Thursday 19 April 2007

busy, busy, busy

I am just knocking off for the night after typing up a few more reports. One year group's are due tomorrow but I just can't seem to work any more today. The last week has been incredibly busy. I've just heard today that my first assessment for QTS (Qualified Teacher Status) will be on Monday and Tuesday. The tutor will visit the school for two days to see another colleague and me. He'll go through my portfolio (currently taking up two 3" binders) and observe at least two of my lessons. He'll meet with me, my trainer, and my subject leader. Then he'll tell me all of the things I need to improve on before his next visit later in the year. By the end of the term (July) I will hopefully be fully qualified. That means I'll be able to continue teaching in the UK indefinitely and I'll be paid on the main pay scale (not the unqualified teacher pay scale)! But the hassle it has been! I will likely go to work on Saturday to continue compiling my portfolio and to make sure my marking is up to date.


Here's a photo from when I was walking around Chelsea on my holiday last week. It's really spring here! I have been cycling to work in my shorts. Shocking.

1 comment:

Jayme said...

Good luck with your QTS assessment. Don't stress too much. I was worried about mine, but when the time came, I passed with flying colours and the assessor was really, really nice. If you have time, try to flag your portfolio with the standards. I just wrote the standard number and stuck a post-it note on the page of stuff that proved I'd met that standard. He really liked that.

But seriously, don't stress too much. They aren't expecting you to be perfect, you're just starting, after all. I'm sure you'll pass with flying colours.