What’s the best thing about teaching?
When it goes ‘right’ and you develop strong bonds with students that transcend achieving lesson objectives. Probably the best thing for me is to see former students doing well. It’s a very proud moment to see them succeed and means a lot to me, especially those who have recently started history teaching!
Why did you decide to enter teaching?
Being honest, I think I tried to avoid it for a long time. My grandparents, parents, aunties and uncles are all retired teachers in primary and secondary schools. My brother currently teaches at a university in France. So my chances of escaping this path were always narrow. I started a history and journalism degree at university and wanted to work in media (ironic that I’m now director of Teachers Talk Radio!).
After university, I took a year out and spent some time volunteering abroad. It was when I was teaching out in Tanzania that I felt I could be a good teacher. It seemed to come naturally to me in some ways and that’s when I applied for my teacher training course at the University of Aberystwyth.
What’s been your proudest moment in teaching?
There was a lad I taught between 2008 and 2011 who gave me nightmares. He was a tough one to crack and gave me a hard time during my NQT year and beyond. He left the school I was teaching in at the end of Year 9 and made a special point of coming to my room to say he respected me for pushing him again and again and wished me well. It shocked me at the time as I thought he hated me! Moments like that make teaching worth it.
What have been the biggest challenges you’ve faced in your teaching career?
I think working in one truly toxic school and two others that flirted with that definition. Sticking with them for longer than I should have. Surviving them and allowing myself to enjoy other great teaching experiences.
What celebrity best represents you as a teacher in the classroom and why?
I’d like to think Sir Alex Ferguson – I’m probably quite traditional on the behaviour side of things!
What do you use Tes for?
News and resources. I often read the ‘most read’ to keep up to date. I like following the work of various Tes columnists and contributors. I share my teaching resources via Tes resources and use the site a lot whenever I'm teaching myself.
What has using Tes helped/enabled/encouraged you to do?
Plan better lessons, get my first job teaching abroad in 2016, stay up to date with everything happening in the profession. My experience writing 100 blogs for Tes between 2016 and 2019 was amazing – it increased my own confidence and knowledge as a teacher.
If you were telling a friend about Tes, what would you say?
Check it out – world of free stuff out there.
You/your school gets a million pounds. What do you spend it on?
This may go down like a led balloon in some circles but I’d probably go for individual VR headsets and access for every student.
One piece of advice or top tip you’d give someone just entering teaching today?
Value yourself – there aren’t enough good teachers to go round so always keep that in mind if you love teaching but end up in a situation where you're hating it. Vote with your feet.
Find out more about Tom’s other passion, Edudate by clicking here.
