Simon Baker with children from his centre

Name: Simon Baker
NZTC Qualification: Bachelor of Teaching (Early Childhood Education)

For Simon Baker working in education was always a dream, as he grew up watching his father go to work as a primary school teacher. But it wasn’t until he was three years into his primary teaching study that he realised his true passion was for early childhood education.

Simon made the decision to cross over into the Bachelor of Teaching (Early Childhood Education) at NZTC after three years of study towards becoming a primary school teacher.

During his teaching studies Simon spent time relieving with BestStart and in several placements with new entrant children. It was in this this work that he realised his passion for working with younger children and decided that the Bachelor of Teaching (Early Childhood Education) was the best route to lead him on a fulfilling and exciting career path.

Simon has not looked back since and continues to learn and garner rewarding new experiences from his studies. “Working with them opened me up to a whole new area of education,” Simon said.

“I love seeing the children grow and building strong relationships with the whānau and community.”

He also believes that male early childhood teachers hold a special role in the lives of their students.

“We need more male teachers for children who might not have a father figure or fatherly role model to look up to in younger years.”

Simon believes early childhood teaching presents a great opportunity for males as the public become more aware of the importance of diversity in places of education, and predicts a big climb in male ECE teachers in the future.

“If you have a centre with women teachers and then a male teacher it creates a whole new dynamic for the children and helps them to see things differently.”

He has also experienced strong support from students’ families. “Everywhere I have worked I have been uplifted by the positive feedback from parents. This feeds my motivation to work in early childhood education.”

Simon is currently focused on completing his degree so he can become a qualified ECE teacher. In the future he has big aspirations, hoping to become a head teacher and eventually a centre manager.