Thursday 10 December 2009

And the answer to yesterday's question is...

A teacher.
Or to be more precise, a trainee teacher.
On Tuesday I had an interview for a place on the PGCE (Post Graduate Certificate in Education) course to teach English to 11-18-year-olds.
I will always be a writer but my experience in the prison has taught me the value of education and the difference teachers can make to the future lives of pupils.
Almost without exception the men that I have worked with told me their criminal lives became a full-time career option when they left school.
Most of these men stopped going to school at around 13 or 14 when they were excluded from full-time education.
If I get a place and if I qualify I hope to work in a Pupil Referral Unit teaching pupils who have been excluded from mainstream education and helping them get back to school.
The strange thing is if I get a place on the course I will be returning to university in September 2010 - the same time as my eldest son who has also applied to the same university.
Before I sign off today, do you remember me telling you about Susan Comer who makes wearable art from vintage clothes?
The designs normally cost in excess of £300 but she has two being auctioned on eBay for Sue Ryder Charity Care and they are only £17 as I speak with just over two days to go.
Check them out here and here.

10 comments:

  1. Oh, now you have another feather in your cap... that is awesome.

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  2. Oh, that's why you looked a bit "teacher-like"! Hope you can get in, it will surely be very interesting for you and from what I've read about you in all these months, I'm totally sure you will make an excellent teacher. Good luck and keep us posted please. Ciao. A.

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  3. Aha! It sounds like you would be ideally suited to a PRU. Good luck, hope you get on the course.

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  4. I hope you get the job. I'm sure that with your experience and your motivation you will be able to make a diference in your students lives.

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  6. The job sounds like a perfect fit for you.

    Thanks for the links also, I really like recycled/alternative clothing.

    Darla

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  7. Wow well done and what a great decision.

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  8. What a wonderful decision - I certainly hope that you are able to work in a Pupil Referral Unit. That seems like such a wonderful opportunity to carry out your passion for education and mentoring into a new venue. Best of luck to you, Jane!

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  9. Such a great thing to do - very inspiring!

    My work lets me meet kids from the age of fifteen from time to time, and these encounters have made me believe that we need to invest more in our youth - in the kids that for some reason can't make it through school. In Sweden, it sometimes seems like we give up on the "troubled" kids (because its "too hard") and instead give a lot of focus to the kids that have all opportunities to learn and get valuable experiences through their parents, friends and families. I think it's admirable to want to help the ones that need it the most, it can be a tricky challenge but something our societies truly needs.

    Applaus from Scandinavia

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