Brona Soden – Meet the Teacher

QUALIFICATIONS

• Degree in Information Technology and Telecommunications (University of Limerick, Ireland)
• PGCE (University of Manchester)

Brona started out studying Information Technology and Telecommunications at the University of Limerick in Ireland. Soon after graduation, she found herself embarking upon her teaching career as an English teacher. Brona taught students of all ages from Nursery aged children, all the way up to adults. She fell in love with teaching and decided to go back to university to become a fully qualified teacher, studying for her PGCE at the University of Manchester, UK.

During the past 13 years, she has gained a wide variety of experience working as a Primary Teacher across EYFS, KS1 and KS2. Brona has lived and taught in Ireland, England, South Korea and most recently Thailand.

What do you love most about teaching?

The thing I enjoy most about teaching has to be seeing children grasp a new skill and grow in confidence. I love the warm and welcoming community feel at Bangkok Prep that has been extended to me by the children, parents and all staff members.

Over the course of the 2019-2020 academic year at Bangkok Prep, I plan to incorporate and develop a Growth Mindset within the classroom. I also intend to seek opportunities to link the Global Goals for sustainable development across all areas of learning.

How would you describe a good teacher?

I would describe a good teacher as someone who is firstly positive, kind and caring. I think that a good teacher understands and can relate well with students. A good teacher has a passion for learning and is committed to lifelong learning too. A good teacher develops a strong working relationship with everyone in the learning community and works well as part of a team to support, nurture and develop student potential. A sense of humour is also important!

What made you want to embark upon a teaching career? Was there a particular moment or experience?

There are many teachers in my family and although as a child I always wanted to be a teacher, as a young adult I opted for something a little different. I ended up teaching Engish abroad by chance, and it was through this experience that I realised teaching was for me. I had many ‘A-HA’ moments where I realised I loved teaching, and from there I went back to University to study and retrain to become a teacher.