In the summer of 2015, just two weeks after graduating from university, Rory Mathews began his time on the Teach First Training Programme. We sat down with Rory to chat about his Teach First experience and how competing in sport at the University of Nottingham helped develop lifelong skills.
Rory spoke fondly of his time as 2nd Team Captain & committee member of the University of Nottingham Cricket Club and highlighted how he was able to turn his sporting talents to teaching. On the field, Rory developed communication, teamwork and patience skills, noting that having a cool head on the field helped him remain calm in the classroom.
Off the field, being a committee member improved Rory’s organisation, teamwork and people skills, which helped him hit the ground running, creating a routine and maintaining strong working relationships. Playing sport at university gave him the groundwork to be a stronger teacher. Rory highlights that ‘there’s a big overlap between the skills you’ve learnt as a BUCS player or committee member that will suit you really well for life as a ‘teach-firster’.’
Rory was placed at a school in Wolverhampton for the two-year scheme. During this time, he grew and developed as an individual, gaining a wide variety of transferable skills which he uses in his current role outside of teaching: 'these skills have set me up for life, in both teaching and beyond!' An important skill Rory learnt and one he found isn’t often talked about, is the importance of understanding each students background, ‘When you’re teaching you really have to think about and understand the kids and where they come from. I think it’s really valuable for managing relationships outside of teaching, in terms of your working life, understanding how to be effective, how to work with others and how they might respond to you.’
Gaining a wealth of attributes ranging from organisation and leadership to project management and presentation, it’s clear that these skills make a difference. Looking back, Rory believes it ‘made me more confident as a person. You’re up presenting to a tough crowd five times a day, when they’re not listening to you, you have to take control and get them to listen to you.’
The Teach First scheme starts with the Summer Institute, a 5-week intensive training course, after this you head to the classroom where you learn and develop on the job. Talking about what makes Teach First such a beneficial scheme, Rory commented: ‘I don’t think you can really rival the support and training that you’re given through the scheme. The initial five weeks is such a good developer and then the ongoing support you have is so well structured and thought through. You’ve got people to support you the whole time, I really valued that and thought it was a great part of the programme.’
