“With the right support, we can all find our place in the world of education”

At the event, designed to promote teaching as a career to people from ethnic minority communities, she discovered pathways to becoming a teacher.

From a young age, Adele had always aspired to become a teacher. However, after moving to the UK she experienced a lack of self-esteem, and her qualifications fell short of what was required for teacher training.

Inspired by the stories she heard from Black, Asian and minority ethnic teachers at the event, she felt empowered and supported to study and reapply to university. She subsequently secured a place on the PGCE course at Cardiff Metropolitan University.

Adele said:

I really do believe that if it wasn’t for me attending the PGCE event I would have not persisted through in my application process.

My desire to teach is deeply rooted in the belief that education can transform lives. I’ve seen this truth firsthand. My mother, a nurse, bravely migrated our family to Cardiff, and her pursuit of education opened doors that reshaped our future. I want to be that catalyst for change in the lives of children, showing them that no dream is too big and no obstacle too great to overcome. I want to help children find their ‘cynefin’.

Taking place again this year in October as part of Black History 365, the recruitment events are part of a wider campaign to increase the number of Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic teachers in Wales.

Hosted in the EYST regional hubs in Cardiff, Swansea and Bangor, they are organised by the Education Workforce Council (EWC) (Educators Wales), and the ITE partnerships (the organisations who deliver teacher training across Wales). Attendees hear from lecturers, teachers and Educators Wales, gaining valuable insights into teaching pathways, the profession itself, and funding opportunities.

Cabinet Secretary for Education, Lynne Neagle, said:

Education can take us a long way in addressing the social, cultural and structural factors that sustain racial inequality. To do this, it is vital that we increase the diversity of our teaching workforce. Adele’s story is an inspiring example of how successful partnership working can achieve this.

I am committed to ensuring we have a workforce that better reflects the population of Wales to better support our learners and ensure they see themselves reflected in the people who are teaching them.

As a government we are committed to tackling structural and systemic racism and creating a Wales that is anti-racist by 2030.

Aminur Rahman, Recruitment and Support Officer at the Education Workforce Council (EWC), who organises the recruitment events said:

We’re working with grassroots organisations like EYST and NWAS to deliver these sessions with the aim of inspiring even more people to join and enrich our workforce.

It's vital that our education system reflects the diverse communities it serves, and events like this help ensure that everyone feels represented and supported in pursuing a career in education.

Other actions being taken by the Welsh Government to address this inequality include:

• making the learning of Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic histories mandatory in the Curriculum
• introducing the Ethnic Minority ITE incentive that offer up to £5,000 to eligible students to complete a Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) with Qualified Teacher Status (QTS)
• learning materials to support teachers to teach Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic histories and contributions within the Curriculum
• Diversity and Anti-Racist Professional Learning (DARPL): provides professional learning for those working in education to develop an understanding and development of anti-racist practice
• the Betty Campbell MBE Professional Teaching Award promotes the work schools are doing to teach the importance of inclusion
• community mentors, support some of the ITE partnerships by using their lived experience, knowledge, and skills to encourage more people from ethnic minority backgrounds to become teachers

For more information on different options available to people who are thinking about teacher training, visit Teacher (Educators Wales)