Kelly Albert

Team leader,  Ati-Hounui a paparangi

With seven years teaching experience behind him, Kelly claims to have learned a great deal about himself and teaching in general over the years. A team leader since 2007, he’s responsible for the development of three other teachers in years 3 and 4.

“This means I provide support and guidance on all aspects of teaching including classroom management, planning and organisation, and professional development.  The interesting part of the role is how each teacher’s different strengths can be used to the greatest effect in the classroom.”

Kelly is also the school’s health curriculum leader and an ICT leader. “And I still manage to teach!” A keen sportsman, he somehow finds the time to coach school and outside sports teams, take the school choir and present at learning conferences.

Kelly maintains a real enthusiasm for his job despite its busy workload. “I enjoy teaching for a whole raft of reasons. Sometimes it’s simply because a single lesson has worked really well and other times it’s because a child has produced a wonderful piece of work.  The best part though is when they’ve taken several weeks to complete a challenging project and have had to find interesting solutions to achieve their objective.” 

With the constant change in information technology Kelly says the need to be adaptable in teaching is really important. “Increasingly we use computers and need to know about the different software that goes with information technology. I’ve just started to use an interactive whiteboard. If you don’t adapt easily to change then teaching’s not for you,” Kelly claims.

Overriding any challenges that may exist in his job is Kelly’s strong belief that the children he teaches deserve the best he can give them.  “Teaching is such an important profession as you have the best opportunity to help others fulfil their potential. It’s so rewarding in many ways, particularly seeing students take on challenges they never thought they would.”