My Journey into Teaching

My journey into teaching started long before I became a teacher.

I was born to parents who did not have the opportunity to receive formal education. I attended a public primary school, and in my early years, I struggled academically. A teacher who lived near my home noticed this and decided to help me. After school, once I had eaten and finished my house chores, I would go to her for extra lessons. She patiently taught me reading, spelling and writing.

That small act of kindness changed my academic journey.

By Primary Three, I had moved from positions around 11th or 12th to third. By the end of that year, I started coming first and continued until Primary Six. In Primary Five, I became a janitor, and in Primary Six, I became head boy. I enjoyed helping my teachers and other pupils. Looking back, I realise that I was already learning what it meant to teach-watching my teachers prepare lessons, mark our work, explain difficult ideas and support us when we struggled.

Secondary school brought a different experience. I lost my father, and this affected my concentration. Chemistry, in particular, became difficult for me. I could not always afford extra lessons, so I often had to work through challenging topics on my own.

When my mother asked what I wanted to study, I told her I wanted to become a teacher. I wanted to teach the subject I had once struggled with. More importantly, I wanted to become the kind of teacher who would not give up on a learner simply because they were struggling.

Before entering Adeyemi College of Education, I spent about three years teaching children in primary schools. I later completed my NCE, including six months of teaching practice. Since then, I have continued to develop professionally through programmes such as Preparing to Teach Cambridge, Child Safeguarding, Artificial Intelligence for Educators and Teaching with Technology.

Today, I teach Biology and Chemistry in both physical and online learning environments. My online teaching includes preparing students for their GCSE examinations. I take time to know my learners through regular lessons, conversations, assessments and feedback. This helps me understand their strengths, challenges and pace of learning.

Technology has gradually become an important part of my teaching. I use quizzes, worksheets, games, videos and digital assessment tools to make lessons more engaging. But I have also gone beyond simply using existing resources. I have started learning how to build my own educational simulations.

This became particularly important while teaching in a school for deaf students where access to a science laboratory is limited. Some Biology and Chemistry concepts are difficult to understand when students cannot see the processes happening in front of them. I began using simulations, animations, diagrams and interactive visual resources to give students another way to explore these ideas.

I now design digital simulations that allow learners to interact with scientific concepts rather than simply read about them. For example, I have been developing interactive Chemistry laboratory simulations where students can explore apparatus, carry out virtual procedures and work through calculations. My aim is not to replace practical science, but to give learners opportunities to visualise and practise concepts when physical resources are not available.

Through AK EduLink, I am also developing digital learning resources that combine science education with technology. I want to make learning more visual, engaging and accessible, particularly for learners who may not have access to the same resources as others.

My experiences have shaped how I respond to struggling learners. Last year, I began teaching a student who was struggling with both Biology and Chemistry at Foundation tier. Before focusing only on academic performance, I focused on building a relationship with him, encouraging him and helping him believe that improvement was possible.

Teaching has taught me that progress does not always happen in the same way or at the same pace for every learner. Sometimes, it begins with a teacher taking the time to understand the person behind the result.

That is the kind of teacher I want to be.

I am a teacher by decision, not by circumstance, and I want every learner I teach to discover that they are capable of more than they may have believed.