Edward

How has your ECT experience been so far?

Really good! I think it has been really beneficial to be in a school where there is so much experience. My mentor in particular has had a really positive effect on my role as an ECT and given me loads of good feedback. Having our dedicated Harris Consultants in has been able to help me a lot with my Year 11s or where I may need more support and I have found that really valuable and reassuring.  

What have been the highlights of your ECT journey?

It seems like a really small thing but one of my Year 10s I taught last year as a Trainee Teacher came up to me really worried because he did not know how to tie a tie. I felt a real sense of pride that I had built a good enough relationship with this pupil that when he is stressed out, he felt he could come to me, not just about work but also about pastoral issues, and I spent lunchtime showing him how to tie a tie. It felt really good to know that I wasn’t only improving his educational outcomes but also his life skills.

What would you say to someone considering an ECT role at the Harris Federation?

Please come! I think teaching is a profession that is wildly underrated and there is no other industry where you get as much challenge but also a chance to make a difference and really learn about yourself and other people. I think the nice thing about doing it within a larger federation is that you have lots of other people in a similar situation as you so when you go to training days together, you don’t feel alone as others will have had similar challenges and there are also people to celebrate your accomplishments as well. There is also so much shared learning resources that have been created by the Harris Federation so that is really useful and helpful to have when you are buffing your lesson planning.  

What are some of your favourite things about working at Harris Lowe Academy Willesden?

So many things! First of all my colleagues as I do genuinely get to work with friends, and we regularly go out after work. Also, everyone is driven in the same direction which is good.

Our pupils are crazy in the best way. When you build good relationships with them they give you so much chance to get to know them as people. We are in such a diverse borough that you get to meet so many different cultures and backgrounds which you don’t get in other schools. To be able to teach people from all across the world in one classroom is an amazing feeling.  

What do you love about being an English Teacher?

The fact that every day you come in and make a small incremental improvement in someone’s life. Even if it is just one kid in the back of the classroom who has finally understood what a noun is, while that seems really small that is a real benefit and bonus. It is nice to go home and say ok I did something good today.