From qualified teacher to head of biology
Sarah shares her story of how she became a department head in a subject she loves.
I knew teaching was for me
From an early age, I knew a teaching career was for me. I could not imagine working a typical 9 to 5 desk job. Every day in teaching brings a new challenge and new situations, which is what makes the job so exciting.
When your pupils have those lightbulb moments, hearing the sudden ‘So that’s how it works!’ and seeing them take your subject into A level and beyond makes the job so worthwhile.
My career development
I am extremely proud of my teaching achievements and career progression so far. The encouragement and support from my head of faculty really helped. They saw the potential in me and I’m so grateful for that opportunity.
With my leadership skills, my department has gone from strength to strength. We have managed to increase uptake of students from a class of 20 A level students to 50. This was a great achievement, and I could not have done this without the support of my colleagues and the leadership courses I attended.
I also act as a teaching and learning mentor, which allows me to work with staff from all departments to enhance and develop their teaching and learning.
I love being able to work with teachers of all backgrounds, experienced to newly qualified, sharing good practice and developing whole-school strategies.
I am currently facilitating an early career teachers (ECT) leadership programme for teachers across the borough, which I am thoroughly enjoying.
My advice
I would recommend hard work, maintaining your love for the job, and having a desire to bring positive change to young peoples’ lives.
Undeniably, teaching is hard work – but the knowledge that you have helped to motivate young people and helped shape their future brings more satisfaction than any other job I can think of.
How to become a teacher
Find out which qualifications you need, what funding you can get and how to train to teach.
