Lloyd Chilcott studied a BEd degree (specialising in ICT) at Plymouth between 2011 and 2015, achieving first degree honours and a dissertation award. He completed his NQT year last year at an inner city school in Plymouth. Since then he has been backpacking through North America, Australasia, and now Asia.
1) What made you decide to become a teacher? What/who inspired you? What were your motivations?
I’d like to say I wanted to become a teacher because of an inspiring professional who provided me with a love for learning, or for the joy of the lightbulb moment witnessed in the eyes of an enthralled student. But alas, I wanted to become a teacher because I looked at the adult at the front of the room and thought, that looks fun! Whilst unfortunately true, this origin story does do a disservice to the many fantastic teachers that did guide me through my primary years. Such an incredible individual was Mr Yeomans, a funny, caring, confident man who filled me with self-belief and a surprisingly good ability at tag-rugby. I left primary school thinking that he, like many others, was part of my education history, however 10 years later when I joined Plymouth University, who should be leading my specialism but Mr Yeomans! And once again he was there to give me the confidence to achieve the best I could. Mr Yeomans unfortunately left the University during my degree, leaving Steve Wheeler to run the show, but I am still extremely appreciative for his role in my life and the good that he did.
2) What is the best thing about being a teacher in a primary school? What gets you out of bed in the morning?
Working with children. Children are the most enjoyable, awe-inspiring constant I’ve known. Sure, some kids can be tricky, and you may have to remind yourself that there are more good times than bad, but sharing a genuine moment with a child can fill you up with unprecedented happiness.
3) What does it take to become an excellent teacher? What characteristics do the best teachers have?
An excellent teacher must remember that a child is a person. A tiny person with smaller person shoe sizes, but most certainly a person. This may seem trivial and obvious but I've witnessed an uneasy amount of professionals belittle, embarrass and shout at children. We wouldn't dare do this to a friend or co-worker. Children are people and they are as emotional beings as you or I.
4) What do you consider your greatest achievement to date as an educator?
My first class was the 'oh, you have that class?! Well It was nice knowing you’ class. On top of that the school was in a very tricky area and I was still an NQT. As one parent put it, “I had been thrown in the deep end of the baptism of fire”. But I managed to not only survive the year, but feel that I made a real difference to many of those kids.
5) How can we improve education? If you were the Secretary for Education, what would be your first priorities?
We must try to engage parents more and make more opportunities for them to develop skills to support their child's education and personal development. How we do this, I don't know, but it must transcend giving homework and having two parents evenings a year. Parents are the biggest influence in a child's life and we could support children far more if we provide far more support to parents.
6) What are the most innovative uses of technology in education (that you have done yourself, or have seen)?
Using VR (Virtual Reality), or augmented reality, seems to have boundless potential for education. Whilst I've unfortunately not seen this in person, I'll be the first to give it go! Just look, who wouldn't want to learn like this.
7) What is your favourite story or memory of teaching children you would like to share?
When reaching for the door, a child in my class jumped in front of me and opened it. As I went to say thank you, he said excitedly (whilst vigorously wiggling his eyebrows), “I’m sorry Mr Chilcott but I didn't think you could HANDLE opening the door”. We shared a love for terrible puns. This was a particularly terrible pun and it was perfect. My day was littered with silly little moments like that and it was absolutely my favourite thing.
8) What advice would you give those who are just about to start out on the pathway to becoming a teacher?
Teachers want to help - it's what they do. So get in touch with as many teachers as you can and start talking. They will give you practical advice, realistic expectations and great resources. And once you start teaching, you can even share your war stories with them.
9) What will schools of the future look like? What would you like to see happening in the next 10 years?
Unfortunately I think schools of the future will look much like the schools of today, which look much like the schools of the past. However I would like to see a paradigm shift in how schools look with flexible, highly accessible, collaborative learning spaces that integrate different technologies to provide an education that is based on skills, not general knowledge.
10) What are the most significant challenges facing education right now?
Excessive work hours, a significant lack of resources, a government driven by Victorian values, the negative image of teachers perpetuated by much of the media, and the test-driven culture that has greatly hampered teacher creativity and enjoyment. But hey, at least the holidays are good! ...Right?
