Why Scout volunteer James got into teaching

What inspired you to become a teacher?

I’ve always loved learning and by becoming a teacher, I wanted to inspire as many young people as possible to love history like I do.

I wanted to be a teacher when I was younger, but I thought I’d build a different career first and joined a finance graduate scheme. My favourite part of the job was coaching junior members of staff and I’d taken part in school experience days on the advice of Get Into Teaching.

I got such a buzz from being back in a classroom that I realised teaching was actually the right career path for me.

I was also influenced by my friends who’d become teachers. When they described the level of satisfaction they were getting in their job, I realised I wanted to experience the same.

Did being a volunteer in Scouts help with your teaching?

Without volunteering in Scouts, I don’t think I would’ve had the confidence to teach young people. It was such a bonus to engage with young people outside of a school environment.

Volunteers in Scouts spend lots of time planning programmes suitable for their young people and adapting to their different needs, and this planning is directly transferable to teaching.

I took a break from Scouts while in my finance career, but I started volunteering again when I was back on track to becoming a teacher. I realised how much I enjoyed it and how beneficial it’d be to my career.

As teachers, we want to inspire our young people. We want them to go outside their comfort zone, challenge themselves and get that sense of achievement at the end. And that’s something I learned in Scouts.

What teaching skills help you when working with young people at Scouts?

I feel more in tune with the issues young people are facing today, such as the constant interference of social media in their lives.

Through teaching, I understand better what young people are facing and how to deliver Scouts programmes which’ll be genuinely exciting, challenging or different for them.

What’s the most thing rewarding about teaching?

Students only get one shot at education, and we have a real opportunity to make a meaningful impact on these student’s lives.

Our goal as a school, which I wholeheartedly support, is to give students a world-class education, so they can choose to study at a top university or alternative.

Part of doing that is getting students excited to be in school and in lessons learning. I love it when students say they’re excited for my lessons. Some students tell me history is their favourite lesson of the week, and I hope that’s because they’re really buying into the subject and building a desire to learn more.

Ultimately, I enjoy that no two days are the same. You never know what might happen next or what the students might say or do. You’re never clock-watching as a teacher, as the days just fly by.

What advice do you have for people who want to teach?

Explore your options, as there are lots of routes into teaching other than the traditional university route. Have a look around and choose what’s right for you.

I’d really encourage people to reach out to the Get into Teaching advisers, they gave me excellent advice when I was looking to start my teaching career and it’s completely free of charge.