Ijaz Muhammad

Ijaz Muhammad
Area of work: secondary education
School: Waverley School
Local authority: Birmingham
Qualifications: BEng manufacturing engineering, MSc engineering management, University of Coventry (2002, 2003); PGCE secondary mathematics, University of Central England (2005)

After my masters I did several different jobs, including a few weeks’ supply teaching as a cover supervisor – from then on I never looked back! I got onto a PGCE course in mathematics on the condition that I took some extra modules in pure maths. One of the placements during the PGCE was at my current school, so when I saw the advert of assistant learning director of maths come up during my NQT year I immediately applied for the job.

Running a department at a challenging secondary school

I teach maths up to GCSE level. As well as delivering lessons, I assist in the day-to-day running of the maths department, review and update our policies, and am a mentor to our trainee teachers. I am also a form tutor. Issues that affect our pupils include an anti-achievement culture and a lack of direction and motivation, especially among the boys. There’s an attitude that it’s not cool to study. However, it is possible to start to break down the barriers. As I come from a similar background, the pupils feel they can relate to me. In spite of our status as a challenging school, it’s a pleasant environment to work in. I have received a variety of training and support, personalised to my own needs. We have continuing professional development sessions every two weeks to build our knowledge in areas such as assessment for learning, behaviour management and English as an additional language. The local authority organises training in subject development and our school has a partnership with the education department at the University of Central England.

Building good relationships with pupils

The difference you can make to a young person’s life as a teacher far outweighs any sacrifices you might make. You need to have a sense of humour and realise that bad behaviour isn’t personal against the teacher but down to causes such as inadequate communication and social skills. It’s very important to develop mutual respect: make it clear at the start what you expect of your pupils but also what they can expect from you. Being fair and consistent has a very positive impact. Having high expectations of pupils and the willingness to help them achieve also helps to build good relationships.