How I Became A Teacher: Mr Stuart

Palmer (continued)

By: Tafadzwa Machiridza

For example, after school all students were required to participate in work sessions, be it building or gardening. What’s more, in all his classes, there was a high level of competition between the students, which only made him want to study more to stay at the top of the class. He then became a science student, and though it was challenging, Mr. Palmer was the school’s overall achiever for Form 7, and he got a scholarship to study at USP in Suva.

After receiving such an honour, Mr Palmer continued to work hard in Suva, where he studied Environmental Management and Geography for 3 years. H echoes this course because he was interested in the environment and how human interacted with it. According to him, it was extremely challenging, but by surrounding himself with the right friends who were just as focused as him, helped him to pull through until he graduated in 2015. Unfortunately, he could not find a job after graduation, so he joined the Youth at Work Voluntary Organisation, where they mostly did community service, training etc… Most of the people part of the organisation were dropouts, and so this was hard for Mr Palmer because though he was the same level as them in the organisation, he, unlike them, had worked hard for a degree. When asked about this he said, “You have to start from somewhere…it’s all about having the right mindset.” Before he could finish the program at Youth at Work, he got a call from Woodford International School, offering him a position as a Geography teacher.

According to him, he never really wanted to be a teacher, his career just went in that direction.

He worked as a Lab Technician and Environmental teaching assistant for 6 months, and the following year, he became a full time Geography teacher. Mr Palmer got a diploma in class management with CIE, which he really enjoyed. He then realised that even though this had not been his plan or even though the pay wasn’t amazing, it was all worth it because he really enjoyed teaching, and the impact he had on students’ lives. Mr Palmer has been teacher for 9 years now and what he loves most is his opportunity to inspire, encourage and guide students to become better, more responsible, and more knowledgeable members of society, and the way he shapes the future of different people and motivate them to reach their full potential.

Upon asking him if he had any advice to either students, or other teachers he said, “Firstly, teachers must aim to have an impact on the future of the children they teach and as for the students, if you’re not willing to learn, no one can help you, but if you’re determined to learn, then no one can stop you. You shouldn’t be lazy or have to be forced, but rather have the desire to learn and better yourself.” Lastly, Mr Palmer’s closing note was, “Work hard, and enjoy school, because learning is a lifelong process, and you never know where you might end up in the future.”

Where’s Wally

Have a go and look for Wally in the image above. You never know where he might be.

Riddle Me This

Take a crack at these fun math questions:

1. If 1=3

Then, 6=?

2. What is the number of the parking spot covered by the car? (above)

3. I am an odd number. Take away one letter and I become even. What number am I?

Tune in next issue for the answers!

Donations to Tamboko School

By: Lang Ying Zhu

In a heart-warming display of generosity, the Year 9 students at Woodford International School made a donation of sports equipment to Tamboko School in West Guadalcanal. This donation is part of a wider initiative aimed at improving access to sporting facilities for children in the region.

The Year 9 students took the initiative to put in twenty dollars each and were able to use this money to provide a variety of sporting equipment, including soccer balls, volleyballs and volleyball nets.

This generous donation was made in response to a request from the Tamboko School which had identified a lack of equipment as a barrier to their student’s participation in sports. Their lack of equipment was noted by the Year 9s last year during their camp. They were able to some communication with the students and staff of Tamboko School from them on, and, as a class, the Year 9s came to an agreement to donate the equipment Tamboko School lacked.

After a few mishaps on the way to the donation, it was finally able to take place on the 16th of March. On this day, a representative from Tamboko School came over to Woodford International School to collect the sporting equipment, which was handed over by the Year 9 prefects Chris Tony and LangYing Zhu.

The donation was met with great excitement and gratitude by the representative of Tamboko School. The sports equipment will be used to support physical education classes and extracurricular sporting activities at the school. Woodford School, especially the Year 9s, were very appreciative of their chance to do some good in the community and are eager to see the equipment put to use.

White House delegation visits Honiara

An interagency delegation from the White House of the United States of America arrived in Honiara to discuss current bilateral relations, US assistance, potential partnerships in the areas of economic development, public health and other areas of mutual terest, between the US and the Solomon Islands. Kurt Campbell, Deputy Assistant to the President and Coordinator for the IndoPacific National Security Council, led the delegation. The US Embassy in the Solomon Islands was recently reopened, and this visit builds on past encounters the Solomon Islands Government has had with the US.

Japan sets up the Overseas Security Assistance programme

On April 5, 2023, Japan announced its decision to provide financial support to help nations strengthen their defences. This announcement marked a radical departure from the previous regulations preventing the use of foreign aid for military objectives. The Overseas Security Assistance (OSA) programme will be run independently from the Overseas Development Assistance (ODA) programme, which finances civilian infrastructure.