Eilidh Ross-Menzies is a primary teacher in Aviemore who entered the profession four years ago. She travelled to Rwanda in 2018 in a bid to improve her resourcefulness, creativity and problem-solving skills in a totally new environment.
Taking part in GLP has increased Eilidh’s confidence and allowed her to increasingly look towards leadership and development roles within her school. She is also now looking beyond the perceived confines of what she felt she ‘should’ be doing and is carving out her own style of engaging with her pupils.
“I now spend more time with the children, really talking to them and allowing them to experience their learning rather than trying to rush through teaching just to say it has been covered. I want to give children a thirst for knowledge and make them the best learners they can be.”
Eilidh is working alongside her colleague, and fellow GLP participant Amy Wilson (hyperlink to her outdoor learning case study), to develop the school’s Global Goals and Learning for Sustainability agendas, as well as transforming the school grounds, developing life skills and planting and growing food a part of the curriculum
“Outdoor learning plays a much bigger part in my teaching and I am promoting global citizenship much more to try and make children aware of other cultures and global issues as early as possible. When I first returned I felt that more people needed to realise how lucky they are. But I now realise that is part of what we are trying to change by teaching sustainably and making children aware of global citizenship.”
Eilidh’s other observations from her GLP experience:
“I was hugely inspired by a friend I made there. A Rwandan teacher, the same age as me, who had been through so much in his life and had very little in the way of material possessions. He never once complained and was so motivated. Whenever I feel down, I think of him so full of energy and motivated to change his country for the better. He makes me want to be a better person and he drives me forward.”
“If you want an amazing, moving experience which will improve your professional skills, while also making friends for life then do GLP. You learn to think outside the box by fully immersing yourself in this experience. What I loved about this CLPL is that it was REAL: no Powerpoints, no handouts, no meeting rooms, just real people, real stories and real, practical experiences where you could see some positive results straight away, both in myself and those I helped train.”
“Children are children all over the world and will learn when given the right environment and active, engaging teaching.”