Until I found LRTT, I was on the verge of being another statistic
By Stephanie Carlin
Truth be told, I was on the verge of being another statistic. Although I am passionate about teaching I had decided that if my work life balance, the stress and never ending deadlines didn’t improve, I would have no choice but to find a new career. My energy was being sapped, the previous school’s I was working in were too focussed on impressing Ofsted and ticking boxes, rather than adding value to the lives of the children we taught. I was becoming disillusioned, disengaged and unfocussed. I was quickly falling out of love with teaching.
Luckily, things turned around for me just in time. As I was considering an alternative career, I secured a new job at Mathew Moss High School. As a school, it represents all that I thought was lost in education. Its purpose is purely to improve the life chances of its pupils, the whole school approach to professional development was reenergising. I was also given the opportunity to mentor a PGCE student, and it was this that made me realise how much I enjoyed sharing my skills, experience and best practice. The process of watching the trainee implement my advice or find her own solutions based on our discussions was really rewarding. This process also taught me a lot. The opportunity to reflect and improve reminded me why I loved this job so much.
When I write it down like this, LRTT came at the perfect moment in my life. The advert for LRTT really got me excited. The opportunity to travel, work with likeminded teachers and share skills and best practices with other professionals around the world ticked every box for me.
I bumped into my head teacher the next day and asked him if he’d heard of the company. He said no, but to send him the details. A few email exchanges, a couple of alternative school opportunities discussed and I was sure LRTT was one for me. With the support of my school, excitement set in! I am really enthused about being part of a movement promising hope. The negativity that surrounds teaching is disheartening, I am ready to reverse this narrative. I want to show the world what teachers from the UK can do.
Now I’ve met the group I’m off to Cambodia with I cannot wait to get packed and get there. LRTT allows me to travel, to share and promote my love of teaching and to be part of something positive. Everyone I’ve spoken to about this project wishes they could join me. Often they say: ‘I wish I could do something like that’… well actually you can.
I guess I have become a statistic after all, but a positive one, I am one of 350 teachers going to 9 countries, to make a difference to 2,500 teachers to help 75,000 children receive a great education.
Find out more about LRTT at https://lrtt.org/
