Over the course of the last five months I have developed my confidence in classroom management and now feel confident moving forwards as a chemistry teacher. A key moment for me was when a Y7 class had their first lesson with Bunsen burners and their excitement and enthusiasm was contagious.
K. Christopher
Trainee Teacher of Chemistry
Throughout my training I have progressed to become a successful and confident teacher. I was especially proud of my Y12 lessons at the alternate placement. The class had an issue with participation with one student sitting out the previous week. I had modelled activities and this helped me build a rapport with the students and the one who had sat out became comfortable enough to participate in every task and even to contribute to the main task of the lesson. This continues to be a success story due to the relationships I have built with these students.
C. Carroll
Trainee Teacher of Drama
I feel blessed to start my teaching from WWLCSD. I have loved my time in both my placements. Each day has been a good learning experience and the staff are very supportive. Being from a different culture everything became very easy for me to adapt because of the support given by my placement schools. Teaching KS5 as a trainee was an amazing experience and with each passing day I feel more confident. I cannot wait to start my journey as a Physics teacher.
S. Javed
Trainee Teacher of Physics
Starting my alternate placement at an alternative provision, I have been teaching Maths. In the Y11 class there is a boy who doesn’t want to engage with school as he already has a job for when he leaves school. Through forming a relationship with him and talking to him about his work I found that he had been learning and retaining information, he had just not been writing it down.
After further conversations, I found that he did not like writing in his book as he didn’t like his work being seen. He would be happier if the work was on a worksheet. I now give him a worksheet each lesson. This discovery has helped the student for all of his lessons, not just mine. This has given me a lot of fulfilment, helping a child with his learning.
T. Leaford
Trainee Teacher of PE
My success story was in my home placement. The Y7 complete learning on the topic of ‘Plastics’. During the scheme of work there was no mention of the increase in plastic waste during the COVID-19 pandemic. As this subject matter was new, I conducted research into plastic waste increase at this time. Using my own research from my dissertation I adapted this to suit the ability level of the pupils. I’m extremely proud of this as it allows me to pass on current expert knowledge to the pupils which is relevant to the world we currently live in.
J. Salter
Trainee Teacher of Geography
After working in the travel industry for over 20 years it was a challenging transition to move to an academic and school environment. This has been eye-opening as to what prior knowledge and experiences pupils have had. This has especially been the case post COVID, where a number of years of education have been disrupted.
I have really enjoyed working with KS3 pupils and to be able to build relationships with pupils over time. I have also had the opportunity to support two pupils in KS4 who were struggling with their understanding of the lesson. The teacher asked me to teach them on a 1:1 basis so they could have an explanation of the lesson and content. We discussed LIC debt from the World Bank and how this would hinder development. By the end of the lesson, the pupils had a grasp of the subject. They said they had learnt a lot and were grateful for my interactions with them. This gave me a sense of achievement that I have progressed the student’s learning.
C. Pretty
Trainee Teacher of Geography
Coming from a pharmaceutical industry and science background I feel as if I have achieved a lot over the past few months from the point of applying to train to teach. It has been a massive learning curve. I came into teaching with the aim of being a teacher for the rest of my working life and the process so far has been very good to me. There is something about having a student say things such as “Sir, you can teach you know!” or “That was a good lesson sir!” or children stopping me in the corridor and asking if I am teaching them today. Great constructive criticism from my mentor to progress my teaching techniques means I have been able to build good relationships with teachers and students in both placement schools. Building new friendships with the other trainee teachers both through school direct and university has been important and I have been able to secure a job in December for the next school year. I feel proud of my work and progress over the last few months.
D. Raju
Trainee Teacher of Mathematics
Since starting my alternate placement, I have been working with the BTEC Level 2 class. Building a rapport with them has enabled me to bring more out of them. It feels like they want to work for me. Before stating this course I would not have been able to do this but my communication with adults and young people has improved massively.
