Hello!
My name is Kenny and I am addicted to education!

I spent large portions of my undergraduate degree not academically achieving brilliantly and getting passes by the skin of my teeth. When given the option on my PGDE year to enter assignments at Masters level, I scoffed at the thought saying that I would never do any more formal education once I completed it.

After that, I spent five years passing my probation, completing a two year Basic Expedition Leadership course as well as achieving my accreditation to become a Duke of Edinburgh supervisor and assessor.

I honed my craft as a teacher (I am no way finished!) and started to gain leadership experience at a departmental level and was successful at interview to cover a maternity cover. After a fantastic time in a great department, I realised that I needed and wanted more theory based knowledge. It had began to niggle at me that I didn’t go for that Masters. When I returned to my substantive post, I applied to do my Masters in Educational Leadership at Strathclyde University (where else!) thinking that I could get that done before going for a full time PT post. At the same time, I did think it wise to strike whilst the iron was hot and applied for a few PT jobs thinking it was worth a shot.

To my surprise, I was successful at both so in August 2017, I set off on an adventure both as a new Principal Teacher and as a Masters student. I had THE best time engaging with research, conversations with some of Strathclyde’s finest but also my fellow students. I was riddled with imposter syndrome and always felt I did not have the academic or literary skills in order to succeed. With the support of my fiancée (and proof reader) Claire, course leader Joanna Holmes, and countless others, I was able to graduate with Merit with a Masters in Educational Leadership.

AND THEN THE WORLD WENT TO POT!

In the madness of working from home, the niggle of that next level started to eat away. It started to eat away at Claire too who had completed her Masters a few years previous. We had to cancel our wedding and we needed something to do for the next year (or few) so whilst Claire applied for a Doctorate at Glasgow University, I was encouraged on Twitter by Kate Wall and Lee Coutts to get along to the Doctoral showcase where I was utterly bedazzled by some of the amazing academics I met, a community of scholars who all kept each other afloat whilst they took on this challenge in some difficult circumstances in their own full time jobs. I was in awe. I wanted some of that and let’s face it…I quite liked the thought of being called Dr Drummond.

And so I jumped in that world. The wider world got even madder and I am nearly a full semester into my #StrathEdD journey. I had always considered blogging and I thought this would be a better time that any to get started. I am a little later that I had planned. School is busy. Life is busy. But whilst I was doing some reading and watching a video by Simon Sinek (Why Leaders Eat Last), I felt I needed to get started. Even if nobody read this, it is out there. I am making that commitment. I may be procrastinating more but I think it is important to write how I feel, what I need to do and reflect on how this experience is changing and challenging my thinking and as Simon Sinek said – seeing your goal written down and achieving it will give me a hit of dopamine.

So that’s why I am here. I’ll blog on my first few months of the course in my next post.

If you have read this…first, thanks! Please feel free to leave a wee comment if you have had a similar experience, say hello or correct any spelling!

If you haven’t made it this far… I’m not too fussed…I’m just after the dopamine!