Anisa Bi
After studying Law at both undergraduate and postgraduate level, Anisa had never considered that teaching Religious Education (RE) could be her next step. Her background focused on understanding moral and ethical issues in law. She hadn’t considered how she could use these skills to question and understand human behaviour in relation to beliefs and worldviews.
"This has proven to be an incredibly meaningful and rewarding decision. I’m now towards the end of my PGCE in secondary RE and absolutely looking forward to starting my new job in September as a qualified teacher of RE", said Anisa.
After being introduced to the idea by her teaching advisor, she began to see how RE also involved questioning and thinking about different moral and ethical issues, which was the aspect she most enjoyed about Law. The main difference was that RE was where these skills could be introduced to young children.
"In a world where students are often faced with questions about their identity and beliefs, RE provides that safe space for discussion and reflection,” said Anisa.
Though alongside this discovery of what her next step would be, Anisa worried about how she would find transitioning from law to being in a class where she needed detailed knowledge about different religions and beliefs. But her worries were quickly eased.
She found the challenge pushed her to keep learning, reflecting and helped her empathise with her students; becoming a teacher who encouraged the idea that it's okay to not have all the answers and the curiosity and openness are the key to doing well within RE.
Looking back on her time gaining experience in different classrooms, Anisa reflected on how rewarding it felt to watch her students engage in thoughtful discussions about real-world ethical issues and seeing their confidence grow when expressing themselves. With the support of both her Personal Academic Tutor at Worcester and the other teachers she met, Anisa really valued how much she grew as a person, and finding how well her legal background helped her in understanding how to teach debate and questioning within her classroom.
Anisa is now looking forward to starting her first full-time teaching role in Birmingham and aims to continue developing as an RE teacher who encourages respectful and open discussion in the classroom.
"Choosing the RE PGCE has been one of the most fulfilling decisions I’ve made, and I would strongly encourage others to consider it!"