Image Courtesy of Schools Week
If you ask teaching assistants why they do what they do, their answer will always be to help children get the best education they can. This goes without saying for Kathy Harwood, a teaching assistant at the hospital school of Queen’s Medical Centre in Nottingham. Mrs Harwood has been presented the Teaching Assistant of the Year 2015 by Pearson Teaching Awards for her incredible commitment and hard work helping educate young people receiving treatment for life threating illnesses such as brain tumours and cancer.
For the past 20 years, Mrs Harwood has been working tirelessly to give children the opportunity to access the best education they can, during the hardest time of their lives. Talking about her role, Mrs Harwood has said, “I love my job every day and it is different from minute to minute and it is truly wonderful to help educate patients.” Working with extremely ill children is difficult, but Mrs Harwood understands the importance of her role and goes above and beyond to ensure the patients experience the best possible service. “It is a very tough job and not everyone can do it, even now I still go into the toilets and have a weep but it is also the best job in the world and I would not be anywhere else.”
The Pearson Teaching Awards is a fantastic chance for both teachers and teaching assistant to get the recognition they deserve for the all their fantastic work. As part of the ‘Thank a Teacher’ campaign, a group of judges pick out some of the most outstanding teachers and teaching assistants from the list of candidates. They are then put forward to be recognised and celebrated, and get the chance to win the award for best in their field. If you would like to show your thanks, and nominate an outstanding teacher or TA, make sure you follow the details on the Pearson Teaching Awards website and put their name forward!
Becoming a teaching assistant is a fantastic opportunity to share your knowledge and enthusiasm with young minds. If you’re passionate, bubbly and would love to work with children, why not consider becoming a Teaching Assistant today. It’s a great opportunity to fit a paid job around your current commitments, and who knows, maybe the Teaching Assistant of the Year 2016 could be you!
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