29 September 2015 | Comments
Stacey Thomas left St Helena in August 2011 to embark on her Foundation Degree in Learning Support. On completing this course with Distinction, Stacey then enrolled on her final year of the BEd (Primary) programme, in which she achieved a First Class Honours Degree.
At foundation level, Stacey focused on behaviour management, ICT for supporting teaching and learning, inclusion frameworks and issues, working with children with specific learning difficulties, speech and language difficulties, autism and a practice-based enquiry.
Stacey spoke of her focus on studying Learning Support:
“The knowledge I gained from the Foundation Degree in Learning Support has proven to be very beneficial to my career, as a teacher, and I believe it will continue to do so. Having the awareness of different learning difficulties can support early identification and the strategies learnt to support these difficulties can help to reduce barriers to learning.”
Stacey also undertook work placements as a teaching assistant and taught as an unqualified teacher, at a special educational needs school, for pupils with moderate learning difficulties, gaining valuable experience for her final BEd year.
Whilst studying for her Bachelor’s Degree in Education, Stacey also covered: How to Become an Outstanding Maths Teacher, English across the Curriculum, Developing a Creative Curriculum, Developing Professional Practice Projects and completed her final teaching practice with a year 4 class.
Stacey said:
“My work placements were of paramount importance to my degree as it provided the opportunity to apply my learning from lectures to my classroom practice.”
After completing her BEd, Stacey decided to stay in the UK, to complete her induction year as a Newly Qualified Teacher. She gained employment in a UK school, as a KS1 teacher. A particular challenge during this year was the introduction of the new national curriculum.
Stacey remarked:
“During this year, we trailed new methods of planning and assessment based on the needs of our school. I taught all core subjects (Literacy, Maths and Science) alongside of several foundation subjects (History, Geography, Art, D&T, PE…). Despite being a challenging year, this was the year that I learnt and enjoyed the most as I gained firsthand experience of being a teacher, in the UK.”
Stacey is now employed as a Year 1 and 2 Class Teacher at Harford Primary School, and is hoping to implement many of the skills she has learnt and used whilst teaching in the UK.
SHG
29 September 2015
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