{"alias":"blogEntry","byline":"James, Assistant Section Leader","standfirst":"Motivated by his passion for history and learning, James left the world of finance to become a teacher. We chatted to James to find out how he got into teaching and how Scouts and Get Into Teaching helped him get there.","content":{"layouts":[{"type":"singleColumn","areas":[{"items":[{"gridType":"RichTextBlock","content":"\u003Ch4\u003EWhat inspired you to become a teacher?\u003C/h4\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EI\u2019ve always loved learning and by becoming a teacher, I wanted to inspire as many young people as possible to love history like I do.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EI wanted to be a teacher when I was younger, but I thought I\u2019d build a different career first and joined a finance graduate scheme. My favourite part of the job was coaching junior members of staff and I\u2019d taken part in school experience days on the advice of \u003Ca rel=\u0022noopener\u0022 href=\u0022https://getintoteaching.education.gov.uk/\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003EGet Into Teaching\u003C/a\u003E.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EI got such a buzz from being back in a classroom that I realised teaching was actually the right career path for me.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EI was also influenced by my friends who\u2019d become teachers. When they described the level of satisfaction they were getting in their job, I realised I wanted to experience the same.\u003C/p\u003E","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""},{"gridType":"gridImageBlock","gtmId":"","gtmClass":"","image":"/media/z4gbykq1/james-2.png","width":4800,"height":2700,"altText":"The image shows James sitting in a purple Scouts hoodie with a necker on, and holding a mug with the purple Scouts logo on. He\u0027s smiling at the camera.","caption":"","link":null},{"gridType":"RichTextBlock","content":"\u003Ch4\u003EDid being a volunteer in Scouts help with your teaching?\u003C/h4\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EWithout volunteering in Scouts, I don\u2019t think I would\u2019ve had the confidence to teach young people. It was such a bonus to engage with young people outside of a school environment.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EVolunteers in Scouts spend lots of time planning programmes suitable for their young people and adapting to their different needs, and this planning is directly transferable to teaching.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EI took a break from Scouts while in my finance career, but I started volunteering again when I was back on track to becoming a teacher. I realised how much I enjoyed it and how beneficial it\u2019d be to my career.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EAs teachers, we want to inspire our young people. We want them to go outside their comfort zone, challenge themselves and get that sense of achievement at the end. And that\u2019s something I learned in Scouts.\u003C/p\u003E","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""},{"gridType":"RichTextBlock","content":"\u003Ch4 class=\u0022MsoNormal\u0022\u003EWhat teaching skills help you when working with young people at Scouts?\u003C/h4\u003E\n\u003Cp class=\u0022MsoNormal\u0022\u003EI feel more in tune with the issues young people are facing today, such as the constant interference of social media in their lives.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp class=\u0022MsoNormal\u0022\u003EThrough teaching, I understand better what young people are facing and how to deliver Scouts programmes which\u2019ll be genuinely exciting, challenging or different for them.\u003C/p\u003E","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""},{"quoteText":"Without volunteering in Scouts, I don\u2019t think I would\u2019ve had the confidence to teach young people. It was such a bonus to engage with young people outside of a school environment.","attribution":"James","gridType":"quote","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""},{"gridType":"RichTextBlock","content":"\u003Ch4\u003EWhat\u2019s the most thing rewarding about teaching?\u003C/h4\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EStudents only get one shot at education, and we have a real opportunity to make a meaningful impact on these student\u2019s lives.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EOur goal as a school, which I wholeheartedly support, is to give students a world-class education, so they can choose to study at a top university or alternative.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EPart of doing that is getting students excited to be in school and in lessons learning. I love it when students say they\u2019re excited for my lessons. Some students tell me history is their favourite lesson of the week, and I hope that\u2019s because they\u2019re really buying into the subject and building a desire to learn more.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EUltimately, I enjoy that no two days are the same. You never know what might happen next or what the students might say or do. You\u2019re never clock-watching as a teacher, as the days just fly by.\u003C/p\u003E","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""},{"gridType":"RichTextBlock","content":"\u003Ch4\u003EWhat advice do you have for people who want to teach?\u003C/h4\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EExplore your options, as there are lots of routes into teaching other than the traditional university route. Have a look around and choose what\u2019s right for you.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EI\u2019d really encourage people to reach out to the Get into Teaching advisers, they gave me excellent advice when I was looking to start my teaching career and it\u2019s completely free of charge.\u003C/p\u003E","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""},{"type":"Promo","cta":"","body":"\u003Cp\u003EWe\u0027ve joined forces with Get Into Teaching to help inspire the next generation of teachers by equipping them with skills for life that are transferable to a dynamic career in teaching.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022/supporters/get-into-teaching/\u0022 title=\u0022Get Into Teaching\u0022\u003EFind out more about our partnership with Get Into Teaching\u003C/a\u003E.\u003C/p\u003E","link":null,"colour":"#f1f1f1","title":"Inspiring young people to start a career in teaching","image":null,"imageFocus":"","imageId":0,"imageKey":"00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000000","imageCrop":"","gridType":"card","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""}]}],"config":null}]},"searchDescription":null,"pageType":null,"location":null,"versionDate":"05 March 2025","reviewDate":null,"furtherReading":[{"caption":"","title":"Our partnership with Get Into Teaching","url":"/supporters/get-into-teaching/","newWindow":false}],"relatedLinks":[],"id":84945,"nodeName":"Why Scout volunteer James got into teaching","title":"Why Scout volunteer James got into teaching ","type":"blogEntry","image":{"url":"/media/z4gbykq1/james-2.png?width=800\u0026height=450\u0026v=1db8daf80d927f0","caption":"James 2","type":"png","size":6858577,"width":4800,"height":2700,"altText":""},"assets":null,"headerOptions":{"headerTitle":"Why Scout volunteer James got into teaching ","headerSubTitle":null,"headerCta":null,"headerCtaText":null,"headerCtaLink":null,"headerBackgroundColour":null,"showSEOImage":false,"headerBackgroundImage":null,"quickLinks":null},"subHeader":"From a career in finance, find out how James became a teacher with the help of Get Into Teaching.","browserTitle":null,"silktide":"eyJjbXMiOiJVbWJyYWNvIiwiZWRpdG9yVXJsIjoiaHR0cHM6Ly9wcm9kLWNtcy5zY291dHMub3JnLnVrLy91bWJyYWNvIy9jb250ZW50L2NvbnRlbnQvZWRpdC84NDk0NSJ9","canonicalUrl":"https://www.scouts.org.uk/news/2025/march/why-scout-volunteer-james-got-into-teaching/"}