As with any career, teachers want to be able to develop their skills and on-the-job knowledge in order to progress. There are standard ways in which teachers will usually progress, so if you want to be successful in your teaching career, start to think about how you can maximise your own development. Consider strengths as well as weaknesses, thinking about what you’re good at, why you’re good at it and how this can inform the way in which you approach your weaker areas.
Look for more opportunities to make yourself known and to stand out. Even something as simple as joining a staff club or sports team can be useful – it will help you to meet new people, and will show that you’re eager to be a part of the school as a whole. Enthusiasm is a key point in career development, as you have to be able to convince people that you’re keen and ambitious.
Keep your options open, and be aware of new opportunities all the time. Once you have enough teaching experience, you can move into management positions such as head of a department. Keep your eye out on local job sites and register with specific teaching job agencies rather than limiting yourself to your current school.
Take a postgraduate qualification. This will help you to advance with your career, especially if you aspire to be a school principal. It’s usually necessary to have completed advanced training in order to move into this position, as well as having a number of years’ teaching experience, so the sooner you start looking into how to achieve you ambitions, the more prepared you can be.