T. Standish
Trainee Teacher of Chemistry
I had a PE lesson with a Y8 class who were quite low ability with a number of students with additional needs. Before this lesson, I had incorporated this into my planning, for example there is a student with cerebral palsy who had prior difficulties accessing the curriculum. Consequently, I used the STEP principle within my lesson and paired the student with two others rather than one like the rest of the class. This allowed the student to throw the ball up for her to execute the serve. After the lesson, the student came up to me and said ‘I actually could do that and I couldn’t in Year 7’. This was very nice feedback and I was pleased that I had allowed her to access the lesson.
D. McLoughlin
Trainee Teacher of PE
In September I was apprehensive to begin teaching. Fast forward four months and I have built a positive rapport with all of my classes. I have overcome my fears of dealing with behaviour issues and articulating myself across KS3-5. I feel much more confident in my teaching style and feel I can confidently adapt my teaching to meet the needs of all pupils. I feel privileged to be at a position in my teacher training where teachers have started using my materials in their lessons.
L. Molyneux
Trainee Teacher of History
I enjoyed watching a child in year 7 make progress. He began in September very quiet and with no confidence. Having been seated at the front, it has allowed me to focus questioning on him and to easily help if needed. He now approaches me around school to say hello and good morning, asks to do jobs in lessons and always engages in classroom discussion. It has been lovely to see him develop and gain confidence inside and outside the classroom.
A. Jones
Trainee Teacher of History
My success story developed from leading an extra-curicular club. Being able to offer students experiences that they may not have in their home life providing new opportunities. I was given the opportunity to be observed by a subject specialist and the university liaison tutor with a Y11 class. This gave me a boost in confidence that I had the ability to teach a GCSE class with the support of the mentor. In my first placement I was also able to choreograph a routine for the Christmas celebration. This was complemented by many members of staff and students.
A. Matthews
Trainee Teacher of Dance
I am very proud of being able to manage the behaviour of a class of year 9 foundation students which included 12 students with Special Educational Needs. At the beginning of the first term these students had really poor behaviour. I implemented all of the strategies learned in my PGCE and on Tuesday SWD and it worked well. I ensured that there were clear expectations from the beginning. I gave them individual instructions and a welcome at the door. I built relationships with them and gained their trust and I consistently modelled good behaviour to them. I praised them for little things to build their self-esteem.
M. Sola Flores
Teacher of Spanish
My success story concerns the relationship that I managed to build with a student on my home placement. At the start of the year he was extremely disruptive and wasn’t receptive to behaviour management techniques employed by a colleague. I used this opportunity when I was in my observation period to begin to build a positive relationship with him outside the classroom. This proved very helpful in that when I took over responsibility for the class the relationship that I had built with him allowed for a much calmer learning environment for both himself and others.
N. Lowe
Trainee Teacher of Spanish
Over the course of the training, I have started developing key skills and knowledge in teaching modern foreign languages in the UK. Since my initial steps into teaching, I have seen myself shift my focus from what I am teaching to how I am teaching. This has allowed me to shift the spotlight onto the pupils, ensuring they ae given opportunities not only to engage in my lessons but also to let them own the learning. Seeing pupils progress in my lessons is truly rewarding and I am starting to feel confident in the pedagogical methodologies I choose to adopt in my lessons.
M. Perez – Bayez
Trainee Teacher of Spanish and French
During the last lesson before Christmas, I took the opportunity to try something new and designed a science classroom challenge for Y8 pupils. Using what they had learned they had to unlock puzzles and crack codes, find elements on the periodic table display and use them to calculate a three digit code. The first ten students got a prize. The pupils were animated, helping each other to figure it out. The classroom had a fantastic buzz and every conversation I passed was filled with science and reasoning. It was a fantastic way to end recap the unit and I would like to do something similar with each unit in the future.
R.Donovan
Teacher of Science
During my first placement I was particularly proud of my progress with a year 9 class. This was the first class that I took over which initially was terrifying. However, I was able to quickly form relationships with the pupils and gained confidence to really put my own method of teaching into practice. The first end of unit assessment that the class completed with me as their teacher highlighted their progress as well as mine. The class all achieved their target or over except one pupil. There was a clear path of progression from their last assessment which further proved our progress together as a class.
