in the evenings, at weekends, and during the school holidays that these lessons are planned and prepared. It is public knowledge that teachers’ contracts state a thirty five hour working week versus the usual forty hours for other workers. Yet a survey of 3500 primary teachers, who had to record hours of work over a two week period, revealed that the average teacher actually works forty six and a half hours per week. The union has described the workload as “unsustainable”. Perhaps this explains why it has been stated that Scotland has a “chronic” shortage of teachers? In non-teaching positions, full-time workers can leave work in the office and not have to take it home with them. Yet a teacher is still marking and preparing for the next day’s lesson every evening at home. Moreover, the “overtime work” is unpaid and not accounted for. Imagine if your employer asked you to work overtime (an extra day and a half a week) but then added in the fact that you would not be recompensed for it. I am quite sure that other professions would feel aggrieved and resentful. Yet this is a regular occurrence in the teaching profession.

It has recently been declared by the Scottish government that literacy, numeracy and health and wellbeing are the responsibilities of all teachers.  people with poor numeracy skills are twice as likely to be unemployed that those who are competent with numbers, this puts a massive amount of pressure on teachers to ensure that all their pupils have a basic understanding of numeracy and are comfortable using numbers. By ensuring that their students are proficient at maths it does not only allow them to further their studies in education but it also makes them more likely to get an affluent job which in turn should have a positive impact on their health and wellbeing.

Along with being responsible for literacy, numeracy and health and wellbeing, John Swinny has stated that his main focus is for teachers to close the attainment gap within social classes. This is an challenge as we live in a far more diverse world, where people from all different back grounds attempt to undertake examinations. With a

The self-fulfilling prophecy is another issue that teachers need to overcome how many people have said to their children “I wasn’t good at maths so I don’t expect you to be “lucky for me I never heard this as both my parents are bankers. However for a child to hear this it can been detrimental to their confidence and can result in lower achievement rates. it is then declared the responsibility of teachers to redirect children’s attitude towards maths and to inc===

Indeed, school teachers are highly trained and are required to undertake a minimum of four years of studying in order to achieve the qualifications necessary to teach. Yet comparative careers such as banking can pay up to twenty thousand pounds a year as a starting salary which rapidly increases to a staggering wage of seventy two thousand pounds per annum, and in some cases even more. This often does not even include guaranteed bonuses which can vary from ten percept of the annual salary to around twenty five percent. This is just simply obscene when a teacher’s starting salary is a mere £21,867, and only expected to rise to £34,887 per annum at the top of the scale. It is grossly unfair that teachers are not financially rewarded when they are the people at the heart of the future enhancing the prosperity of this nation. What is more important: the future generation or bank balances?

The dangers teacher’s faces are evident as a recent incident, at a school in Aberdeen, shows. A young boy was stabbed by a peer and tragically died. This incident should never have occurred in a place which is meant to be a sanctuary. This shows the reality of the type of incidents that teachers can end up having to face. Similarly, teachers are now expected to deal with increasingly complex issues in the classroom and are expected to attend training sessions with Mental Health Professionals so that they have the necessary skills to deal with the multitude of issues faced by today’s teens. This piles more and more pressure on tired teachers who have to deal with complex issues. This is simply outrageous. It has recently been revealed that one in ten children have a form of mental health issue which is especially worrying when it is reported that these statistics are rocketing. I understand that something has to be done to prevent these issues from spiralling out of control but surely these responsibilities should not be forced upon teachers. I understand we need to keep the best intentions of the pupils in mind but what about the teachers; do they not matter? Whilst a pupil is at school, their safety is not the responsibility of their parents or guardians but, with the implementation of the GIRFEC initiative, the responsibility of their Pupil Care and Support Teachers. This enforces a massive responsibility on teachers. Why? Why give one person the overall responsibility of looking after two hundred children? This is surely an impossible task for anyone, looking after twenty children at once is hard enough but imagine having that responsibility ? If you take your eye off a problem or miss something in their behaviour and it ends in tragedy, it all falls back on that one teacher. Would you like to be the one left dealing with the aftermath of that?

Therefore, it is clear that teachers are not correctly compensated for the position of responsibility they hold. What other profession puts someone in charge of over twenty vulnerable young people at a time? Moreover, what other profession leaves a person with the future of our nation in their hands? This is exactly what teachers deal with, day in, day out. Without the correct influences the future of our nation is bleak. Now going back to the perks of this vocation, surely this “dream job” seems more of a nightmare.

