• Question: Have you ever thought about becoming a teacher?

    Asked by to Bethany, Hannah, Keith, Peter, Ramya on 15 Jun 2014. This question was also asked by .
    • Photo: Bethany Dearlove

      Bethany Dearlove answered on 15 Jun 2014:

      Yes, I have thought about becoming a teacher – and, although I’m not a teacher in a school like you’re probably thinking of, I do teach university students. One of the best parts for me is that ‘clicking’ moment, when a student has been grappling with a problem and then it all suddenly makes sense. I first seriously thought about teaching as a career when I did two weeks of work experience at my local primary school when I was 15, and thoroughly enjoyed it. I actually went back and taught at the school again after my GCSEs! Since then, I’ve taught whenever I can – during my A levels, I mentored a maths GCSE student, and during my time at university I taught students in the years below me, as well as tutoring A level students. Being able to explain difficult concepts is an important skill, and I find that teaching often forces me think about what I do in different ways.

      My enjoyment of teaching is also what inspired me to come up with my ‘Learning is infectious: pass it on’ kit that I would create with the money if I won. It’s designed to have everything I need for me to come and teach you guys about what I do!

    • Photo: Ramya Bhatia

      Ramya Bhatia answered on 15 Jun 2014:

      Yes. I love to teach. I used to teach English to adults in India and then I have taught undergradute students Biology. I also once taught A level biology over Skype!!

      Other than proper classroom teaching, i teach students who come into our lab how to do science experiments.

    • Photo: Peter Elliott

      Peter Elliott answered on 15 Jun 2014:

      Honestly I have always been slightly afraid whenever I thought about becoming a teacher. Mostly because I think that the responsibility for encouraging hundreds of students to engage with the curriculum daunting. As I got older I also got the impression that teachers can be very restricted in the way they teach which would not suit my creative style.

      So now I do a lot of scientific engagement. This means going into schools and museums and teaching anyone and everyone I can about my science. This is great fun and enjoyable. I also contribute to the British science association outreach days in Manchester and help to design and deliver table top activities to get people engaged with many areas of science. These activities allow me to cover the science I love which I hope comes across to the people I talk with. When I was in South Africa earlier this year I did get a chance to become a teacher in the local primary school where I was volunteering and all I can say is that I have a lot of respect for anyone who enters the teaching area.

    • Photo: Hannah Tanner

      Hannah Tanner answered on 16 Jun 2014:

      Yes. I have been into schools and taught some lessons as STEM ambassador which has been fun. However I find it really hard work because I prefer to have time to sit and think about things. As a teacher you have to think as fast as the students!

    • Photo: Keith Grehan

      Keith Grehan answered on 16 Jun 2014:

      Yes, I think lots of people with science qualifications consider making the switch to teaching full time at some point. As part of my PhD I teach undergraduate students in the lab and assist in the teaching of some other parts of the course. I think teaching responsibility is an important part of most scientists work as so many work for universities.
      Its something I really enjoy but I think teaching full time would be pretty intense so I’ll stick with research 🙂

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