Sophie Newton - English trainee

What were you doing before SCITT? 

Working as a secretary as well as in retail on weekends.

What inspired you to become a teacher?  

It was always something I had thought about doing and visiting the SCITT team and speaking to the individual who would be my tutor and sharing the same philosophy encouraged me to take the leap.

Why did you choose North East SCITT? 

Peter Halliday.

I spoke to him on a visit/experience morning and it swayed me from being tempted to take the leap into being certain that this was the place that I wanted to train and the type of thing I wanted to spend my life doing.

What would you say to anyone thinking of teaching?  

Come and visit the team who are going to be trainingyou, get a feel for the environment and observe people teaching, you'll get a really good idea of whether or not you're in the right place for you really quickly. It's better to try and see than never try and regret it.

 

What has been your favourite part of training? 

Getting to work with young people and see them succeed doings things they didn't believe they were capable of.

How does teaching differ from your previous career? 

I feel as though there is something positive in everyday, whereas in my previous career I didn't have that same sense of positivity.

Do you have any tips or advice for potential trainees? 

Get organised, stay on top of your paperwork, and be excited, you're going to experience the privilege of seeing young people do amazing things almost everyday.

What are you most looking forward to after completing the course?

Fingers crossed, being able to make a really positive contribution to a school community and see young people succeed.

School Experience

Did you feel as though it helped you feel more confident when starting your ITT training?

It gave me a good idea of what to expect and what I needed to prepare for.

What aspect of the day/session was most helpful?

Getting to observe a lesson was wonderful as it helped me to understand what it was like being back in a classroom after being away from one for quite some time.

Would you recommend signing up for the day to other prospective trainees?

Absolutely, you will get to know the institute who will be training you, as well as see if this is something for you.