National Writing Day 2022 - Interview with Mrs Elliott

For National Writing Day this year, we wanted the students to think about purpose and audience in their writing - why are they writing and who are they writing for? We all decided that we would write for the school blog, and that interviewing Mrs Elliott would be a wonderful way to celebrate her and her many contributions to the Landmark community.

The students worked in pairs to write down a list of questions, then went around and ticked the questions of other pairs that they liked. They could also leave comments or ask questions: a silent conversation. We then collaborated, with the help of Mrs Elliott, and came up with a list of questions that we all agreed on. It was a real pleasure to spend time with Mrs Elliott, asking questions and listening to the answers - a pause in the busy nature of the school day. The interview was recorded, so we went on to transcribe and edit for meaning and punctuation. The conversations about exactly which parts we would keep in, and what could be edited without losing the essence of the interview was illuminating. 

The following is a transcription of the resulting interview, with some editing for clarity.

Henry: Why did you choose to become an educator, and how long have you been teaching?

Mrs Elliott: I think I’ve been teaching for over thirty years, which is a long, long time and I chose to become a teacher because I believe that it is the most important job that you can do, along with nurses and doctors. I think it's the kind of job where you make a difference and you have a certain amount of autonomy and creativity, and also you get really long holidays, so it's a really good job to have.

Elias: Why did you choose to teach geography of all subjects?

Mrs Elliott: Well, I was actually trained to teach geography, history and also P.E., but geography is my real passion. I love geography. I think it's probably one of the most important subjects. I have to be careful in this room (laughter, as the English and maths teachers were in the room), because I think it's the one subject that combines a little bit of maths, a little bit of English, a little bit of biology, history - it takes all the other  subjects into account. So, I think it's the gel that holds and links all the subjects together. It's a subject where we get to be curious - where we’re always asking questions and we don’t necessarily know the answers. So, I think the fact that you’re always exploring and the information is always changing, makes it very dynamic and it covers everything really.                                                           

Charlie: How are you feeling about leaving, and why are you leaving?

Mrs Elliott: I am feeling quite excited about leaving, and I think I’m in a really fortunate position because I’m leaving my role without feeling fed up or despondent in any way. I am happy in my role and I think a lot of people in life unfortunately have to leave a job when they are really unhappy about it and I’m not. I will be sad to leave but I will come back and check in on all of you to make sure you’re all working. I am leaving for a whole host of reasons; I am still happy and I am loving it, and also I want to explore other things I might like to do. So, I want to spend some time with my family, and I've got a whole lot of hobbies that I would love to start doing and at the moment I can’t quite do them, because I have my head in school and that’s what I am hoping to do. 

Ryan: If you could live your life again, would you choose a different path and if so, what?

Mrs Elliott: In life just stick with your choices and go along with them, and then your life is what it is, but always make wise decisions as you go along. I don’t regret my choices. I have had an amazing career and I have had an amazing time teaching wonderful people and interacting with amazing staff as well. So yes, don’t regret anything and just live your life to the fullest - always.

Jonathan: What’s one of your favourite memories of working at Landmark?

Mrs Elliott: Do you know what? I'm really struggling to think of one individual memory that stands out from any of the other ones. I think I've got lots of memories of times when there's been laughter and times when there's been quite a lot of sadness, but my overall sensation is of just being in a lovely, lovely place to work; I also have a terrible memory - really, really bad memory (laughter). That's my big downfall, but then somebody will say something to me and I'm like, ‘Oh yes I remember’, so I don't have one particular memory that kind of stands out from the others in any special way really. Sorry. 

Rafa: So, you’ve already explained to us why you enjoy teaching, but there must be challenges that come alongside that. So, could you tell us more about that?

