James Devine Email & Phone Number

A BRIEF HISTORY:After completing a BA hons in counselling psychology, I volunteered at a crisis centre as a counsellor. As I could not find employment as a counsellor and could not afford to do a masters, I chose to pivot to the education field. Having had a successful and fulfilling career as an educator, I began to feel a pull towards my orginal path. I have since completed an MS in pscyhology, and I plan to consollidate my counselling experience as soon as possible. My long term goal in the next 5-10 years is become a practicing clinical psychologist.I began my education career in 2010 teaching a life orientation class at a private high school in South Africa. This opportunity allowed me to provide casual counselling and life-coaching to troubled students. I found that I had an affinity for teaching and so I decided to use that as a vehicle to fulfill my affinity for travel. I taught English at a cram school in Taiwan for 4 years, and while I greatly enjoyed focusing on second language acquisition, I wanted to play a more comprehensive role as an educator. After completing a PGCE in 2015, I accepted a Grade 1 classroom teacher position at a bilingual elementary school. In 2020, I took on a Grade 5/6 subject teaching position at another prestigeous bilingual elementary school, where I am currently stationed.MISSION STATEMENT:My two greatestest intrinsic skills are empathy and analysis, and I have been fascinated my the human experience since I read Man's Search for Meaning, as a teenager. I truly believe that each person is unique, with variations of perceptions, skills and burdens. Therefore, I see my role as a facilitator; helping people become aware of their perception, hone their skills and manage their burdens. I hope to help as many people as I can in the time that I have been afforded.A teacher, who is competent and cares, can make such a significant impact on the future of a child, and I appreciate the honour of that responsibility. I believe in a child-centered approach to learning and I will always go the extra mile to ensure that my students have integrated learning opportunities. I interact with my students and assess them with consideration of the Multiple Intelligence model, and I will always try to find a better way to stimulate their learning if they are struggling with conventional tools. I get satisfaction from making my classroom a fun, stimulating, structured environment and from encouraging my students to perform to the best of their ability, while acquire valuable life skills in the process.