Bibliography

https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/a-to-z/c/children-and-young-people

Teaching posts remain empty as schools return

https://www.prospects.ac.uk/job-profiles/secondary-school-teach5er

Council chiefs: Scotland has ‘chronic shortage’ of teachers

Following an input on attribution theory i was reminded of my personal essay that I  wrote for my advanced higher English portfolio. The essay was completely my own and i did not allow for any of my teachers to see it until the day before it was meant to be turned in. I wanted it to be completely my own.  I hope you enjoy reading it.

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“Do not judge me by my successes, judge me by how many times I fell down and got back up again.”
― Nelson Mandela

School life has not always been easy for me; I guess you could describe me as a “late bloomer”. Personally, I do not believe this to be representative as I feel that no-one should define which stage a child should be, or indeed when, in their development. We are all individuals who mature, learn and process information at different rates. From an early age, it was apparent that I struggled with English, especially reading, and as a result of this I was stuck into the euphemistically named “Red Group” which even my slightly naïve eight year old self could work out was the dreaded…bottom group. Even though I coped with the demands of working out the three bold words on the page using the pictures as clues, simply being in the bottom group shattered my confidence, leading me to believe, that I was one of the “dunces”.

Never making it out of the Red Group throughout my entire seven years of primary school left me believing that I was less intelligent than the other children in my class. Due to this internal belief, the consequences were demonstrated externally. The mere thought of having to answer a simple question in front of the class would result in the feeling that my heart would leap out of my chest. The endless silence followed by a sea of little eager faces awaiting a response was too much to bare. I developed extreme anxiety about answering questions in class – not because I wasn’t willing to offer a response but simply because I feared getting the answer wrong and confirming my class mates’ beliefs that I was vacuous.

High School; a fresh start. An opportunity to shrug off the label that had been assigned to me in primary school. An opportunity to rise above the mediocre expectations that had been set for me. Unfortunately, I was terrified of my own shadow back then so the thought of shrugging off and rising above anything was going to be quite the task. I was intimidated by the stature of the school and those around me, thankfully I had someone, other than my really embarrassing older sister, to look out for me. I was firstly introduced to my Guidance Teacher, Miss Duncan. I did not know it at the time, but later on in my school career, she would become the most influential factor in my decision to become a teacher.

I found it difficult at first to acclimatise to my new school environment. I was not used to travelling from class to class, and as a result of this I found organising my school work to be a challenge. I was placed in a small class with another twenty pupils. It became apparent to me that we had an extra teacher in the room. At the start, this did not bother me as I really enjoyed having someone else to talk to and having someone who would help me with my organisational skills, whilst also aiding me in attempting to conjure up a Victoria sponge cake in Home Economics; which, to this day, I still require assistance to make. It soon became apparent to me that this teacher was in class specifically to see if I was coping with the demands of the school work, specifically in English.

Shortly after my arrival at high school, I was tested for Dyslexia. The results came back positive. Word soon spread through my English class, as I began to arrive to class with the dreaded “Alpha Smart” which was basically a glorified calculator but for words instead of numbers. I did not mind people knowing I was dyslexic but what I did mind was the constant questions. Can you spell this? Can you read this? And the worst of all – it’s not fair, why does Cameron get to use the computer? I decided that the best way to stop these questions was simply not to use my Alpha Smart anymore. I viewed the Alpha Dumb as an opportunity for my peers to re-label me as the class “dunce” rather than a way to aid me in my studies. I decided that the best way to get people to stop speaking to me as if I was inferior to them was to beat them at their own game. I set myself the goal of being the best English student in my year. No mean feat for a boy who needed a sheet of yellow film to stop the words from jumping off the page. Aspirational, huh?