N.Higgins
Teacher of History
During placement 1, I was given a year 7 class of mixed ability pupils. Within this group there were some pupils who were lower ability and could display some disruptive behaviour. There was one particular pupil who struggled to focus and could become agitated. Over the four months I was teaching this pupil has excelled during the lessons and the rapport I built has aided this. The pupil now engages well with the lesson and completes tasks to the best of their ability. This felt like a massive accomplishment.
B.Jones
Teacher of Geography
My success story is about a Year 7 pupil who joined the school when I did in September. She is autistic and did not participate in PE lessons. One of the PE staff wanted her to go to the hub which is the inclusion centre. However, I was determined to get her involved in PE. The first barrier I overcame was getting her into PE kit. Next, during basketball lessons she would bounce the ball at the sider which was a step in the right direction. We have recently been doing badminton and she has been fully involved in the lesson and looks like she is having fun!
R.Wooley
Teacher of PE
Whilst on break duty one day, it came to my attention that a pupil was on the floor. As I ran over, I quickly realised the pupil was having a medical episode. Due to personal experiences, I knew she was having a seizure. I quickly got on the floor, ensured that she was safe and comforted her. Soon after, our Head came over to help. We calmed the pupil down and got her first aid. I gave a full report to pupil support and relevant staff. Pupil support asked me to stay with the pupil as I was the first witness. I did and then was asked to speak with the Headteacher and the parent who I then found out was a Governor. I was so proud that they trusted me to do this and a few days later I received and email thanking us for what we had done.
L. Darby
Teacher of RE
During my placement, I was given the opportunity to share a Spanish KS4 group with my mentor. I felt quite apprehensive about this as I was more confident with French but was determined to give it my all as it was a good opportunity to challenge myself and develop my subject knowledge. When I began teaching the group I realised that they lacked confidence in their abilities but thrived on a challenge and wanted to succeed. During the second term, I taught them the past tense in Spanish and was amazed how quickly they picked it up. They then completed a formative assessment and the results were amazing. I was so impressed by how the group had progressed. It was so rewarding to see the progress and how their efforts had paid off.
R.Hale
Teacher of French & Spanish
I have had a class which I have been teaching sine I took over my own lessons. They are a Y7 lower ability class so I have had to teach a lot of the content a few times to ensure they understand it properly. During my time with them, I have taught them about energy stores and how they are transferred from one state to another. A few weeks passed and we moved on to another topic. I was sceptical about whether they would remember the previous learning. As a plenary activity, I put up all of the energy stores. To my surprise the entire class fully remembered the content and could apply it to the scenarios. This gave me an amazing sense of confidence and really made me proud to be a teacher. The Y7 class remembered and were able to use and apply the content successfully. It made me feel great that I had taught them that!
A. Attick
Trainee teacher of Science 2022-3
A year 7 boy has recently joined Drama club. This was a huge deal as he was the only boy to join. Since joining his confidence has improved in all aspects. He is volunteering to take on roles and to take part in the shows. His mum spoke to me and said I have really helped her son out a lot and that I am a big inspiration for her son. This has really stuck with me and has made me feel more motivated for my teaching.
I am really proud of my Drama club. What they have already created is great! At Christmas we created our own play and have now moved on to doing some songs from Matilda. At the moment the pupils are auditioning for songs that they want to be a part of. Again this is showing the confidence they have built up by taking part.
J. Desmond
Trainee Teacher of Drama 2022-3
I have had success with a passive student in Y9. This student was previously disengaged and trying to do as little work as possible. After noticing this, and having a conversation, I reinforced expectations and ensured that the student understood the topic we were learning. As a result, the student became much more engaged in the lesson and their work improved significantly.
L. Cotton
Trainee Teacher of History 2022-3
I always wanted to teach Religious Education and inspire the pupils. I was however, insanely nervous before starting about how to engage with the pupils and how I would control the classroom. However, on my first day when I stepped into the classroom my fears melted away. I walked into my year 7 form and the pupils looked up all nervous but filled with excitement but looked at me like I had all the answers. From that first form session, it confirmed to me that I would teach. To have a hand in shaping young people’s futures. Although the journey has not been easy, the the support network from both the school and Sarah and Sarah, I have been able to push through, becoming even more enthusiastic about teaching.
