For the love of a good book!
Books for me are a lifeline. I read every single day and have done since I was a teenager. I have a voracious appetite for every kind of book and usually get through one a day. Luckily, I am happy to reread my favourite books over and over again, but I still spend too much money on them! I have always read a great deal of books, but since becoming more disabled and the difficulties I face getting out of the house, coupled with the debilitating fatigue MS causes (which can often leave me bed-bound for days), they have become more important than ever.
I have been lucky enough to have been taught by and work alongside some absolutely amazing teachers and my particular love of reading stems from one teacher - Mr Pickersgill.
Now I know if Lucy, Lindsay and Tim are reading this they will be howling with laughter as they were in that class. That poor man. He was our English teacher; passionate about his subject, but had difficulty controlling his class. I, on the whole, was very well behaved at school, but when I was sat next to Tim in English, that was it! We were horrible!
Mr Pickersgill had a soft spot for me as he was fascinated by my grandad - a German prisoner of war who had stayed in the country and married a local Black Country girl. This gave me my exotic maiden name of Rakowski (very unusual in the Dudley area!)
I even remember grandad coming into school to talk about his experiences and Mr Pickersgill being chuffed to bits! As I gave the impression of being so well behaved, I didn't usually get blamed for the bad behaviour that went on in that classroom. One day though I (and a few others) were caught for something I forget (but have a suspicion it was passing notes under the door to Ricky in the class next to ours) and put into lunchtime detention.
I was the only one who turned up. In a fit of honesty and to see how he would react, I told him that it was I who had hidden his glasses in the cupboard, scribbled on the newly painted cupboard, banged a hole in the floor with a chair (so we could spy on the class below where our friends Amy and Cymon were) and threw all our books out of the window when we decided we didn't want to work.
Mr Pickersgill looked me in the eye, told me he was very disappointed in me and then handed me a book. It was Harper Lee’s ‘To Kill a Mocking Bird’. I took it home and began to read it. I found it hard going at first, but suddenly I was transformed- I was in the story and a whole new world opened up to me. A lifelong interest in fiction and literature was born.
Unfortunately, Mr Pickersgill has no idea the impact he had on my life. Yes, he is what is considered a ‘struggling teacher’ these days, but he loved his subject and he passed that love on. He has since passed away and I never got to tell him how he helped me form a lifelong love of reading and thank him for igniting that spark.
When I was at university, they discovered I had a form of dyslexia. One reason this had not come to light before was the fact that I read so much.
Now I am retired, I spend even more of my days reading books. I read everything- literature, chick lit, fantasy, crime, but my favourite is historical fiction. My favourite book is Lord of the Rings which I read every year. My favourite author is Alexander McCall Smith (it's just a happy coincidence that my eldest is also called Alexander). I also love Emily Hauser, Val McDermid, Stella Rimmington, Philippa Gregory, Rosanna Ley, Victoria Hislop, Camilla Lackenburg, Marianne Keyes, Jill Mansell and many more. I have read many books during my time and have discovered the delights of Stef Penny. I look forward to discovering more great authors in the future. Though I think I need to join the local library!
Coincidentally, my daughters name Evie came from a book I was reading when pregnant. It also reminded me of an American TV series my sister and I used to watch when we were little, where the main character, Evie, could stop time with her fingers. I can't claim the same for Logan though. That was a mix of pregnancy hormones and Hugh Jackman as Wolverine whilst watching X-Men
Origins (the waterfall scene springs to mind!) His middle name Sean is after Sean Bean. Luckily my husband forgives my TV/movie crushes!!! My latest is Kahl Drogo, but as I like the long
haired, tall, muscular look I realise (apart from Sean Bean) that they are all very similar to my gorgeous
husband xxxx
The Not so Secret, Secret Teacher
You never fully know the impact you have as a good teacher and I hope you never have to fully find out…….
I am in my 16th year of being a Secondary School Geography Teacher, but have been unable to work as of January this year. The reason for this is that I have an aggressive, rapidly progressing form of Multiple Sclerosis that has failed to respond to treatment and leaves me no choice, but to leave my family for a month, accept the frankly terrifying risks involved and travel the increasingly well-worn path to Mexico for many MSers and undergo HSCT (Hematopoietic Stem Cell Treatment).
