I was born and brought up in Liverpool, England. From a young age I learnt French and at secondary school was given the opportunity to begin learning Spanish and later German. I completed GCSEs and A-Levels in the three languages, and then completed a BA in German and Spanish at the University of Leeds.
During my degree I spent time on study and internship programmes in China, India and Germany. It was, however, the two years I spent in Aragon, Spain as a British Council Language Assistant that really ignited my passion for the Spanish language and for education.
I completed an MSc in International Business at the University of Leeds in 2014. During that year I attended a recruitment talk by Teach First. Inspired by the organisation’s aims to end educational inequality I subsequently applied for the programme and successfully gained a place. I spent the summer of 2014 on a 6 week training programme and entered my initial teacher training that year in a 3-18 Academy in Bradford, teaching Spanish to Key Stages 2, 3 and 4, whilst simultaneously completing my PGCE through Sheffield Hallam University.
After completing two years in Bradford I moved on to a comprehensive secondary school in Leeds, tasked with introducing Spanish to a well-established German and French department. There I had the opportunity to teach all three languages, whilst also developing the curriculum for Spanish. I have also held pastoral roles at the school, as Assistant Head of Year 8 and Assistant Head of KS4. I was able to study part time for an MA in Education and Leadership from the University of Manchester, completing a dissertation on students’ attitudes towards languages.
Outside of school I enjoy going to the gym and travelling the world. I love watching as much live sport as I can, and am a long-suffering fan of Everton Football Club.
I believe as a teacher in the 21st Century we have a responsibility to create global citizens, and the study of a language is imperative to this. I am very much looking forward to my first experience of international schools at NAS Dubai. I look forward to working with colleagues to further develop the school’s languages curriculum offer and to experiencing the diverse and cosmopolitan lifestyle on offer in the UAE.