1) What made you decide to become a teacher? What/who inspired you? What were your motivations?
I’d like to say I wanted to become a teacher because of an inspiring professional who provided me with a love for learning, or for the joy of the lightbulb moment witnessed in the eyes of an enthralled student. But alas, I wanted to become a teacher because I looked at the adult at the front of the room and thought, that looks fun! Whilst unfortunately true, this origin story does do a disservice to the many fantastic teachers that did guide me through my primary years. Such an incredible individual was Mr Yeomans, a funny, caring, confident man who filled me with self-belief and a surprisingly good ability at tag-rugby. I left primary school thinking that he, like many others, was part of my education history, however 10 years later when I joined Plymouth University, who should be leading my specialism but Mr Yeomans! And once again he was there to give me the confidence to achieve the best I could. Mr Yeomans unfortunately left the University during my degree, leaving Steve Wheeler to run the show, but I am still extremely appreciative for his role in my life and the good that he did.
2) What is the best thing about being a teacher in a primary school? What gets you out of bed in the morning?
Working with children. Children are the most enjoyable, awe-inspiring constant I’ve known. Sure, some kids can be tricky, and you may have to remind yourself that there are more good times than bad, but sharing a genuine moment with a child can fill you up with unprecedented happiness.
3) What does it take to become an excellent teacher? What characteristics do the best teachers have?
An excellent teacher must remember that a child is a person. A tiny person with smaller person shoe sizes, but most certainly a person. This may seem trivial and obvious but I've witnessed an uneasy amount of professionals belittle, embarrass and shout at children. We wouldn't dare do this to a friend or co-worker. Children are people and they are as emotional beings as you or I.
4) What do you consider your greatest achievement to date as an educator?
My first class was the 'oh, you have that class?! Well It was nice knowing you’ class. On top of that the school was in a very tricky area and I was still an NQT. As one parent put it, “I had been thrown in the deep end of the baptism of fire”. But I managed to not only survive the year, but feel that I made a real difference to many of those kids.
5) How can we improve education? If you were the Secretary for Education, what would be your first priorities?
We must try to engage parents more and make more opportunities for them to develop skills to support their child's education and personal development. How we do this, I don't know, but it must transcend giving homework and having two parents evenings a year. Parents are the biggest influence in a child's life and we could support children far more if we provide far more support to parents.
6) What are the most innovative uses of technology in education (that you have done yourself, or have seen)?
Using VR (Virtual Reality), or augmented reality, seems to have boundless potential for education. Whilst I've unfortunately not seen this in person, I'll be the first to give it go! Just look, who wouldn't want to learn like this.
7) What is your favourite story or memory of teaching children you would like to share?
When reaching for the door, a child in my class jumped in front of me and opened it. As I went to say thank you, he said excitedly (whilst vigorously wiggling his eyebrows), “I’m sorry Mr Chilcott but I didn't think you could HANDLE opening the door”. We shared a love for terrible puns. This was a particularly terrible pun and it was perfect. My day was littered with silly little moments like that and it was absolutely my favourite thing.
8) What advice would you give those who are just about to start out on the pathway to becoming a teacher?
Teachers want to help - it's what they do. So get in touch with as many teachers as you can and start talking. They will give you practical advice, realistic expectations and great resources. And once you start teaching, you can even share your war stories with them.
9) What will schools of the future look like? What would you like to see happening in the next 10 years?
Unfortunately I think schools of the future will look much like the schools of today, which look much like the schools of the past. However I would like to see a paradigm shift in how schools look with flexible, highly accessible, collaborative learning spaces that integrate different technologies to provide an education that is based on skills, not general knowledge.
10) What are the most significant challenges facing education right now?
Excessive work hours, a significant lack of resources, a government driven by Victorian values, the negative image of teachers perpetuated by much of the media, and the test-driven culture that has greatly hampered teacher creativity and enjoyment. But hey, at least the holidays are good! ...Right?
Photo courtesy of Lloyd Chilcott
Teacher Voices: Lloyd Chilcott by Steve Wheeler was written in Singapore and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
Teacher Voices: Lloyd Chilcott
Reviewed by MCH
on
March 20, 2017
Rating:
Reviewed by MCH
on
March 20, 2017
Rating:
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