Teacher By Day, Teacher By Night

I remember well the times when I was a child and I would take part in the nativity play. I will always remember watching myself as one of the wise men trying to remember the speaking lines and singing a number of Christmas carols in the church across the road. Even now I can not begin to think how stressful it would be for the teacher. Miss Kerry Hardman looks surprisingly relaxed for a teacher who normally looks like she just needs a rest. “Christmas may be a really busy time of the year, but it’s also really exciting. I think some of the excitement from the children at Christmas has rubbed off onto me”.




This picture shows Kerry relaxed after a hard days work.

Kerry is smiling as she finally makes her self comfortable and sits down. I knew that with it being near to Christmas she would have lots of work to do so I felt that it was best to organise the quietest time for her. As I prepare the questions, I can sense that she is feeling nervous about what questions I may be about to ask her.

I start the interview by asking her how her day has gone. “ It’s brilliant being in school before Christmas”. She also adds “You start to really get into the Christmas spirit around October where you have Christmas rehearsals, party days, and other Christmas activities” although she does say that while doing this it is very hard to “try and keep on timetable as much as possible”. I now want to ask the most important question. What made her go into the teaching profession. It could be many different reasons but she tells me “I always wanted to be a teacher since I was 12”. She also explained that it is the chance to help the children to learn the relevant skills needed to push them forward when they move onto further education. This seems like a fair point. So what are these key skills you may be asking? Maybe you have already guessed. They are of course “reading, writing, numeracy, socialising and gaining their independence”. So surely every child deserves a chance to be pushed to their full potential. Lets be honest It is only at this age that you can help change the childs future. If they are not given the support or guidance then they will turn their backs on the education system.

“I think some of the excitement from the children at Christmas has rubbed off onto me”

Kerry then went on to say that she was prepared when it came to choosing a University that suited he ambition. St Alfred College (Also known as Winchester University), where she studied hard for four years and was finally awarded with a BA (Bachelor of Art) honours in education with a QTS (Qualified teacher status) in English which was her specialised subject. Whilst at Winchester She says “I had to do teaching placements every year”. This is surely a good thing as it helps the student gain as much experience of what it is like to be a teacher. This does make me think that this would be great idea for other subjects to have work placements involved as well.

I then go onto asking whether she went straight into teaching. She tells me “I joined Supply and demand in order to get to know the schools in the area better”. She adds that “working in different schools was really tough”. Although this is a great opportunity to see what works and what doesn’t so that you can learn how to improve as a teacher.

“We strive for inclusive learning environment for all”.

I feel it may be best to move onto current work and so I ask Kerry about her first proper teaching post. She tells me that she was put forward by ‘Supply and Demand’ who felt that she was a ‘suitable’ candidate for the vacancy. That was just a placement filling in for teacher off with sickness. She then was hired as a teacher in school in Poole. This was her first ever permanent teaching post. She has been teaching Year 2 class for the last four years. She tells me that she ‘loves’ this year group because you can see ‘real growth with the children Academically and Independently.’. I then decide to ask her whether she would like to change year groups. Kerry replies “Year Three would be interesting and so would Year one but nothing lower”. It must be the idea of working with children to young to talk and hold conversation that must put her off.


This is a picture of Kerry working at school.

I decide to move away from asking about her opinion and look to what does a day in the life of a teacher involve. If like me, you can’t really remember much of what you learnt when you were in Year 2 then this may jog your memories. The day starts at 8am. This then moves onto the job of the teacher which includes using resources, writing assessments and being organised throughout the day. The morning involve learning core subjects like English and Maths and visits to the library. While in the afternoon the focus is on other topics like R.E and PE. Then after school is time for the teacher to have ‘non contact time’ to get on with the work load.

Kerry also believes that the children enjoy learning and states that they follow the code “We strive for inclusive learning environment for all”. This may be something to keep with her when she decides to push on in the next ten years where she says she would love to be year leader or mentoring skit students (teaching course).

I decide to wrap it all up by asking one last question. What advice would you give to young people wishing to become teachers. She tells me that they should “ be prepared” and that “the children only have one opportunity to learn so only do it if your hearts in it”. I wish her good luck with the rest of the Christmas activities and hopefully the children will enjoy their time before Christmas at school as well.

1,025 Word Count

http://www.learndirect.co.uk/
http://www.supplyanddemand.org.uk/
http://www.winchester.ac.uk/research/attheuniversity/Education_Health_Social%20Care/Pages/FacultyofEducation,HealthandSocialCare.aspx