Mrs Elliott: Thank you, yes. I do love teaching and there are challenges. The challenges mostly relate to the fact that sometimes you might want to go off piste with your teaching, but you have to come back to a curriculum because at the end of the day, your responsibility is to get students through an exam and get them the best grade that they possibly can. So, that can sometimes be a little bit challenging because it can feel that it’s all about the grades rather than maybe personal development, or even intellectual pursuit. It can also feel like it’s about sometimes ticking boxes, but I think there are ways around that. I think also trying to make sure everyone’s engaged in the class because actually as human beings, we’re not always ready to engage with material when it comes to you so, trying to make lessons fun sometimes when maybe you’re not feeling that fun yourself. Being a teacher is a little bit like putting on an act and sort of coming into the room and trying to be a bit bright and breezy for the students, because you have a long day and if you’ve got geography at the end of the day, sometimes it can be a little bit hard to feel “vavavoom” about it. It's tiring, yeah. School is tiring. So I think that's some of the challenges and sometimes you have students who aren’t as interested as you are in the subject. So again, that can be a little bit more challenging.

Jake: What did you want to be as a child?

Mrs Elliott: I was told that when I was 4 years old, when asked what I wanted to do when I grew up, I said that I would like to be a checkout girl at Safeways. I think it was because I really liked the pancakes there, and I assumed that if you worked at the shop, you could eat the pancakes all day. But I think shortly after that, I remember wanting to be an actor, and then very quickly after that, I always wanted to be a teacher. 

Clarence: If there was one thing that you could change or improve about the school what would it be?

Mrs Elliott: I think the only thing that I would change about the school is the premises really. I think as a school that we have an amazing community, amazing staff and fantastic pupils. But it would just be lovely in a slightly bigger location, and if we had a swimming pool, and a yoga studio, and a drama hall, and a rugby field, and a hockey pitch, well all of those sorts of things would be really lovely. But I would not want those things if it  meant that we have bigger classes or a huge school. Because I think we would lose the small, friendly, lovely atmosphere. So it is a bit of a balance. I recognise the fact that with all of those resources we would need more people and then we could lose the essence of what we are at Landmark . So it is a balance isn't it?

Bernard: So what are you hoping for in the next stage of your life?

Mrs Elliott: Lots of fun, lots of challenges, lots of time to be with family, and friends. And I've come to the realisation, it's something that happens as you get older, that life is very short and very precious. When you're young, you feel like you've got time to burn, but I don't feel like I have got lots and lots of time to burn, so I really want to cram in as much as I possibly can. So, I've started keeping bees, I want to fish, I want to travel, I want to do more sewing, I want to read more than I ever have because I'm quite lazy about that, and I want to have all sorts of adventures. I want to walk, there's loads of walks I want to do, I want to work for an organisation planting trees, so there are lots and lots of things and sometimes I haven't had time to think of all the things that I really want to do. It would be a question, maybe, if I come back, I can say, ‘This is what I'm doing’ -  so lots of possibilities, lots of adventures.

Mrs Roche: Maybe that's a question to ask Mrs Elliot in a couple of years' time - what happened with all the things that you were planning, that you discovered. Any other questions, boys?

Bernard: Have any students asked you any interesting questions?

Mrs Elliott: Yeah, but I can't actually tell you what they were on here, but ask me in ten years time and I'll be able to tell you, maybe.

Giulia: What are your favourite things about working at Landmark?

Mrs Elliott: I think that when I come to work every day, I know that I'm going to meet with and be with staff and colleagues whose company I really enjoy. I love being with them and I also really enjoy all the students. I like small classes. I like the intimacy of teaching small groups, and I like the fact that we can all share ideas and feedback to each other, and I like the fact we get to know each other really well. It’s a lovely place to work and it’s a really happy place to work as well. So that’s really important to me.

Daryna: Have any of your students gone on to do anything interesting?

Mrs Elliott: You know it’s quite a sad thing that when you are a teacher your students kind of go off and you don’t always know where they’ve gone and what they're doing. You always hope they're pursuing their dreams and their interests and having an enjoyable life, but you don’t often know. I did hear of one student once who had been in my geography class and she became a geography teacher - not that you are all expected to become geography teachers, there’s no expectation of that - but it was interesting because she then came back and worked in a school of a colleague of mine, and she said that she became a geography teacher because she enjoyed being in my lessons and that is such a lovely, lovely feeling. But the sad thing is that as teachers, we don’t often hear what students go on to do. I know that they go on to university, but after that sometimes I don’t really hear that much. I had a student who became an airline pilot, I had a student who went on to become a politician and a lawyer, human rights lawyer, another person who went into tourism, so lots of careers and a lot of them have gone on to do A-level geography which is great, and also geography at degree level, which is, again, fantastic. 

