By Sarah Plumb of Professional Development Team, APSD
This post was originally published in 2019 on the original Elevate blog.
Starting out in teaching is hard. The emotional involvement generated by the personal way you plan and
deliver sessions, the response and feedback you get from your students and the highs and lows of
sessions which went better or worse than expected, makes it a very demanding profession.
I have been teaching for over a decade now, and I’m still learning and experiencing these highs and
lows, however experience has given me a greater toolkit of skills to help me manage the rollercoaster.
I work a lot with Graduate Teaching Assistants (GTAs) and early career teachers in TUoS, which
prompted me to ask fifteen teachers: “what do you wish you had known when you started teaching?”
The answers are shared below.
The process of becoming a good teacher is ongoing and takes time.
“[Teaching] is a skill which needs to be mastered” Amelia Chester
This was by far and away the most common response. As a teacher, you are on display so there is an
overwhelming pressure to be good immediately. Often new teachers can experience imposter
syndrome when they doubt their credibility teaching a topic.
Knowing your subject does not necessarily mean that you can teach it in a way which is meaningful
and understandable. Take time to reflect constructively on your practice as part of an ongoing process
of professional development rather than being over critical of a perceived “end point”.
Don’t over plan
“It’s not about ploughing through the material, it’s about making it meaningful.” Vicky Astle
It is very common for new teachers to fear the empty space of running out of material and as a result
plan far too much. Too much content means that delivery is rushed and students can feel bombarded
by information which they have no time to process. One teacher said that the “ideas need room to
breathe”.
If you find you have too much content, take time to reflect on what is the essential material for students
at that level. The core, must-have skills and knowledge should appear in your Intended Learning
Outcomes (ILOs). It is worth spending time getting these absolutely clear and measurable (and realistic)
to provide focus when planning your activities and delivery. Empower your students by designing
activities where they can engage with this key material through discussion or a task. This takes time;
don’t be scared to facilitate rather than deliver.
You can be far more flexible with non-essential content, you can signpost to it through extra reading,
have “optional” activities which you can use or drop depending on time, or allocate elements of it to
different students to research and feedback.
Make sure you have a session plan. One teacher suggested planning 45 minutes of content for a 50
minute session to allow for “mop up time” for unexpected challenges.
Be brave
“Try as many ideas as you can and learn from them” Nacera Khelfaoui
The fear of things going wrong is enough to put most teachers off trying new strategies. However, you
need to learn from experience. If it all goes wrong, you can adapt the activity next time.
To empower your students to become independent learners you will have to relinquish control of the
learning from time to time. This does increase the chance of activities not going to plan, but as long as
you reflect on them and learn from them, your practice will become stronger as a result. They might
also surprise you by working better than you expected.
Bravery can come in many forms and it may be that you need to challenge some of your natural
inclinations if they are not supporting learning. One teacher described having to learn to become
comfortable with silence to allow students time to reflect and think before they could answer a question
or apply themselves to a task.
Don’t take feedback personally
“Read it [feedback] and dwell on it for the length of time it takes to drink a cup of tea. After that, you either
need to do something about it if it's valuable, or let it go if it's not.” Sarah Moore
Bad feedback can be upsetting and demotivating, particularly if it is not framed constructively. Teachers
teach through their personality and so negative feedback can feel personal.
Rather than avoiding student feedback, think about the questions you ask. Broadly asking for ‘any
comments’ on a session opens the door to unconstructive criticisms and venting of frustrations (which
may have nothing to do with you). Frame the questions to focus on the task, for example “which aspect
of the topic are you least clear about?” Answers to this will help you adapt and improve your practice
without becoming demotivated.
Be flexible
Several teachers in the survey raised the importance of adaptability. One said that, although a plan is
important, if things are not working, stop and move on to something else. Reflection afterwards is key
here to improving your practice: take the time to evaluate what went wrong and what you could do
differently.
Another teacher highlighted the importance of having back up low-tech alternatives in case technology
doesn’t work or additional non-essential activities if a discussion falls flat or takes less time than
expected. Generally teachers become more adaptable with experience as they have more activities at
their fingertips and have more experience of things going wrong, but in the beginning you can at least
plan for likely challenges.
Be positive
“Having a bad day doesn’t mean you are a bad teacher” Thierry Jamin
One of Bear Grylls’s favourite survival skills, positivity! It can be difficult to keep this going week 8 of the
semester however its effect is significant. Having a positive attitude supports your professional
development, improves the atmosphere in your teaching sessions and your relationships with your
students and generally helps you through the tougher times. Celebrate and value your successes.
Whilst constructive reflection and feedback can help you improve, don’t make it the only thing you focus
upon. You also need to identify your strengths so you can use them to best advantage.
Be yourself
“It’s ok to be you! You don't have to be a version of someone else who is a great teacher. You are most effective
when you are you rather than trying to be a character you aren't.” Amelia Chester
Most of us have been inspired by a teacher either during our time as students or as colleagues to
excellent teachers. However to try and wholesale copy someone else’s style is rarely effective or
comfortable. By all means get inspiration from your experience and your colleagues but teach through
your own personality. Adapt activities to your own style and deliver sessions in a way that feels
comfortable. Variety amongst teaching styles will appeal to a variety of students.
Bring in your own experiences if appropriate and don’t be afraid to say you don’t know. Your job is to
empower students to become independent, effective learners. Sometimes that will mean directing them
back to the process of finding out the answer for themselves (and then they can tell you!)
Be responsive
Get to know your students and regularly include activities which give you an idea of how much they
have understood. If they haven’t understood, adapt your teaching to revisit the topic either immediately
or in the next session. Not only does this help your planning but it also makes students feel valued and
that you are invested in their learning.
Respond to your learning environment. Move furniture if you need to. Physical placement can make a
big difference to how well activities work, such as group discussion.
One teacher in the survey advises not to plan too far ahead before getting to know your students. It may
well be that you end up re-writing the sessions as a result of unexpected misconceptions or group
dynamics.
Be collaborative
“Some topics will inspire you more than others. Talk to the other members of your department to find out how
they deliver those ‘disliked topics’. They are a resource you can tap into.” Thierry Jamin
Your colleagues can be a great support to your professional development. They can give advice, share
resources and be a good ear when things are not going to plan. If colleagues in your department would
not fit this role for whatever reason come to a 1:1 teaching support session and the Elevate adviser will
be happy to fulfil this role. Be generous in sharing your own experiences too.
Prioritise wellbeing
You are most effective when you are well. A former colleague used the analogy of putting the oxygen
mask on yourself before helping others in the event of a plane malfunction to support this theory.
Likewise, students will learn best when they are well and happy. Working long hours does not equate to
efficiency and the skill of prioritising is vital to both you and your students. Try to avoid becoming a
perfectionist and remember that CPD is an ongoing process. As long as it is “good enough” you can
always refine it the next time you run the session.
Good luck in your teaching this year.