A Change of Pace

Term Two of 2017 brought a huge change for me in my teaching career.  The opportunity presented itself to take on a role in a completely different school to those that I was used to working at.  

Having worked for 10 years in two of Auckland's biggest and highly regarded schools has taught be so much.  I have had the privilege of learning from the best, being spoilt with my professional development options, learnt to communicate with parents and students and also have a really solid grounding for my teaching career.  

Both Meadowbank School (Decile 10) and Newmarket School (Decile 9) taught be different things but it was time for me to reflect on my practise and acknowledge the 'gaps' that I had in my teaching experience.  I am ambitious and one day would like to be in more senior management roles therefore I knew I needed to gain experience in a lower decile school and also increase my experience and teaching knowledge of Maori and Pasifika students.  

Fast forward to Term Two 2017 - I am now the Senior Teacher of a Digital Syndicate at May Road School in Mt Roskill.  

The following is a reflection of three differences and challenges I have faced but also the experience I have gained working at such a different school.  

• 95% of my new class are Maori or Pasifika which is a huge contrast from the cultural composition of Newmarket School.  However, there are some similarities which fall under the ELLP and ESOL blanket.  I have found my teaching experience of children with English as a second language has assisted me greatly in the transition to May Road.

• Parent Involvement and Contact.  This is very different because my last two school have been quite 'full on' in terms of parental involvement and participation.  I have learnt that this is not so true at May Road however the lack of face to face contact is not due to disinterest...some of my new parents do not know how to approach school conversations and it is more about finding ways to connect with them and teach them ways to become more involved with their child's learning.

• National Standards - this is a tricky one in my new school.  I am engrained to look at NS and report on them with such precision however this is not a priority at May Road.  Although they are still discussed and formally reported on, it is refreshing to not agonise over these.  During conferences they are merely a passing comment and do not take over the main discussion.  Children at May Road are doing relatively well in regards to National Standards but it is only now that I have been able to see how detrimental they can be to certain students.

The rest of the year is unknown but I am excited to learn more about Maori and Pasifika education.  I also look forward to gaining experiences from working in a lower socio-economic area and accepting all the challenges it brings.