One of the best experiences I've ever had

Working with York English was one of the best experiences I could have wished for. When I first applied for the job with my partner we thought this will just be another teaching experience in China, we'll be there for a year, we'll move on. It turned out to be so much more than that.

In our first days and weeks we were so well looked after by the school. We got a lot of pre-arrival advice (all really professional and useful), we got picked up at the airport and there was a huge apartment close to our school waiting for us, furnished with everything we needed. In the school we were taken through a very in-depth training and orientation programme for our first 2 weeks. We learned about the teaching philosophy of the school, the curriculum, the policies and we met the teaching and TA team. Everyone was lovely, including the students who I fell in love with right away.

Over the next few months my teaching developed so much. I had tons of feedback from my Academic Coordinator and Tom, the education director. There's a feel feeling at York that there's no such thing as the perfect teacher and we should all try to develop as educators. I still feel that way about teaching now. We were also making lots of friends with our people in Fuzhou while this was going on. Going out to explore and have fun on weekends, taking day trips and exploring, making holiday plans.

One of the best things about York is the opportunity to develop your skills. So after a few months I made a step up to being a Senior Teacher. In this role I was able to help train and mentor the new teachers who joined York and get more involved in shaping the schools teaching philosophy. Being able to contribute to more than just the students lives is an amazing feeling and is something I'll always cherish about York.

The students though are my proudest achievement at York. They are so loving and keen-to-learn. They really enjoy the small class sizes and getting to know their teachers. I will never forget some of the amazing children I taught at York!