The reason I write is simple. Don’t underestimate the impact you will have as a good teacher. You will probably never fully realise this and I never did until I was forced to leave school due to my ill health and faced the insurmountable task of raising £50 000 to fund treatment. The students I have helped over the years have returned the favour by helping me and I couldn't be more grateful and proud of what impact I had as a good teacher and I am blown away by the amount of support I have received.
Notice I say good teacher, not outstanding. I was some days, during some lessons, but on others I have had those terrible days that leave you wanting to reach out for the wine bottle as soon as you get home! Yes, I cried as an NQT, yes I have stayed up well past midnight in despair at my workload and yes, I have whinged and moaned along with the best of them on a very bad day. Over-riding this though was my enthusiasm for my job and subject, my ability to make relationships with my students, my sense of humour, my knowledge of the subject and the fact that I genuinely wanted to be in that classroom making a difference. This always shone through. I always worked hard; I took the rough with the smooth, the joys with the hard times and the students I taught knew that. I always marked their books on-time, planned my lessons, marked exam papers and assessments for their next lesson. We went on memorable field trips, took part in competitions with gusto and I can genuinely say I tried my best to be a consistently good teacher.
I was diagnosed with MS in July of 2014. Prior to this there had been little clue I would develop this condition. I did have an episode of Optic Neuritis in 2004, but very little after this that you would put down to MS until this devastating diagnosis. I was a runner and my classes (especially my form) were always helping me to raise money for charity. I ran the London and Edinburgh Marathon 5 weeks apart in 2013, but whilst a time of 4 hours and 28 minutes would not be a red flag to many other runners, it was to me. My left leg had started to drag at the 20 mile mark and over the next year this got significantly worse, which along with another bout of Optic Neuritis ledto my diagnosis.
I moved from one much loved school to another in September of 2013 to become Curriculum Leader of Humanities. I expected the transition to be hard, but after just a few weeks it was like I had always been there! We just fitted and I felt my whole future was sparkling before me. It was obviously quite a shock that less than one year into my new role I was facing a new, uncertain future.
I was open and honest with my school and students and what I got in return was an amazing amount of support and encouragement. I kept my love of running alive through becoming a para-athlete in 2015 and quickly became the UK No.1 T36 para-athlete in the 100M, 200M and Long Jump under the guidance of legendary former athlete and guide runner Lincoln Asquith. I was selected to represent Team England at the CPISRA World Games winning 3 gold medals. My school and could not of been more proud of me, especially when I was put on the British Talent ID programme for my potential to run in the Rio Para-Olympic Games.
I obviously wasn't at Rio though and as I watched former team mates and fellow competitors compete I was facing a battle of my own. My MS was progressing quickly despite treatment with Lemtrada - a strong disease modifying drug. My family and students have seen me go from marathon-running charity runner to para-athlete. From still being able to run and walk at the start of 2016, from walking with a stick occasionally to full-time and then finally to a wheelchair (well mobility scooter really as I don't have the strength to propel a chair due to my left arm weakening); all in the space of 9 months. I need help to bathe, dress and can barely write. I battled through this with a smile on my face and with the unending and amazing support from my school and Head (help from colleagues, a very special assistant, no duties, moving to a down stairs classroom and a reduction in working hours). I managed to keep working before it all became too much and was having too much of an impact on my own children and husband. I left at Christmas 2016 with cards, well-wishes and boot loads full of flowers and presents. It both broke my heart and mended it at the same time to hear about the impact I had. I hadn’t realised.
After much research and the fact that I am determined to stop the devastating impacts this condition has had on my family and my body, I have decided to undertake the risk of HSCT. I do not qualify for treatment in the UK and am following in the footsteps of BBC War Correspondent Caroline Wyatt and plan to travel to Mexico in September 2017. I have to raise the money though first and its here where my story ends (or begins depending on which way you look at it!) and it’s here that all those students I used to help are now helping me. Look at my just giving page, read the messages and see the donations that my former students and their parents have sent - it will warm the hardest of hearts! For all that love I put into my job is being paid back with the greatest gift of all - a chance of a future with my beautiful family and maybe, possibly (fingers crossed), improvement enough that I can go back to the job I love. So don't underestimate the impact that you have as a good teacher and why I hope you never fully find out. To all the thousands of dedicated, passionate and enthusiastic hardworking teachers out there, this is what your students would do for you too.
