Name: Monica Daryani
Country of Residence: China
Country of Origin: India
Subjects I teach: Special Educational Needs
Grades I teach: Learning Support from Early Years to Secondary
Places I’ve lived: Taipei, New York, England, Guangzhou
What do you enjoy about teaching?
Having taught for over 15 years, the best part about teaching is the constant learning that goes hand in hand with it. It is a two-way system, not only are you passing on knowledge to your students, they likewise help you to grow both professionally and personally. As a teacher you are constantly learning and there is never a dull moment. Children have so much potential and it is a truly rewarding experience helping to challenge them further and explore this facet of their development. I relish the challenge of tapping into the potential of such young children, watching them learn and grow not only in height but also in confidence. You see the development quite rapidly especially in the younger years. It just fills me with joy!
What lead you to becoming a Special Education Needs (SEN) teacher?
I have always been quite passionate about child psychology and was particularly attracted to child development and the mind. After majoring in Psychology, I became a teacher and spent the majority of my life living and teaching in the Far East. Having worked in a number of International schools, what became increasingly apparent was the limited provision for many expatriate families with SEN. With this in mind, I decided to pursue an M.A degree in Special Educational Needs, hoping not only to provide support within schools to the students but also to work alongside families in a collaborative approach. My key focus point was early intervention and having the ability to identify any needs early on. I am truly thankful to BSG for giving me the opportunity to build the SEN department and help families to support their children and their educational needs. I am excited to continue to build upon this in future years.
How would you describe Guangzhou? (1-3 sentences)
It’s full of growth and opportunities and it’s been fascinating to watch how much has changed and developed since I first visited in 2003. Remarkably, I have seen areas that were once rice paddy fields develop into skyscrapers! As an expatriate, the rapid expansion of the city has enabled it to become extremely easy to live in. It offers a multitude of experiences from cultural to social and somewhere along the way having lived here for over 12 years, it has become home.
What do you do with your family for fun in Guangzhou?
We love exploring the diverse international cuisines that Guangzhou has to offer and originally coming from India, we revel in having some delicious options here in China too. We enjoy going to the cinema as a family and also go bowling quite frequently. Our son loves ‘drama’ and it’s been amazing having the Opera House open up in Guangzhou, where we now take full advantage and go and watch the variety of performances from all over the world at the hub of the city – we’re very excited to watch Wicked this summer!
We’re also very fortunate to have some of our immediate family live in and around Guangzhou, so we try our best to spend some quality time with our relatives and often drive down to Shenzhen too.
What do you feel are BSG’s best qualities?
The school exudes warmth and has a very welcoming close-knit community. The rapport that we strive to build amongst staff, students and parents has always struck a positive chord for me. From the moment I started teaching at BSG, I knew that this was a place where I wanted our son to grow and develop not only from an academic standpoint but also socially. The school encourages well-rounded global citizens who have the ability to confidently contribute to the multicultural society that we live in. I feel the same way about myself too, BSG continues to offer professional and personal growth and I feel lucky enough to say that I truly look forward to coming to work everyday.