Hello everyone,
Many thanks again for all the votes for my blog in the ‘Best Teacher Blog’ category. I am so thankful and grateful. Please keep it up to see me through. Please vote for all bloggers flying the Irish flag, including http://www.anseo.net/, http://acrucialweek.blogspot.ie/ and http://www.seomraranga.com/.
Anyways, now that that’s out of the way, I will refer you to the title of my post- The Big Move, Term One and Subbing. This post is unusual in that it is of a more personal nature, but one I am sure most substitute teachers can relate to.
I made the move to Dublin in August. I would love to be all noble and say I made the move for work, but I didn’t really. My boyfriend got a job up here, so we decided to make the move together. I am not sure I would have done it by myself, I am a bit of a wimp!
I had my reservations at first, being from the single most beautiful part of the country, moving to a city didn’t seem terribly appealing. I will admit I struggled at first. I missed having the beach on my doorstep, and my dogs, and everything really. I was going home every weekend though so the homesickness wasn’t too bad. I missed the schools at home too. It was nice to be known and to know the children you are teaching. It was difficult to get used to the more formal ways of bigger schools.
I am gradually becoming accustomed to city life. I will never get used to the traffic though, driving up here is just the worst thing ever. Apart from that, I do like it. It is hands down the best move I could have made for my teaching career. I was lucky enough to get two months work in an absolutely lovely school, and I now sub there regularly. I sub mainly between three schools now, and I have only had four days without work since the start of the school year, which is basically working full time. As an aside, do others subs find it difficult to continue working on job applications when you are working regularly? I find it hard to do both.
Subbing is great really because it gives you the chance to see all different types of schools, and gives you a lot to talk about at interviews. One can’t buy the experience really, between resource, learning support and all different classes. I think working as a substitute teacher helps one to become a really well rounded teacher.
I know my teaching prowess has come on immensely from all my subbing. One big thing for me was discipline. I had in my previous experience, never had to really ‘give out’. I had never been tested. Until I moved to Dublin! I soon learned however! Now I know to go in to the classroom with a ‘strict face’, just in case.
I have also discovered a new passion, the area of disadvantaged education. I was shocked really when I started subbing in DEIS schools. I may have been naive, but it never entered my head that children would come to school hungry, cold, or unhappy. Also the fact that some children walk to school by themselves, it is appalling. I have applied to work with Barnardos and with http://www.suas.ie/ to try help the poor little kids who need it most. There are many initiatives out there to get involved in if like me, you have an interest in the area.
So that’s it. I hope term two will be as busy and productive!
Valerie
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