As part of the Teach First Training Programme, I taught secondary school pupils science at Kingsmead School in North London for three years. This experience exposed me to my own privilege, and the role of empathy in understanding each other to positively support each other.
I loved teaching and I absolutely loved the kids. I found the transition to working life and the responsibility of hundreds of children’s science education really tough at first. This includes building trust with students and managing behaviour and managing workload. But then you start to see the benefits as you start to build the relationships.
I inherited a group of 24 young men when they were in Year 11, who called themselves the ‘U Gang’ after all getting U grades in their mock GCSE exams.
They were extremely intelligent but lacked aspiration and confidence in themselves – a result of them often feeling misunderstood by those around them. They would often fail tests through their lack of revision, not because they didn’t care, but because they would rather not try and fail than try their best and fail. It was easier to have an excuse than to risk failure, a habit and mindset that I worked hard to get them out of.
