A mum from Whitby has been awarded a fellowship place on a scheme that sends teachers to developing countries to pass their expertise to others.
Sharon Smith, 33, who attended Ellesmere Port Catholic High School and has taught at Queen’s Park High School in Chester, has been a teacher since 2006.
The mum-of-one, who is currently undertaking a Doctorate in Education at the University of Chester, will travel to Uganda with Limited Resource Teacher Training (LRTT), a charitable organisation that enable teachers from the UK to travel to developing countries to provide much needed teacher training.
Sharon now needs to raise £3,000 to fulfil her dream and is really excited to be involved in a programme that aims to make a difference by helping teachers build their skills and improve outcomes for their students.
She said: “I have loved being a teacher and have always believed that high quality teaching and learning gives students the best possible chances to succeed.
“This is an opportunity to help students in challenging contexts and really make a difference.”
Sharon will miss her three-year-old daughter Eleanor but hopes to give other children the future she plans for her.
She said: “I will miss my little girl, but it will be amazing to explain to her why mummy is going and how the programme is helping other children and their teachers so that they too can have the kind of future I imagine for her.”
Sharon is supported in her project by family, including husband Andrew, a chef at Funky Town in Chester and her employer Tute (an online teaching organisation based in Wrexham), but now needs to raise further funds to ensure she can carry out her charity work.
Sharon has already begun work on fundraising for the project with a toy fair planned for early February, a bake-off at her work place and a function evening planned for March with band, Off The Record.
She has so far raised £400 via her Go Fund Me page, but is aiming to raise up to £3,000 to cover the costs of the project and any additional funds raised will be used to take supplies and resources to the teachers in Uganda.
To make a donation, visit her Go Fund Me page or follow her progress via her blog.