At the start of third year, I was placed in a new English class and, for the first time ever, the top set. I had finally reached the pinnacle of my school career. I dreams and aspirations had finally been fulfilled. I was still rather shy, so I sat at the back of the class in order to avoid drawing attention to my presence. I had a severe case of Imposter Syndrome: an inability to internalise my accomplishments; and a persistent fear of being exposed as a fraud. I kept waiting for the Head of English to come and drag me, literally and metaphorically, back down to the bottom class. The teacher arrived; silence fell. We all knew Miss Duncan was someone that you did not wish to get on the wrong side of but I had always had a good relationship with her. She noticed immediately that I was sat at the back of the class in the left hand corner, and she offered me a re-assuring smile. Her belief in me sparked my love for the subject. Despite the protestations of the class, we studied Shakespeare, more specifically we studied the Scottish play “Macbeth”. I instantly fell in love with the play, not just for its storyline but for the way we were taught it. Miss Duncan showed me that words have a deeper meaning than what is first presented. Miss Duncan and I became close and I aspired to be like her, as she presented herself to me not only as a teacher but also as a friend. We shared many similar interests not only our love for English but we are both also “die hard” Manchester United and Dundee Football Club supporters. I would hang back and speak to Miss Duncan at the end of every English period. This was five minutes where I could have a conversation with someone without feeling like my views and opinions were invalid. This helped me grow in confidence and enhanced my academic abilities, as I had finally found someone who had faith in my abilities.

In order to repay Miss Duncan for the support and guidance she had given me for all of third year. I began to make essay plans for my upcoming third year exams and studied two hours a night for two weeks. I sat the exam and got full marks on my “Macbeth” essay. Whilst many believe it is simply third year tests that do not count towards anything. I believe the opposite these tests that “ meant nothing”, meant everything to me as it was the first time I had seen myself progress and it also gave me an opportunity to prove to Miss Duncan that all the time and dedication she had spent on me had paid off.

Due to the result I got in my third year exams, and also the guidance given to me by Miss Duncan, I began to become more confident in my work and also within myself. I became more sociable and now had the confidence to put up my hand in class without fear of being subjected to ridicule by my fellow classmates. Luckily for me, Miss Duncan was my teacher in both fourth and fifth year. During my fifth year at school, I ensured that my love and enthusiasm for English did not fade, even though my peers had become increasingly distracted by other aspects of their lives. I continued to work extremely hard and pushed myself to the limits, something that previously I would not have done. My prelim results were a testament to my hard work as I was later presented with the English Dux medal as I had received the highest mark in the year; ninety per cent to be exact. And whilst many people have attributed “Dyslexia” as the reason they did not succeed in school, I have found the complete opposite to be true. I have used the diagnosis of Dyslexia as a catalyst for my success. I refused to be defined by my disability. Having a learning disability, only too often, can lead to a lack of faith in them to do well. This contributes to the self-fulfilling prophecy. Most people are unaware that Dyslexia is not solely about having difficulty with spelling and reading but it also affects time management skills, brain processing and organisational skills. Whilst these seem like negatives, people with dyslexia are actually more inclined to being able to see the bigger picture and allow them to think outside the box. I believe this enhanced my abilities and allowed me to progress further in English.

As I matured and began to consider my options for the future, I looked at those around me for inspiration. I was unsure about my future aspirations, I had previously desired to be an accountant; I probably only wanted to be an accountant as the lavish lifestyle and extraordinary high annual salary seemed appealing. But life as an accountant was harder than I first believed. I acquired work experience at Murray Taylor accountancy firm in Arbroath. What can I say? The dry lifeless office environment is not for everyone, and is certainly not me. After endless months of procrastination, I finally set my goal of being a primary school teacher. However, in order to do this I knew that I would require valuable work experience at a primary school. I arranged to do this experience at Longhaugh Primary School at Whitfield in Dundee. This is one of Dundee’s most deprived districts and at first I was hesitant to go as I feared the pupils would be too challenging and would put me off wanting to be a teacher. However, they did the complete opposite. I learnt valuable lessons whilst at Longhaugh; the kids there were inspirational, the level of poverty was incredible, yet these children would still continue to come to school and do their very best to ensure that, when they are older, they will not have to continue to live like this. I formed many strong friendships and relationships with the children whilst at Longhaugh. During my time there, I had learnt the true meaning of being a teacher, it wasn’t about the pay cheque at the end of the month or ensuring a child was a straight ‘A’ student. It was about making a child feel needed and wanted and to instil in them the belief that they can be whoever they want to be regardless of their background and certainly regardless of any learning difficulty that they may have. Due to my experience at Longhaugh, my desire to have a “monumental” impact on someone’s life has become my new goal.

