From the experience of coming out of school and then going straight into university I thought it would be a breeze. However, I think I underestimated the whole situation. For only being at Uni for the last 5 months, these months have been the most challenging but eye-opening months of my life. They have been packed with lectures, tutorials, workshops and assignments all that were due within the first 4 months of being here. I don’t think I realised just how demanding these 4 years at Uni where going to be and I also don’t think I mentally prepared myself enough for them. However, managing to complete the first semester and pass the assignments showed me that if I put in enough commitment and determination then I will hopefully succeed.

Although I didn’t do as well in my first assignments as I thought I would, and I was quite harsh on myself, I had to take a step back and realise that I still managed to pass and that now all this meant was that I had areas that I could develop on. This is important to me as I always want to improve and work on the type of learner and reflector that I am. I believe there is always room for improvement as nobody can ever be perfect and will never get it bang on the first-time round. The areas that I now must develop I am working hard on to ensure that they are not flagged up again in my next assignment. All I want to do is improve and get better even if it is little by little.

I am so excited for this semester as placement begins, however I am very nervous and a little scared as there is so much I need to do and there is so much time needed for it. Having a job also takes up a lot of my time and commitment but I have my priorities and know that Uni comes first as this will result in me getting into a job that I actually enjoy. I think what scares me the most about placement is not actually teaching but The Professional Practice File as it is going to be so big and requires a lot of time and work for us to be able to pass 1^st year.

Overall my Uni experience so far as been positive and I’m really enjoying it. I can’t wait to complete 1^st year and then move on wards and upwards to see what the following years hold for me. Being able to gain as much knowledge that I can and improve on my weaker areas will result in me being the best teacher that I possibly can when I graduate.