Normally at this time of the year NQTs are bombarded with click-bait blogs about surviving the year ahead.
These blogs mean well, in some cases, but they really just say the same old thing and a chunk of it will already be on the radar of any new teacher.
My advice: don’t read the blogs that offer gems of wisdom such as ’49 Ways To Survive Your First Year’.
These are overwhelming.
They focus on ‘survival’ rather than thriving and they don’t help because they inject fear and trepidation into what should be a dynamic and mega-exciting experience.
‘Survival blogs’ make new teachers feel inadequate.
NQTs should build their own narratives and take their own advice built on their own successes and their own mistakes.
Teaching is always about learning on the job and finding your own way. What works for one seasoned campaigner isn’t necessarily going to work for you especially as you inhabit different schools, timelines and timeframes.
NQTs should avoid reading the survival experts and learn from their own school colleagues, their own experiences, their own mentor and their own students. This is where it happens.
Survivalist teachers who blog from the trenches are not the best to learn from because they see teaching as a war zone and battleground.
They are anti-this and anti-that and these old war horses will taint your world view.
Be wary of those that offer front-line advice if they are watching the action with binoculars too because they are relying on their own out-of-date experiences.
You are going to have some highs and your fair share of lows but these are not exclusive to NQTs.
The first year is your own, no one else, so own it and do with it what you will.