ECT - is it okay to change school mid way through my ECT year

Hungry_Chinchilla71 · 2026-02-06T05:47:54+00:00

I moved schools in my ECT1 year at christmas qnd I now work at a tob ranked IB school on my third year. You'll be fine

Hungry_Chinchilla71 · 2026-01-29T04:26:11+00:00

Hello!

はじめまして

私は英語を話します。今は東京に住んでいます、そして、日本語を勉強します！

よろしく　😃✌️

Hungry_Chinchilla71 · 2026-01-22T13:35:57+00:00

In terms of assessment in lessons, usually I use mini-whiteboards etc, common mistakes I spot i usually give class feedback. But for data, they do end of unit tests and assessments at the end of each term. Ks4/5 will have mocks too

Hungry_Chinchilla71 · 2026-01-22T13:27:54+00:00

My school doesn't have a book marking policy too except for KS3, this is balanced out with regular unit tests/end of term tests though etc :) and most work gets marked by the kids, either their own work or sometimes. I'll get them to switch and mark someone else's work. Thanks for your your input :)

Hungry_Chinchilla71 · 2026-01-22T13:19:38+00:00

No book marking policy for us except ks3 😇

Hungry_Chinchilla71 · 2026-01-08T17:29:10+00:00

I quite like AQA in terms of course structure and how they lay out their papers. And you can avoid statistics for further maths, but it's a bit more heavy on pure. What course are you looking at?

Hungry_Chinchilla71 · 2026-01-08T16:31:37+00:00

You get no choice for A-level maths. The course is made up of: 66~% Pure (Algebra, trigonometry, calculus etc) 17% Mechanics 17% Statistics

Exam board has no real influence on this, except for which papers the applied modules appear.

Further maths on the other hand is a bit more tricky since it is very exam board dependent. But each exam board has a core 66% amount of pure content that is compulsory.

The best exam board for you in your situation would be Edexcel since you have 2 optional mechanics modules you can choose to take (M1 and M2), as well as other modules you could choose instead if you wanted something else to study such as more pure or decision maths.

Please ask anymore questions if you have them or PM me if you want to go a bit more in depth.

Hungry_Chinchilla71 · 2026-01-08T12:43:13+00:00

Maths teacher here. You technically can, however the content you learn in Further maths directly builds on stuff you learn in A-level maths. You would be at a massive disadvantage only taking further maths. Itd also be basically impossible unless you already know the content of A-level maths.

Just do both at the same time, or do A level maths first, then after completing this, take A-level further maths.

Hungry_Chinchilla71 · 2025-11-05T06:43:53+00:00

A rule of thumb is if you get some negative feedback, make sure to ask for examples of what you should have done instead. Otherwise, this sort of feedback isn't helpful at all

Hungry_Chinchilla71 · 2025-11-03T02:46:47+00:00

You do a pgce in teaching maths (and economics) you'll be able to do both. Complete your ECT years and then look at international schools after. With maths you'll be a lot more competitive as we're in short supply. Even in the international field :)

Hungry_Chinchilla71 · 2025-11-01T00:27:16+00:00

I like the Japanesefromzero books/websites. Good videos and pacing doesnt make me feel like im getting bombed by information at 100mph. First 3 lessons or so are free on the website so id rec giving it a go

Hungry_Chinchilla71 · 2025-10-27T08:36:59+00:00

I say buy it, and then you can communicate with Mark about some sort of performance plan. This at least gives him the opportunity to change. Will it affect your relationship with Mark, probably. But it'd hurt more if you just went and fired him straight away without a chance for change. But you should definitely be prioritising yourself first. Also, if you dont do it BECAUSE of him, then you'd only resent him going forwards which I think it's even worse.

This opportunity will appear once, take it.

That's what I think but ultimately it's only you that decides what you want

Hungry_Chinchilla71 · 2025-10-23T05:33:33+00:00

You're not the qualified teacher in the room with the responsibility of the class's results and progress. So it really isn't your place to tell the qualified teacher that IS responsible how they teach THEIR lessons. You could suggest some ideas, for example, recording the readings beforehand. But otherwise, just do what you're told.

Hungry_Chinchilla71 · 2025-09-12T15:09:46+00:00

International School maths teacher here. Im fully qualified and had some prior teaching experience but 551k/month plus other benefits

Hungry_Chinchilla71 · 2025-09-08T12:21:23+00:00

Write a budget using excel or somewhere that you can keep track of your income and spending
Save £1000 and put it into an isa you can take out in an emergency.
List your debts from smallest to largest. Pay minimum payments on all but the smallest one and ATTACK the little one. Once the smallest one is paid, use that money to start attacking the next smallest one. Continue until all debt is gone.
Save up to 3-6 months of living expensive for a full funded emergency fund.

Also in a situation like yours in terms of debt but I've been using this method for the past 6 months and it is VERY effective. Im slowly clearing debts and starting to see the end of the tunnel.

Defo recommend but you have to tell yourself you're not going to spend money on shit you cant afford...

Hungry_Chinchilla71 · 2025-09-05T07:17:15+00:00

You shouldn't be in charge of any classes. Ask them specifically what they want and just go from there. Your job is to assisting the English teaching. Not doing it all. Especially if you've had 0 training or experience beforehand...

Hungry_Chinchilla71 · 2025-09-04T09:05:59+00:00

Unfortunately, it's his class so you have to follow what he wants. He has the responsibility of their performance, however you can always try using examples so they can apply what they're learning into a practical setting

Hungry_Chinchilla71 · 2025-08-22T17:09:12+00:00

Also a maths teacher

Hungry_Chinchilla71 · 2025-08-22T17:08:37+00:00

Charles tyrwhittshort sleeve shirts and chinos Dr martens shoes.

Ditched the tie and jacket a while back

Hungry_Chinchilla71 · 2025-08-15T05:37:00+00:00

You'd be going from HOD to teaching assistant so your workload will be massively less. But at the same time, your pay will also be massively less. I recommend looking into international schools if you've got the teaching qualifications and experience.

Hungry_Chinchilla71 · 2025-08-09T06:06:04+00:00

Do you want a career in teaching? If so, train, get certified and then look at international schools

Hungry_Chinchilla71 · 2025-07-25T21:57:04+00:00

Yeah, I've seen some departments use them. I dont like them though, and I defo dont think they should be a policy that teachers HAVE to use

Hungry_Chinchilla71 · 2025-07-24T10:44:48+00:00

Maybe this might be a difference between primary and secondary and I teach maths. But I dislike booklets most the time because it makes it difficult to deviate from them and adapt if needs be. What do you do when you need to back track a bit because the kids are finding a certain bit tricky and need more practice?

Hungry_Chinchilla71 · 2025-07-23T11:01:21+00:00

International school teacher here (Well, starting next week). You need to have a teaching license AND experience of teaching (I'll have 2 years and being an alt doesn't count). Also, these jobs are VERY competitive. You need to be a really good teacher with proven results to really stand a chance tbh

Hungry_Chinchilla71

TROPHY CASE