Pom in Oz with Derek Goforth: New job brings doubts and uncertainty, but also the chance for personal growth

As I stood before the bustling food technology classroom on my first day in a new teaching job, a wave of excitement and apprehension washed over me. My decision to embark on a new teaching journey had been a significant one, and the reality of starting mid-year and mid-term was both thrilling and daunting. Having left a job of several years, where familiarity had become a constant companion, this new venture represented a quest for growth and novelty. The comfortable routine and camaraderie with colleagues (some of which were like family) were left behind in pursuit of a new challenge. It was an opportunity to reinvent myself, to embrace the unfamiliar and to stretch the boundaries of my capabilities. However, part of me was screaming “what on earth have I done?”, “this place is huge, how many kids?” and “I will never learn all their names”. You could say I was catastrophising to a PhD level! But In the middle of this doubt and uncertainty, I found solace in my faith. Turning to prayer became a daily (nearly hourly) ritual, a way to seek guidance and strength as I navigated this new chapter. I reached out to fellow Christian brothers and sisters and their words of encouragement and own stories of personal growth through challenges were a source of comfort that reminded me I was not walking this path alone. The classroom I walked into was itself a testament to the remarkable educator who had come before me. The place ran like clockwork with every student knowing exactly what they had to do and when to do it. The bar had been set high, and I couldn’t help but feel the weight of stepping into their shoes. The students, already accustomed to the previous teacher’s approach, presented a unique challenge. Building rapport and trust mid-year felt like joining a conversation already in progress. The challenge was about honouring what had come before while finding my own voice in the classroom. The foundation had been laid, and my task was to build on it, to introduce my own perspective without disrupting the students’ learning journey. The process is a tightrope walk of adaptation and innovation, all the while preserving the essence of culinary exploration that the classroom embodied. A supportive and welcoming staff became my guiding light. Their encouragement and camaraderie mirrored the inclusive environment that I had just left the month before. The power of collaboration and mentorship became evident as I found myself growing with each passing day. The decision to embrace a new challenge had been a leap of faith, and the journey so far had been marked by moments of uncertainty and triumph. I still have that niggling feeling, did I leave for the right reasons? But those doubts dwindled every day, after every great lesson, every laugh with a colleague, every little win in the classroom and outside it. Derek Goforth is an expat of 13 years and father of three living and working in Geraldton