E. Frost
Trainee teacher of RE 2021-2
At first I was nervous about the idea of teaching a whole class. Thanks to the training at WWLCSD, I was not only able to gain confidence but I was able to teach lessons that pupils actually enjoyed and made progress.
L. Thompson
Trainee Teacher of Maths 2021-2
I was tasked with teaching Ozymandias to a Y10 lower attainment class. I was really worried about the pupils understanding the poem as it took me a number of times to re-read and understand the poem myself. I was wary of teaching it to this class.
To make the lesson more engaging, I used different techniques such as group work, visual resources and interactive activities. I had the pupils throw paper balls at me to tell me what they thought the poem was about. This task showed that the pupils had understood the poem which was the lesson objective. This made me feel very positive about how the lesson went and at the end of the lesson I was more encouraged when a pupils said ‘poetry can be interesting!’ This comment made me feel like all the stress of planning was worth it and I was so proud of my pupils for the efforts they had made in the lesson.
N. Green
Trainee Teacher of English 2021-2
As a trainee teacher of Science, a key success story for me would be my lesson on Stem Cells with Year 9. When I learnt about Stem Cells at high school, I went into the lesson thinking they were the cells of the plant stem and held onto this misconception for a long time. With this experience in mind, I started my lesson asking all pupils to write on a post-it note what they thought ‘stem cells’ were and then told the students to stick their notes under the seats. At the end of the lesson, just before lunch, I asked them all to unstick their notes and write down on the other side what they now knew.
After collecting them all in, every single note said ‘a plant stem cell’ on the first side and ‘a cell that hasn’t yet been differentiated / is unspecialised’ on the other side. The same as I had thought in high school. Students could then see that they had learnt something new that lesson and I could see that I had addressed their misconceptions.
M.McPolin
Trainee teacher of Science 2021-2
As a trainee teacher of Drama, I have been able to help students study for their mock exams by exploring the written exam in a more practical way. The feedback from teachers and pupils was encouraging and helpful so I can continue to develop lessons that are creative and inspire students to think outside the box in their education.
H. McAleavey
Trainee Teacher of Drama 2021-2
Since starting with WWLCSD, I feel a lot more confident at dealing with life’s challenges. The support I receive is fantastic and has really helped me develop my practice as an educator, leader and role model for young minds. For instance, I had a particularly difficult lesson but after speaking to my mentor, the feedback was so helpful that my next lesson with the same group was really successful.
B. Eastham
Trainee Teacher of Maths 2021-2
Since September 2020, I have started my ITT and PGCE programme with Wigan and West Lancashire Catholic School Direct and Liverpool Hope University. This experience has elevated my self-confidence, enriched my knowledge, introduced me to various behaviour management strategies, honed my teaching skills, and introduced me to plenty of resources. Moreover, it has granted me an invaluable opportunity to observe many teachers teaching KS3 and KS4 students and participate in non-teaching school environment activities.
M. Dwedari
Trainee Teacher of Computing and ICT 2020-1
I collaborated with members of my department in the development of a new scheme of work for Year 7s. After pitching an idea, that it would be focused around celebrating different cultures through immigrant poets such as Rupi Kaur, I planned a week’s worth of lessons for the whole department to share. These lessons were then forwarded to the head teacher by my colleague as she was really impressed, and the headteacher emailed me directly to say thank-you for my contribution to the school.
F. Waters
Trainee Teacher of English 2020-1
Throughout my time at my first placement, I have thoroughly enjoyed teaching my year 8 class, particularly due to the level of enthusiasm and engagement they show in each of my lessons!
After every single lesson I have no doubt that I will finish the lesson on a high and with a smile on my face, not just because I have enjoyed the lesson but because it is clear each pupil is leaving with a smile on their face also! There is no better feeling than the pupils leaving saying, ‘thank you miss, I can’t wait for next week’ or ‘thank you miss, enjoy the rest of your day’. Little comments like these give you the encouragement and confidence to continue as well as the reassurance you need to know you’re making a difference.
