Source: Eastern Institute of Technology – Tairāwhiti
3 hours ago
Lizzie Somerville has enjoyed studying for the Bachelor of Teaching (Primary) at EIT.
A challenging but rewarding Bachelor of Teaching (Primary) journey is coming to an end for an EIT student as she finishes up the final weeks of her degree.
Lizzie Somerville, 20, says that she has loved the degree, especially the placements with local schools, but there were also challenges like Covid-19, Cyclone Gabrielle and breaking a leg during rugby training that required her to have surgery.
Lizzie, who comes from a sheep and beef farm near the small coastal community of Pongoroa in the Tararua District, says that although she is pākehā, she grew up in a te ao Māori world. She says that this saw her spend a lot of time at the local marae, Te Hika O Pāpauma.
Lizzie was earmarked for success when she completed her schooling at Solway College in Masterton. Not only did she receive a Year 13 Scholarship to attend EIT, but she also won a Prime Minister’s Vocational Excellence Award from the then Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern. This was a further scholarship that would help with her tertiary tuition.
She says that she had not always wanted to be a teacher.
“Originally I wanted to join the police service because I love helping people, but then in high school I worked with the juniors and did an environmental course and that led to me really wanting to get into education. And I found that the EIT degree, because it’s so practical, was more appealing to me than going off to university.”
“But it has definitely been a challenge because there was a lot of things happening in our first year with COVID where we had to be off campus and study online. And then in our second year we had Cyclone Gabrielle, which saw us having to study in different places. I also broke my leg last year, which saw me having to get around on a knee scooter.”
“But it has been really rewarding. The lectures at EIT are small and close-knit. It’s a nice feeling being around everyone.”
The high point of the degree for Lizzie has been spending two days per week each year at an EIT partnership school and then going on two five week placements to a school.
In her first year she was placed at Frimley School in Hastings while her second year saw her at Ebbett Park School in Hastings and Arthur Miller School in Napier. This year her school was Reignier Catholic School in Napier, before doing her final placement at Ormond School in Gisborne, where her partner is from.
Lizzie says that she has no hesitation in recommending that people study the Bachelor of Teaching (Primary) at EIT.
“It’s not actually that big and scary. You feel so comfortable at EIT. And in regard to the teaching degree, it is so practical and it sets you up really well for wanting to get a teaching career because of how practical it is.”
“You also get a lot of support on campus and from the school you are at.”
Lizzie says that while she enjoys Hawke’s Bay, she is hoping to start her teaching career in the Gisborne region.
Associate Professor Emily Nelson, Programme Coordinator for EIT’s Bachelor of Teaching (Primary), said: “In addition to being a fully committed Candidate Teacher over the three years of her study, Lizzie has served as a Candidate Teacher Rep, taking on a leadership role for her cohort with the degree teaching team.”
“This leadership experience as well as the resilience she has gained from studying through adversity, and her calm and caring personality, makes me really excited for her future in the teaching profession.”
