A FORMER pupil of a Reading school is realising their dream to become a teacher at the same school.
Crystal Campbell concluded her studies at Theale Green School in June last year, but returned just eight months later as a learning mentor.
Mentors provide students with extra learning support where needed, and now at the age of 20, Ms Campbell is also in charge of running the school’s gym, which opened in September.
This includes afternoons working as a fitness instructor and providing safety advice, and comes after Get Berkshire Active recommended the school for Opening Schools Facilities funding.
As well as this role, she also provides support the students taking part in the Duke of Edinburgh program.
After she was said to be “thriving” in the role by her former teachers and now-colleagues, she is also on track to go a step further and become a fully-fledged teacher.
This is something that Ms Campbell said was her dream: “I always wanted to be a teacher, but never thought I could do it.
“I was encouraged to apply by [school head] Charlotte Badarello and [former principal] Jo Halliday when I collected my exam results.
“I wasn’t sure I’d have the skills to support the students, but they saw something in me that maybe I didn’t see in myself.”
As for whether the transition from student to staff was unusual, she said: “It’s been a very strange transition because there wasn’t much of a gap.
“Which meant that quite a lot of the students in older years knew me as a student.
“I have had to adapt: there’s a professional barrier now, so we can’t be having a chit chat about what they did at the weekend.
“But because I’m so young I feel like it’s a bit easier for them to talk to me as I can relate to them.”
She explained that she was welcomed by her former teachers as a colleague: “They’ve been really welcoming– they’re very supportive.
“Since then I’ve had many different opportunities to adapt and go forward.”
And going forward, Ms Campbell will carry on with training at the school to gain her qualifications, and says she wants to do it “more than ever.
“I’ve seen now the positives of when you have a student who’s had a bad day, you’ve sat them down, you’ve given them a pep talk and then they go to a lesson which normally doesn’t go too well for them and they’ve absolutely smashed it–that’s real job satisfaction.
“I’m loving it here and at the moment I don’t think I’d ever want to teach in another school–
She added: “I never thought I’d be doing this but hopefully the older students especially see that I’ve come back doing what I want to do.
“I tell them you’ve got to have self-belief–just go for it.”
Head of School Charlotte Badarello sums up: “I, and the entire community at Theale Green School, am enormously proud of Crystal and all that she has achieved, and is achieving.
She is someone who has embraced opportunities and strived to be the best version of herself, embodying our school values of Hard Work, Respect and Progress.
We’re delighted with our new Fitness Zone and know that Crystal will be a critical component in its success, and the future success of the school.”