Counting down to my last few weeks of school, I occasionally imagine what life will be like out with the constraints of the school gates. A life where I no longer need to follow the “one way system” as I am now free to determine my own journey. A life where I no longer have to utter the question “Please Sir, may I go to the toilet?” A life where I am free to be whoever I want to be, without fear of being judged by others. I also wonder what will become of me and my friends. Will we still remain in contact even though we are no longer available cell mates, confined within the breeze blocks of the classroom walls? Whilst the future may be unclear and frightening, I am without doubt excited to see what the future holds for me. Will I be someone Miss Duncan’s? I strongly believe that being a teacher is about more than ensuring your pupils get the results required to go to university but it is more about ensuring each and every pupil meets their full potential. Despite a rocky start, my overall experience of education has been positive. Even though there have been many obstacles to overcome, I know that without them I wouldn’t be where I am today. And now those same pupils no longer ask can you spell this? or can you read this? They now ask me did you get the English Dux medal? or can I have your essay plans, please? How ironic, I say. “what’s that?”  they ask. And I laugh.

My first year at university has been a great year for reflection. I feel that I have invested great thought and effort into deciding my professional and personal values and these values I believe have shaped me not only as the teacher I want to be but also the man I want to be.

At the start of placement, I was worried that my behaviour management would not be up to the mark and so thought the best way to make my presence known was to be very strict and “scary”. Whilst I believe being strict is important to show the class you are not a “push over” at the start of placement I felt I was being too distant with the children for the first few days and did not interact with the pupils as much as I could have. However, on the third day I began to talk to pupils more about their lives in and out of school and we soon developed mutual respect for one and other and this in turn had a huge impact on behaviour within the classroom. I was so happy that my class knew we were friendly but were not friends and respected me as their teacher but still felt they could talk to me about anything and without being judged. This helped to develop my confidence and I began to love doing class lessons and interacting with everyone in the school both students and staff.

Whilst I was on placement I believe I learnt a great deal about myself not only as a teacher but also as a person. To begin with I was very nervous about doing my own class lesson and turning the theory we have been learning about in class into practice. However, after a few class lessons I began to become more confident in my ability and allowed for my personality to shine through, this enabled me to develop a strong relationship with my class. This was a huge stepping stone in my professional career as to begin with I just wanted to ensure the children were learning about academic subjects, however within a few days of placement I began to focus more on the relationships I was beginning to develop as well as equipping the pupils with the essential academic and personal skills they will need for life and work. This to me is what teaching is all about; the relationships we build and the lasting impact we can have on pupils in our class no matter how small the positive impact is it could have huge implications on the child and we may not even know it! I grew in confidence as a result of these professional relationships I had developed with pupils and teachers, and I feel this impacted on my teaching massively.

In conclusion whilst my class were challenging I loved every minute of teaching them and this was to me is the most important thing I learnt in the entire year: even though teaching is difficult and there are bad days it is by far the best job in the world and I cannot wait to have my own class someday.

In the GTCS standards for registration; it states that both registered and student teachers are required to  reflect and engage in self evaluation using the relevant professional
standard;

The first semester of (MA1) Education, was crucial in allowing me to develop the foundations i required in order to progress sufficiently into semester 2. Throughout the semester my confidence grew as my knowledge developed, this allowed me to answer confidently in lectures and also allowed me to bring forward my ideas in group work.

throughout the semester we were given required reading to do for the next lecture. to begin with i seen this as a strenuous task, that did not have much point to it because i already knew about many of the issues that we were presented with, and so had already made my own opinions on them. however as the module progressed i began to enjoy the reading as I soon realized the reading was not implemented in order to make us change our minds or to inform us on an issue but  was in fact given to us in order to develop our understanding of why people think differently on an issue and the importance in this, in relation to professional development.

As a professional it is extremely important to be aware that although we may believe our views are right, many others may believe otherwise .This is crucial to understand as it allows us to come to a fair resolution that pleases both parties. in teaching this could be a disagreement with a parent on an issue that occurred in class, it is important to be able to view a situation from both sides, as it allows for us to create a good relationship with parents as well as being fair and not unreasonable.

overall by reflecting back on what i have learnt during my first semester at university, i have learnt that being open minded and open to change is crucial, in aiding me in developing as a professional, and therefore in future i will ensure i keep this in mind when tackling all tasks. along with this in future i will do my best to ensure that i view a situation or issue from both sides to ensure that i grasp a full understanding of the task or issue at hand.