This term I say farewell to not one, but two groups of my student teachers. It has been quite a journey for all of us.
The third year B.Ed (Hons) education students are leaving, and so are our fourth year students - the last cohort of an older 4 year programme. In September I will see them all together one last time when they return to the university to receive their degree awards in a ceremony on Plymouth Hoe. Most, if not all of them, will be in their new teaching jobs by then, doing their very best to positively impact the lives of the children in their respective schools.
Each will have a number of secret weapons to use in their new careers. The excellent training they have received at Plymouth Institute of Education will carry them through just about any situation they find themselves in. They will be able to integrate and embed technology into any subject. Most importantly, they will be able to think critically and strategically about the problems they encounter and will be able to arrive at novel solutions. They will be champions for change and innovation, and I know that every one of them will achieve significance in their new careers.
Reflecting back on their time at university is made easier because of the blogs and other digital artefacts they have left in their trail. The final posts by some of my students say it all. This post by Tyla Elworthy (who achieved a first class degree) is her own reflection on her journey. Another by Megan Douglas traces the trials and triumphs of her four years studying to be a teacher on our digital literacy specialist pathway. Both of these students, and many of their peers took part in extra-curricular activities such as organising Teachmeets, running the University's student led Education Society, and speaking at events beyond the walls of the university. We have made the latter a tradition now, because the benefits are beyond measure. Four of our first years now speak each year in the Learn Live arena at London's BETT show. Tyla and three others from her year group - Aaron Fisher, Alice Evans and Alex Druce - were 'dropped in the deep end' during their second term at the BETT Show in 2013 - I was there to witness their success as they enthralled the audience with their energy and enthusiasm. Watch out for next year's presentations!
Hannah Shelton's blog is a great documentation of her time spent on teaching experience in the Czech Republic (we also run several opportunities each year for our students in Denmark, Finland, the USA and Chile) and reflections on her experiences as a student educator. Chris Nesbitt's blog is a wonderful example of how students can gain a deeper understanding of theory by writing about it online in front of a potentially worldwide audience of readers. The same can be said for Lloyd Chilcott's blog which is replete with great interpretations of pedagogical theory. There are several others, too numerous to mention in this small space. Each has developed their own web presence and digital brand as they have progressed through their studies. I hope these new teachers continue to blog about their experiences, knowledge and practice as they progress through their careers.
I'm very proud of all my graduands - they will all go on to achieve a lot in their careers, and the legacy will not die. Others are already following in their footsteps - each striving to be the best they can possibly be as educators. Each intent on creating the best possible learning environments for primary school children. I will miss them all, but in the final analysis, my own small input into their development as teachers will now be amplified through their own efforts to provide children with the best possible start in life. I wish each and every one of them the success they have worked hard for, and give them these last few words of advice:
Always be true to yourself. Never stop learning or wanting to learn. Be the best you can possibly be, because the children will watch you closely and will copy you. They will look up to you, so never look down on them. Go out and educate the world!
Photo by Ian Britton on Free Foto
The next steps by Steve Wheeler was written in Plymouth, England and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
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