London St. Pancras International station is where my real journey begins. I am alone and I will admit, I am having doubts. Left with nothing but my suitcase, backpack, and train ticket. I am alone. As I walk through the crowded station, people bump into me. In a way, it felt as if the world was closing in on me. You signed up for this Max. You did not spend months preparing for this just to turn around and head home. I approach the escalator that takes me to my platform. You are an adventurous, young adult doing what you do best. Travel. I look at my ticket and I find where I am supposed to board. A train rolls up to the platform and the doors open. This is it Max. This is it. I am determined to get the most out of this experience and I have no idea what is going to happen to me over the next two weeks.
Here I am. Alive and in Sheffield. For some odd reason, negative thoughts are still running through my head. What if the kids don't like me? But I knew, this is where I was supposed to be. I was walking kind of slow behind my mentor. I walked in through the sliding doors and emerged into a long, colorful corridor filled with kids. Each student had their uniform on. An orange collared shirt and a black sweater with the Yewlands logo neatly embroidered in the top right. I could feel all their eyes follow me down the corridor and up the stairs. I must have looked like an alien. I felt the same when I walked into the staff center. I couldn’t help but wonder what everyone was thinking about me. It is important that I start building relationships with everyone. After all, I will be spending the majority of my time here.
I love it here. I have been here for a week and I am not ready to leave. I have met so many amazing new people and I can already tell that I am making a difference in this school. By walking down the halls and into various classrooms, I can tell that my work is already making a difference. Working in classrooms has allowed me to meet and work with students from Yewlands. While I am busy during the day, I am also busy in the mornings before and after school. I have had the opportunity to lead and participate in various staff meetings. I will admit, when I had to stand up in front of the staff and lead a meeting the first time, it was tough. That little voice was still in the back of my head. Just start talking Max. It will be over in 15 minutes. You got this. Before I stood up to introduce myself, I realized that there are some teachers who do this everyday and this was not a big deal. It took a great deal of determination and courage to stand up and talk about my life at High Tech High.
I was asked by one of the teachers I worked with if I wanted to help mark some student work. The opportunity to look at student work sounded really interesting and I could see how students used critique in their work. Before I knew it, the clock struck 4:30 and I had been sitting there reading for an hour already. My eyes were starting to hurt. I looked at my stack and counted how many there were left. My stomach dropped when that number passed 10. I continued reading and it occurred to me, teachers do this everyday. When I looked up at Ray, the teacher who invited me to read students work, he was cruising right through his pile. The amount of mis-spelled mistakes didn’t occur to him. This is something that he is used to everyday. To teach, takes a lot of focus and determination. A teacher never gives up on their students and makes sure to try their hardest everyday to ensure every student succeeds.
It’s my last day and I am not ready to leave. I know that I have made a difference in my mind and in this school. As you can see, I am surrounded by a class of kids. If it weren’t for these guys, I would not have made it to where I am today. Their questions, their jokes, and their stories are all things that I cannot wait to share with my friends and family back home. When I heard the final bell ring, I knew that my journey at Yewlands had come to an end. When I walked into the staff room to grab my bag and coat, I was greeted by a teacher whose class I had spent a lot of time in. He looked at me and said: “Max, it has been a pleasure to have you working in my class. I know you are going to be very successful one day.” I smiled and thanked him for all he has done for me. I began my walk down the empty, colorful corridor. The same corridor I walked in on my first day as a nervous intern. As we drive away, the school shrinks and begins to blend with the horizon.