Your Name: Julie Bose Rawley
Job Title: Headmistress of Tiny Seeds International Pre-School
What is your nationality and background?
I am an American from New York City. I have lived in many different countries – growing up in both India and USA. After graduating from College in New York, I travelled to South Korea to live and work there for five years. I returned to New York and lived there until my family and I moved to Bangkok two years ago.
What is your profession?
I am a life-long learner and an educator by profession. I have been a class room teacher, a literacy coach, an assistant principal and I am currently the Headmistress at The Tiny Seeds International Pre-School.
What are the key skills and responsibilities of this role?
As a Headmistress, my overall responsibility is to oversee and maintain the high standards of teaching and maintenance of a school. I am definitely an organiser and it is a skill that I can use every day at school. Communicating with families, training new teachers, and establishing an engaging school atmosphere are all areas that require skills that can be transferred from my past school experiences.
How did you get involved in your profession?
I began my career as an ELL teacher in South Korea. After a couple of years as an ELL teacher, I decided to continue in the education profession and became a class room teacher for primary grades. At the time of my first pregnancy, I entered Graduate program and gained a Masters of Education in Special Education. I continued to work in the classroom and out as a Learning Specialist and later as a Special Education Coordinator for my elementary school. When I became pregnant again with my second child, I decided to move into the Administrative position and continued to work in that capacity.
How does your role enhance the wellbeing or experience of children?
Over the many years that I have worked with children, I have learned that children want to be loved, heard and understood above all. I think listening to children is the most important thing that we can do as adults…for in their statements we can truly hear what is important to them and how they feel about themselves in the world. In my role, I have the pleasure of hearing children each and every day and this awareness helps me support their overall well being.
What challenges do your face in this role?
I think the most challenging thing about being an educator is that each year the children grow older and each year we must say goodbye to some of them. Scheduling and having highly trained individuals that are committed to teaching is also something that can add to the challenges facing a school. Maintaining and surpassing the set standards can be challenging if you do not have the flexibility to change things that need to be revised or support areas that are successful.
What do you hope to achieve within your industry?
Ultimately, for educators the hope is that your student population has learned the value system and the academics that they need to know. Being part of a school that puts emphasis on raising life-long learners and individuals who value themselves and the world around them is the highest achievement of success.
Who or what inspires you?
The children inspire me to be better, to be more empathetic, to listen, to share and to be considerate. Everything that we need later on in life is truly learnt while we are in Kindergarten and if we can remember those feeling and those actions – we can feel that happiness.
Only a Bangkok local would know …
TK Park at Central Chidlom is a wonderful resource for parents and kids! It has a great lending library with book series that children can access outside of their own homes and classrooms. It is extremely economical and there are tons of activities that are supported during the year through them. Check it out!
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