Brooke Weston’s teachers Mr Troy Rutt and Miss Christina Kelly are looking forward to the challenges of their new roles overseas. Mr Rutt is moving to Malaysia while Miss Kelly will be teaching in Qatar.
Mr Rutt, a former Brooke Weston student, came here to teach history four years ago. Since then he has had responsibility for Year 6 transition and has co-ordinated the Year 7 trips to Fairthorne Manor. He will be teaching at a private school outside Kuala Lumpur. He said: ‘They follow a rigorous British curriculum so I will be teaching topics like the Tudors, Stuarts and Industrial Revolution. A lot of the students will be coming to British universities so it is as much about developing study skills as much as anything else, although we will do projects on Malaysian history as well.’
‘The students will be very active doing charity events and festivals. It is a mainly Muslim country and there are also Chinese and Indian elements along with Christianity so they do celebrate a range of different festivals. It is a multi-cultural society which is reflected in the school so I am looking forward to that. I am also looking forward to getting to know my new tutor group as well.’
Miss Kelly, who is Head of Business and Vocational Studies at Brooke Weston, has had rapid career progression since she started here as an NQT. She is moving to Doha to teach business studies and maths. She said: ‘I have been here almost seven years. I started as an NQT and Brooke Weston has given me opportunities and progression throughout my career. I am going to a really small school so I will be the only teacher of business studies and I will also be teaching maths as well. I will be working in the city centre of Doha so it will be great for travel as it is a central hub for flights with India in reach within two hours.’
Both Mr Rutt and Miss Kelly will miss the students and their colleagues at Brooke Weston:Miss Kelly said: ‘When I got the job offer I pondered over it for two weeks because it is so life changing! I will miss the people at Brooke Weston. Working here is really high intensity and it takes over your life but I have also made a massive amount of friends for life here as well.’
Mr Rutt added: ‘The thing I will remember most from my years at Brooke Weston are the people I have worked with, especially Christina. Working with nice people makes it more enjoyable. The students have been great and every day is different but it will be nice to do something different and make new memories. I am excited about this opportunity as it is aspirational and shows students that there are lots of options for work, travel and broadening horizons.’