Every person goes through a certain phase of uncertainty for the next step after graduating from university, especially those who have graduated with a teaching degree with no jobs available.

For most there are two paths they could take; stay, volunteer, and pray for the supply list to open or take the many different opportunities offered aboard. I took the latter opinion and learned so much more about myself and the area of teaching. In the past two years living and teaching around London, U.K. has taught me more than I would had learn volunteering and waiting for a job in Ontario. Don’t get me wrong I have worked in Ontario and taught courses privately before I made the big move. When I came back my friends noticed the positive change in me and the passion I developed for teaching.
I made all the arrangements myself and did all the research before I finally booked my plane tickets and packed up to leave. In truth I was never really completely ready for the things that I had to face within the first few months of being in the UK. I did not have a guaranteed supply contract with any of the agencies or a complete solid plan on arrival. In October 2009, I landed in, London, UK, one of my friends picked me up from the airport and lent me their couch for the first week that I was in the country. Since I was not on a guaranteed contract I took an extra step to making sure I would be alright, I took my first ever pub job at the only Canadian pub in London, The Maple Leaf. Working at a pub was not the only first for me, there were a lot more for me within that first month: first time looking for a place to rent, first time opening a bank account by myself, first time travelling around a strange city by myself, first time hunting for a job, and first time working a supply job.

Fast forwarding to 2010-2011 school year, agencies found me several positions by November 2010, including job offers and trial days. It was Ian who found the perfect school for me in the end, the staff at this school made me feel welcome and the people in my department actually shared my sense of humour and were very supportive. The students again were fairly challenging but still easier to deal with compared to those I had worked with the previous year and with the experience I had gained from the school in the past there were no problems. Don’t get me wrong it was not a very easy year but it was more enjoyable with having so much support and good relationships within the staff. The year was more challenging because I was learning things that I didn’t get the opportunity to learn within my first year like the grading system (since the first school never let me do it by myself), new specs for the controlled assessments, along with new GCSEs and the OFSTED coming in for an examination of the school made things a little more tense. But even with all these new things hanging over my head I never felt overwhelmed or got upset because of the staff I worked with and Ian always checking up on me to ensure that I was treated well. The staff at this school treated me like one of their own and made me feel comfortable enough to confidently ask questions when I’m lost or confused to the task at hand. This is important, no one will see you as incompetent, they rather you ask and get it right than have you pretend you know what you’re doing and then having to clean up your mess later. My students were challenging at first but I learned that they all have their own reasons for being the way they were and instead of trying to change it, I used it as a teaching tool. The students that seem to be unreasonable at the beginning slowly turned to the ones that I looked forward to teaching the most. On top of all this I was still able to take time and see the rest of England and fully enjoy my last year in the country.

All in all, my experience has been one that I will always treasure for the rest of my life, I’ve met the most amazing and inspiring people within my line of work and have learned to become more independent. It’s been three months since I moved back home to Canada and I am still missing everything over in the UK. I catch myself wondering how my students and the people I met are doing and if they ever spare a thought for the Canadian girl that was briefly in their lives. There are a few people that I keep in constant contact with and I really hope one day I can return to the country of rolling hills and the Queen. If you ever get the chance to do the working aboard, take it without hesitation, I guarantee you will not regret it.

Parent's evening

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