R. Blakeley
Trainee Teacher of PE 2020-1
A potential positive of lockdown has been that more people are in the home environment. I decided that a short and sharp weekly communication might get students talking about science at home. A newsletter which would combine fun things, items that might interest other family members or carers, but also themes linked to the curriculum. We might have experiments that could be carried out in the kitchen using everyday items, or quizzes with questions about the largest bivalve, or rocks that look like cookie monsters. Simple questions such as: what’s the difference between poisonous and venomous? But also short biographies of some of science’s lesser known figures such as Rosalind Franklin. People who often struggled against the odds, but held true to their beliefs and principles. People who faced challenges, but persevered and made a mark on the world. I think this has the potential to make a real difference to pupils at home.
A. Hamilton
Trainee Teacher of Science 2020-1
I am really proud of how I have developed my remote teaching skills. I have been able to find new ways to engage students and further develop relationships that I have built up in the classroom. In my year 10 class today, I used break out rooms to set up groups to work on challenging questions, some based on A’ level content, to really stretch some of these very able pupils. I was able to drop into the rooms and their discussions were fantastic. I was so impressed. Some pupils stayed on working together into their lunch break because they were enjoying the tasks. It is lovely to be able to keep on pushing these pupils to do the best they can even in these difficult circumstances and seeing them rise to the challenge.
L. Carter
Trainee Teacher of Geography 2020-1
I started my Training in September 2020 and will complete in July 2021. Until Christmas I was teaching in the classroom and now as I write this I have been teaching online for a month. Even though we have been under covid restrictions I am very proud of the help I’ve been able to offer my pupils, growing their understanding and enthusiasm for Mathematics.
You may think that it is harder to make a difference, and being a teacher may be less rewarding when online. I can confirm it is different in terms of delivery however the rewards and sense of achievement are the same. Receiving positive feedback from parents and witnessing the pupils growing confidence in Mathematics as the school year progresses is a humbling experience. It is a proud moment for me when the children are confidently and articulately telling me how to expand a bracket over zoom, when online they are getting equally as involved as they are in the classroom and you can feel the anticipation and buzz of who will get asked the next question. Children still want to learn, they continue to react positively to the challenge they face now and in all areas of life. Helping my pupils in the classroom and remotely to be the best they can be is an achievement I and the WWLCSD organisation can be immensely proud of.
S. Amos
Trainee Teacher of Maths 2020-1
One of my highlights is being able to provide face to face teaching for vulnerable and key worker students during the period of lockdown after Christmas. Another would be taking over responsibility for the form group for two weeks since my colleague had to isolate. Doing meditations, discussing current news, and partaking in the general duties of a form tutor was a great opportunity to build relationships.
D. Corkhill
Trainee Teacher of Geography 2020-1
I feel proud to have motivated some pupils in year 8 to revisit the guitar and start playing it again. One student told me she hadn’t picked it up since year 6. After my lessons on the blues, she now felt inspired to try again. Her ambition is now to be able to play like Robert Johnson.
C. Fry
Trainee Teacher of Music 2020-1
Having never taught before in a secondary school setting, Catholic School Direct has allowed me to grow skills which I never thought I would have the confidence to achieve. Since starting my placement in September I have been developing my teaching skills within the classroom with endless amounts of support and guidance. Building relationships with pupils is most definitely the best part of the whole experience; children saying ‘Hi Miss’ in the corridors or expressing a love for the subject through your lessons feels like a significant achievement. This job is extremely different everyday, meaning no two days are the same and every day is exciting. I am loving every minute of the course and cannot wait to continue my teaching journey in the future.
A. Rose
Trainee Teacher of Music 2020-1
From the start of my placement I have been attached to a year 8 form group. I am especially proud of my form and their dedication to fundraising for the Royal British Legion. As a form group we completed a sponsored run and raised over £300 for our chosen charity. This was a fantastic opportunity for the students to come together and get involved with helping others.
E. Duxbury
Trainee Teacher of RE 2020-1
