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Like many in my profession, I kind of fell into teaching. It wasn't part of the grand masterplan at all and my first year as a media lecturer at Stratford upon Avon College was one of the most testing, draining and emotional experiences of my life. I think it was always more challenging for me as I hadn't entered the teaching profession because I possessed an undying passion to teach teenagers but simply because my parents believed it to be a more stable career route. Bouncing from job to job in the unpredictable broadcast industry caused my loving parents way too much anxiety so, there I found myself stood before a class of testing 16 year olds with no script to perform from and no glimpse of the passion I felt for the creative sector I had turned my back on.
Despite my lack of passion at the time, the perfectionist in me was determined to not mess this opportunity up. I will never shake the memories of staying up until 4am each weeknight to not just plan lessons but to also teach myself the curriculum before I could even consider how I would teach it the next day. Looking back, it's difficult to see how I got through that first year of teaching. Luckily, I was teaching alongside a gentleman who had been my lecturer for the best part of four years and it was with his guidance and moral support that I made it to the end of the year. Just as he did when I was his student, he listened, guided and tolerated my tantrums when the day didn't go to plan. He taught me the fundamentals of coping with both challenging students and the pressures of FE. Not only did he teach me how to teach, but he had also trained me in television broadcasting, helping me to land my my 'dream job' in a live studio. Much of my professional achievements are down to him - my inspirational teacher and mentor in life.
A couple of years passed and I settled into my role, building some rewarding relationships along the way but I temporarily left teaching to return to live television. Believing that I would never step into a classroom again, two years down the line I once again found myself stood before new classes of aspiring film directors. This time was very different though. Second time round, I had actually chosen to teach. I had missed the rewarding and purposeful feeling that you get each week after helping a young person move one step closer to their personal goals and although I love the broadcast industry and they'll always be that little TV spark within me, working with innovative, creative students feels much more satisfying.
Don't get me wrong, leaving my job in live television was one of the hardest decisions I've ever made and it took me the best part of a year to get over that career change. After launching myself back into one of the most demanding careers once again, I began to observe the key relationships and the rapport I had built up with my learners, noticing one key difference this time round that I hadn't acknowledged during my first shot at playing teacher Sophie. This difference being that I found myself being inspired by my learners. As this is one of the main duties of the teacher in the room, I had never considered how my classes could actually inspire me too. Discussing ideas and sharing experiences with my students and them with me has notably inspired a lot of what I now do. Not only within my lessons but in my personal creative endeavours too. They enlighten me with fresh, new perspectives and expose me to new content and ideas that only their generation could offer. This is why I will always continue to work with young creatives in some capacity and why I want to dedicate this week's podcast episode to those young individuals that have recently inspired me to explore new media, technology and opportunities.
Check out episode 4 here: https://youtu.be/WFOd3sG7OE8
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