Victoria - "Feedback from my mentor was always constructive and her encouragement has given me the confidence I need to progress into Phase 2, with nothing but a fuelled passion for teaching."

CTT Primary Trainee, Victoria, reflects on her first teacher training placement.
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Having left school at 16 years old, I pursued a career at Sellafield for ten years before leaving to have my four children.  They inspired me to have a career change and so for the last three years, I have been undertaking Teaching Assistant roles in various schools, while completing my Children and Families Degree. I was delighted to be accepted at Cumbria Teacher Training and excited to begin my journey.  I was given all the tools I needed before I started my placement.  Wendy was very thorough in both organising our files and checklist as well as preparing us for what was ahead. Although I was organised and had experience to give me a good foundation, I acknowledged it was a huge step moving from an assistant role, to being the class teacher. I have to be completely honest, I did not have any confidence walking into my first placement, I was too nervous!  
 
On reflection, I had absolutely no need to be! My teacher mentor warmly welcomed me.  She put me at ease right away.  She was approachable, friendly, down to earth and really supported me through the whole process. I observed her teaching and she was fantastic. She shared all her knowledge and I learned so much.  My training so far has been invaluable. I have planned and taught lessons throughout the first phase of training and by the end of my placement, I was happily teaching a class of 32 children without doubting myself! All the staff within the school made me welcome and were very helpful. 
 
Feedback from my mentor was always constructive and her encouragement has given me the confidence I need to progress into Phase 2, with nothing but a fuelled passion for teaching. I will forever be grateful to her for believing in me and giving me the skills I need to progress.  
 
Wendy and her CTT team have been equally supportive. I felt perfectly safe attending the centre, as provisions were in place to keep us protected from Covid-19 and made sure the effects of the pandemic, didn’t affect our learning. We received valuable training, which gave us the confidence to move into phase one with both subject knowledge to teach and wellbeing awareness to care for our students. I have met some truly inspirational teachers in the short time I have been a student and I feel really lucky to have received this level of training. This year will not, by anybody’s standards, be easy but I look forward to collecting my own ‘teacher toolbox’ from learning from best practice as the year progresses. At the end of this journey, I will have received the highest standard of  training as a CTT student and I cannot wait to receive Qualified Teacher Status. 

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Victoria, previously employed at Sellafield and then a teaching assistant at various schools, graduated with a Children and Families degree before joining Cumbria Teacher Training in September 2020. “I know that this year will not, by anybody’s standards, be easy but I look forward to collecting my own ‘teacher toolbox’ from learning from best practice as the year progresses."

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