Many of you will already have secured your first teaching post.  For others, it is a soon to be climbed mountain.  Over a long career, before I gave it up to take my old man’s gap year, I have been fortunate enough to experience much;  I worked in some capacity or other in more than a dozen schools, inspected another ten but still the memory that stands out is being collected at a train station to be driven, by the head, into the middle of nowhere for my first interview.  It was so remote, back in those days, that I was put up for the night before the gentle grilling (a very light toasting) the next day. I have to admit it, there is a touch of envy in my blood as I write this latest blog.  A tad of the green eyed monster is rising within me.  Because, some of you out there, are about to complete the rite of passage from student to newly qualified teacher (but not, as my niece claimed when saying there were plenty of jobs for the untrained, not qualified teacher). For the purposes of the following thousand words or so, we are going to assume that the interview is over, and the job has been offered.  You have accepted and now wait, the recipe of anticipation, mixed with equal measures of excitement and trepidation, for September. What to do in intervening months of first teaching post, and those first few weeks as you enter, like a chick leaving its protective parents, the ‘real world’?  Well, two things immediately:  the ‘real world’ isn’t very different from whatever state exists prior to the mythical place.  It’s a bit like becoming a teenager, which I just about recall, mostly because I genuinely thought I would wake up on my thirteenth birthday and the view would be different – of course, it wasn’t.  In fact, the only change I can recall is having to wash my hair an extra time a week I entered the increased the general greasiness that is the unpleasant plague of early onset adolescence. Secondly, give all your attention to finishing your course, under whatever form it is taking.  It’s unlikely now, but fail that and the job is probably going to disappear. So, having reached a state of being an NQT, what next?  Here is my advice.  Others could offer better insight, a more personal route for you, especially if they know you personally.  There is nothing particularly unusual about what I am about to say, but equally there is no magical formula waiting elusively to be revealed by the alchemists of pedagogy.  The teachers who are going to become the most successful are the ones who listen, absorb and adapt. Preparing To Start One:  Visit Once your own work is out the way, arrange to go into the school.  If you are working in secondary education, the end of the summer term is a good time, because with exam classes probably missing, your colleagues have time to spend with you.  Entering a primary, middle or prep school can be a little more tricky because the end of the summer tends to be the busiest time of the year, Christmas apart.  There is a balance to reach between spending enough time to get to know your school and not becoming a bit of a nuisance.  If you can organise it, two to three days is a good time to commit. Two:  Get to Know the Students Or pupils, or kids.  The semantics are important, because if you are an NQT you are also probably quite young.  Work in a secondary school and the oldest pupils are going to be closer in age to you, and probably share more interests, than many of the staff.  But you are the teacher, and they are the pupil – as such a divide exists that can never be crossed. A brilliant way to get to know the kind of kid at your school is to find out if there are any trips taking place.  If so, almost certainly an extra pair of hands will be welcome.  It is a perfect storm; you will get to chat with the students in an informal setting and all the unpleasant stuff, such as discipline, will be the responsibility of someone else. Three: Get To Know the Staff Room You’ll find the moaners (don’t always dismiss them, they might have a point); the enthusiasts (great, but can be hard work); the lazy (not a problem if they are doing their job); those who work harder than anybody else (they probably don’t); the self publicists, the friendly, the gossips.  Some will become friends – I met my wife in a school where we both worked; some will remain as colleagues without ever being more.  Some, sadly you might never get on with.  But, whatever the mood and mix through the door that admits no pupil, it is the place you will find respite, advice (mostly good, sometimes bad) and support. Four:  Get to Know Your School Clearly, read the policies, and stick to them at least until you know better.  But time spent learning the ropes now is going to be of immense value when you walk through the door in September.  Knowing the routines, the way classrooms are organised, where to find resources is going to be of such importance when you are faced with the eager, wide eyed wonders who will soon be under your charge. Five:  Plan What I am often told by new teachers is that they underestimated how busy they would be once term starts.  Keeping up with the constant round of teaching, assessing, marking, targeting, attending meetings, going on courses, completing your induction work and so on will, to be honest, take over your life.  If planning during these times can be kept to a minimum it will be a big help – perhaps even a life saver.  So work hard over the summer break; plan to at least until half term – you can adapt later.  Prepare your resources, go into school and do your photocopying, get your classroom set up as you want it – stay ahead.  Because, honestly, during that first year or two a lot of energy is going to be spent just keeping your head above water and, of course, dealing with the reason we are all there – the pupils. The First Few Weeks Pre term meetings and training is over.  You are sitting behind your desk, waiting for your class, probably a tutor group or form group, to arrive.  You know their timetables, you can find their lockers.  Your heart beats with self doubt – no problem with that – your new career is about to start.  Properly.  I remember my first class.  They were already in when I arrived (mistake) and just ignored me, in a way that only ten year olds can.  I nearly turned round and headed home. One:  You’ve Heard it from Everybody – be strict In the eyes of the people who matter most (and I don’t mean OFSTED) the definition of a good teacher is pretty consitent.

