Back to School with Will Schuester

The first day of school is, if American sitcoms are to be believed, one of the most terrifying days of a person's life. Fortunately, perhaps, I have absolutely no recollection of starting primary school. Sure, there is a faded photograph on the piano of me in my brown shorts and school cap, but as far as a cognitive memory goes, nothing. I do remember starting school in Durham after out monumental move to the North at the age of ten, and the subsequent teasing for my "cockney" accent, and my first day of secondary school, huddled in a corner with my small handful of primary school companions, fearing for our lives in the shadow of the sixth-form giants that surrounded us.

Nevertheless, these first days pale in comparison when weighed against the terror of walking into a school as the newest member of staff.

I've taught English as a foreign language on and off now for five years (the off period being the year and a bit since my return from Japan, during which I've managed little more than a cover post here and there) and find few greater pleasures in life than that clichéd reason every teacher gives; inspiring a class. I'm sure in the future I'll blog endlessly on the joys of being an awesome teacher, but that's a big-headed story for a more smug day.

This morning, however, as I arrived for my first day at one of Bournemouth's leading language schools, quaking in my stylish yet affordable boots, I realised how I must have felt all those years ago on my first day at West Dene Primary School.

Would the kids like me? How hard would the lessons be? What would the teachers be like? How terrible would the lunch be? Really, it's amazing how similar the questions of a new teacher are to those of a quivering schoolboy. 

I guess the main difference between starting a teaching post and starting any other job is that with most jobs, you can hide behind contemporaries for your first few days, whereas it's very tricky to hide when leading a class. Indeed, it rather defeats the point of the post in the first place. Much like acting, being a teacher puts you in the spotlight, performing to an audience that you must not only entertain, but more importantly educate. Perhaps that's why so many graduates with drama degrees end up as teachers; it's almost like a stable acting post. 

Fortunately, however, the kids did like me, the lessons, for the most part, went pretty well, the teachers are lovely, and I took my own packed lunch. So generally, my nerves were all for naught. Bring on day two. Now, all I need to do is assemble my own multi-lingual glee club...