From i2i Trainee to NQT - Helen Parnell
Helen Parnell trained with i2i in 2019/2020 and is now in her first year of teaching at Farnham Heath End School. Helen reflects on her first term below:
I joined FHES as a Science teacher this year having trained there last year with the i2i Partnership SCITT. The main reason I wanted a role at FHES is because of the fantastic team spirit. One of the first things I noticed is that everyone from office staff to SLT regularly checks that you are ok and are always willing to help you. I am particularly grateful to every member of the Science department as they always find time to support me and answer my questions, despite us all now teaching across the different zones of the school.
Training with the i2i Partnership prepared us well for an NQT year like no other! It is difficult to describe just how crucial the support of fellow i2i trainees was during this past year. We used to joke that the emotional support we gave to each other during our Monday i2i sessions was almost more important than the pedagogy! Little did we know that our face to face teaching practice would come to such a dramatic end when we entered a lockdown in March. The relationships everyone on the course had built up became even more important as our training moved online and we no longer could see each other every Monday in training and share our weekly experiences. Our WhatsApp groups became our lifeline as well as the support that both Maria Mezzullo and Liz Wylie still managed to provide despite not being able to see us in person. I remain in close contact with my fellow science trainees.....we share our challenges, laughter and ideas on a daily basis which keeps us motivated as new teachers in this rather extraordinary year.
Helen Parnell, December 2020
