Andralyn Low
Year 3 NIE Student-Teacher
Majoring in English Language and Social Studies (Primary track)
(The first group of people I got to know in NIE - my orientation group!)
1. Tough but fun and rewarding
University life is indeed an oxymoron. I wish I knew that life here would be tough - fun and rewarding, but nevertheless tough. In the movies, attending university is portrayed rather glamourously. You carry your laptop around – or iPad, as is the trend now – with a cup of coffee, and get to dress up fashionably and sit in huge lecture halls with your friends. While I’ve had that experience at least once or twice, I wish I could have known just how draining university life can get, and how exhausting it can be to study and manage my own schedule. If I could go back in time to advise my younger self, I would have said something along the lines of, “Sleep whenever you can, and remember that it’s okay to say no.”
2. Be prepared for lots of research and reading
Before NIE, I did my Diploma in Communications at Temasek Polytechnic. That course was extremely hands-on and required a lot of my creative skills to design and produce media content, which I really enjoyed as an artsy-fartsy person. Thus, when I came into NIE, I did not realise that I was entering a whole new world of research and knowledge.
I wished I knew earlier how much research and reading of academic journals there would be for me to do. Perhaps then I would have been more mentally prepared for the academic rigour, or in the very least, approach my readings without disdain. As an English Student teacher, we do grammar studies daily and lots of lesson designing and planning. Safe to say, the latter is my favourite part of my schoolwork. However, lesson planning comes only after studying theories and doing research through reading academic journals. After three years, I still have challenges with some readings (I wish our assignments could be making scrapbooks or photo-journals about our learning journey instead).
(Storytelling practice! Primary School English teachers have lots of stories to tell)
3. Hands-on activities and micro-teaching
I’ve learnt to treasure the hands-on activities and micro-teaching that I get to do in my Curriculum Studies courses, and do my best to connect what I’m reading in the seemingly endless paragraphs of academic writing to real classroom teaching. It has also helped to remind myself that I’m keeping up with current research so that I can be a reliable source of information for my future colleagues and parents of my students.
(I had the opportunity to teach a P2 class about Modal Verbs during my Teaching Assistantship in Year 2)
Final thoughts and advice
Even though I wish I could have physically, emotionally and mentally prepared myself better for life at NIE, I guess not knowing how to isn’t so bad after all as it allows me to enjoy the ride as it happens and rise to each day’s challenge. I’m glad everything has worked out the way it has, and I’m trying to enjoy this period of my life to the fullest.
If you’re wondering if NIE is the right choice for you, you must first ask yourself if you really want to be a teacher. It’s definitely not a lifestyle for the faint-hearted. For all the teaching you will do, there will be even more learning required (not to mention all the time and energy you will have to spend on the other duties as a teacher). Life at NIE will not be your typical university experience, and we will constantly be juggling the dual identities of a student teacher - another oxymoron. You will be held at a higher standard compared to other university students but NIE will give you opportunities to pick up all the theory and ideas you need to be competent classroom teachers and in addition to that, you get to practise your craft under the guidance of experienced educators.
NIE will help you realise your aspiration to be a competent teacher. If that’s what you’re hoping to be, then NIE is the right place for you.
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