• Fairness
• Interest (but not overbearing)
• Interesting
• Organisation
• Friendliness (but NOT their friends)
• The capability to keep order

From the other side of the register, that means:  good planning and firm standards.  Some of you will be heading for tough inner city schools, some to grammars, some to rural communities, some to independent schools – some will be teaching A levels, others Reception.  It doesn’t really matter, all kids are capable of being bastards (as are, to be honest, most adults). Two:  What Does Strict Look Like? This is going to change with experience.  I never really saw myself as a disciplinarian.  When I had been in a tough school for about four years I noticed that I was stopping having to work quite as hard at keeping the kids on task; after six other people were sending recalcitrant teens to me.  When I became a head, even in one of the most challenging of communities, I had to do nothing to keep order.

(The staff were a different matter).  Yes, sometimes a child would kick off, but classes (I always taught) were quiet – often moreso than I wanted.  But in those first weeks you will be tested.  I’m sure, you would expect nothing different. We don’t want our classes to be scared of us, but we want them to behave.  If they don’t they won’t learn.  Even more importantly, the ‘good kids’ suffer. Here are my top tips for your first teaching post.  Take the ones that will work for you, and find the time to watch the best of your colleagues in action:

• Get your class to line up outside, but be there to greet them.
  
  Make them pass you to enter the room.  Establish that the first thing they do is get their books out.
• Insist on silence when you talk.
  
  This is easier if you don’t rabbit on yourself.  As soon as possible get the class down to writing.
• Always take a register in silence, with the pupil using your name, or Sir or Miss to answer.
  
  It’s a great way to establish control.
• Watch the pupils while they work.
  
  Nip potential misbehaviour in the bud.
• Never accept poor manners.
  
  Most kids who are going to be a problem will respond badly to being publicly singled out, so keep them behind afterwards.
• Use other teachers to help you to establish your reputation.
  
  It is not a sign of weakness, but of somebody humble enough to recognise their own challenges.
• Never get into a dispute with a pupil.
  
  Set the expectation, make the breach of rule clear, issue the punishment.  Sometimes, you will get it wrong, and if so, you can always apologise.  Don’t hesitate to move to the next stage of your school’s behaviour policy if the pupil does not accept your decision.
  
  You want the message to spread that you are not to be messed with.
• Do smile; do find out interests of the class.
  
  Once you are confident you can manage this, a general class discussion on the news, or the school, for the last ten minutes of a lesson can give you an insight into what your students find important.
• Be available.
  
  Let your pupils know your whereabouts in case they want help.  They probably won’t, but will appreciate the offer.
• Get involved in an extra curricular activity.
  
  It gives a different perspective on the pupils, and you will be working with students who want to be there, which might not be the case with your Year 9 Geography group.

It is often said, and always true – it is easy to loosen up, but impossible to get firmer.  Have your classes sorted by half term of your first year and then you can introduce great teaching, and allow them to fly. But these are just my opinions.  We would love you as readers to offer your views on this, or any subject, we look at in our blogs.  How did you prepare yourself for your first teaching post? Did you have a successful or tricky first teaching post?  What advice would you give to those who are preparing for their first teaching post?  Or, for those of you entering the profession this Autumn, what would be of use to you? Let us know.  Teaching is about collaboration, at any level.  Share our expertise and improve the chances for our children.