Elijah: Do you use emojis in communication? 

Mrs Elliott: Yes. I use them when I'm texting. I think probably my three most popular ones are the smiley one with tears coming out its eyes, I use that the most. Along with two bottles of champagne clicking, that's the second one. And then the third one is the Homer Simpson “Doh” because I make lots of mistakes or misinterpret things, so it's like those three are my most useful emojis. And the other one I talked to Elias about that we won't mention.

Elijah: What is your favourite colour?

Mrs Elliott: I love green but I don't really wear it. I like the green around me. I like foliage and greenery and green landscapes and when I have travelled abroad and been in areas of desert that's the thing I have missed the most. The green. The lushness. Trees. All of that sort of thing. So green in my life, but I don't really wear it as a colour on myself.

Elijah: What food or dish do you enjoy the most?

Mrs Elliott: I just love food actually, so it's really difficult, and it would be a really long list: sourdough bread, smoked fish, avocado, tomatoes, onions, spices - I cover food in all sorts of chillies - and I like salt as well, it's important in my life, and also you know I love green tea as well. 

We then went on to a series of “Would you rather….?”

Sam: Would you rather explore Mars or eat a Mars bar?

Mrs Elliott: If Mars was like it is on Total Recall, I'm not that interested in going. If there's oxygen, I'd love to go. But I don't know if I'd like the journey, so I think it’ll be a Mars bar, but I’d like it to be in the fridge, and fairly cold, and chopped into bits with a cup of tea.

Elijah: Would you rather read books for the rest of your life, or watch films for the rest of your life? 

Mrs Elliott: I think it would have to be watching films because it’s easier and my reading takes longer. I’m the sort of person that aspires to read, so by the side of my bed I have books which are there and I blow the dust off them, but they are all there to read. Whereas, I would take time to sit down and watch a film. Yeah. It’s probably not cultured though is it?

Rafa: On a slightly larger scale, would you rather save the Earth or save the rest of the universe but not the Earth?

Mrs Elliott: I’d have to say us, because it’s where we all are isn’t it, and I'd have to save all of you guys, and all the polar bears, and all the animals. I was a bit too late to save the dodo, but yes I’d save all of us.

Sam: Would you rather see your own fate or live forever?

Mrs Elliott: I wouldn't want to live forever. I’d also like to not see my own fate  because I think that can be… I think you want to live your life optimistically, and fully without knowing necessarily what’s ahead of you. 

Elijah: Would you rather teach university or secondary?

Mrs Elliott: Secondary. You guys are the most interesting people on the planet.(laughter) Absolutely! At university people are already formed, whereas you guys are still evolving and that’s what’s so special about you.

Sam: Would you rather never drink green tea again or never travel again?

Mrs Elliott: Ohhhhhh - I’ve always wanted to travel because I think it opens your horizons and I would just have to substitute with another drink, but that would be tricky! I think if you get the opportunity to travel in an eco-friendly way as much as possible it is the biggest thing for you to do in your life. Explore, see other people, see other cultures, you’ve got to do it.

Mrs Roche: And finally, Mrs Elliott, do you have a piece of advice that you would like to leave for the students of Landmark?

Mrs Elliott: I think it could be a book actually, because I have so much advice. Where do I start? Be yourselves, be unique, don’t let anybody else make your decisions for you in your life, be confident, be self-assured, breathe, laugh, surround yourselves with people who support you and don’t put you down, ignore social media as much as possible, be with and appreciate your family - I’ve got so many!

Mrs Roche: You can add to the list later.(laughter) Thank you so much Mrs Elliott for giving us your time, both in this interview and in your life at Landmark, and we look forward to hearing about how your fabulous plans have come to fruition.