Why I decided to change my career to Maths Teaching

Alifiya AlibhaiMaths Graduate. English teacher in China. Private equity accountant. Qualified Chartered Management Accountant. Investment banking Finance. Mother of 3 young children. Student Teacher.

Yes, that really is my career path to date, and I have genuinely loved every minute of it.  But now, I’m finally pursuing what I feel is ‘my calling’ and my passion to become a teacher.

For an outsider looking in, the career path that I have taken may not necessarily make the most sense.  But each step that I have taken happened to be the right thing for me at that point in my life – and that’s a really important point for me to make, because I’m a true believer in the fact that we are all masters of our own destiny.  The choices we make, help to shape the people we become, and the more we can learn from our experiences, the more we can bring to the table in our future endeavours.

As I mentioned, I’m finally pursuing my passion to become a teacher, and my short experience of it so far has been incredibly rewarding.  Growing up in the East end of London, I quickly realised how important a well-rounded education was, and how success in life depended on taking advantage of the many opportunities that our education system has to offer. I have always felt so fortunate to have been at a school that provided so many opportunities, and it was some of my great teachers who motivated and inspired me to be the best that I could be. I want to be the person that can spark that same inspiration in others.

I have ‘taken the plunge’ and chosen to train to be a secondary Maths teacher.  Teaching today isn’t just about imparting subject knowledge to students to score the highest grades possible.  I believe we also have a responsibility to help nurture the passions of each of our students, helping and guiding them to make the right choices in their lives.  One of the things that I’m most excited about is being able to look back at my own personal experiences, and really bring some different perspectives and real-life experiences into my classrooms, in the hope that I can inspire my students to be the best that they can be.

So, to anyone who has already decided to, or anyone thinking about pursuing a change in career to teaching, I would urge one thing in particular – Do not underestimate the value of your past experiences, and how you can use them to enrich the learning of your students.  Bring your whole self into the classroom, and your students will hopefully do the same.  I certainly intend to do so. 

By Alifiya Alibhai

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