Gladys Stewart

Name: Gladys Stewart
Subject: PE
Location: Grangemouth High, Grangemouth

Gladys stopped working as a PE teacher 20 years ago after falling ill with glandular fever. She eventually moved into tourism, working overseas for years, travelling around the world.

When she came back to Scotland, the teaching bug started her thinking about going back into teaching but Gladys felt a bit long in the tooth to go back into the classroom when so much had changed in her 20 year absence. She had kept in touch with her teaching friends over the years and they encouraged her to think about doing a refresher course to revive her teaching skills and find out about the changes in the curriculum and administration.

Gladys said, "Going back to teaching can be daunting for anyone and people are wary about sinking or swimming but I can assure you that there is so much help now that I slotted back into teaching easily.

"The refresher course was helpful but when I went to Grangemouth High, they have such a good system in place that I felt really at home straight away. The CPD is fantastic and I've really learned a lot since being back in the classroom. It's really kept me up to date on all the things that have changed in teaching as well as in the PE curriculum. I may have been out of teaching for 20 years but the teaching skills are still there."

Gladys has been enthusiastic about learning more. "I’m like a sponge, taking in all the new ways of working. I was recently at a junior golf event – a sport that I would never have been interested in – and now I really want to introduce it to the school."

Gladys has recently moved into teaching primary school pupils, starting with gymnastics, basketball and social dance. Gladys finds it rewarding but in a different way from teaching teenagers. “I get on well with teenagers and they often turn to me for advice. And there's nothing more rewarding than seeing someone become a success when they could have gone off the rails."

Getting more pupils interested in sport is a priority for Gladys. She said, "Some of my teachers have been really pleased with my gymnastics class. I've got girls of all shapes and sizes in that class and they have all put their heart into the exercises. I’m not a slim woman myself, so when they see me scuttling up a rope or doing somersaults on the trampoline, it inspires them to try it out.”

The enthusiasm and effort that Gladys puts into her classes has been recognised by her fellow teachers.

"People can't believe that I've been out of teaching for 20 years but as long as you still have enthusiasm for the subject and want to help these kids get some enjoyment from sport, it’s easy to get back into the way of things in a school."