We did it!

…from Kokofu to London: The nearly 12 Weeks That Almost Broke Me, And The Hour That Made Me…

Twelve weeks.

That’s how long it took me to gather five years of my life in the small town I started my professional teaching career in – Kokofu Ashanti, and the last 26 months of my life in a busy London classroom, and somehow squeeze it all into a folder that was supposed to “prove” I’m a good teacher who knows what she’s about and fulfills each and every one of the UK teaching standards.

If you’ve ever done the Assessment Only Route for QTS in the UK, you already know how it’s like. If you haven’t, imagine planning and teaching regular lessons, marking end of year assessments for 2 key stages- nearly 200 students multiplied by 4 booklets, each representing an assessed language skill, monitoring, praising and sanctioning behaviour and calling parents, and becoming a part-time archivist, lawyer, and evidence detective all at the same time. Late nights. Endless emails. Meetings upon meetings. Lesson plans I rewrote at 11pm because “does this really show progress for all learners?” Formal observations where you smile through your nerves and pray the interactive whiteboard doesn’t freeze.

I did it with evidence from two very different worlds. Kokofu, where I taught for five years. The kind of place where most teachers know every child’s siblings, aunties, and what they had for lunch. Then in my current school in London, where I’ve been since April 2024. A new curriculum, new systems, new everything, but the same heart in the classroom.

Building the portfolio felt like trying to alight a moving bus. Every time I thought I’d matched one Teachers’ Standard, two more examples popped up. “Where’s the evidence for assessment?” “Can you show impact over time?” “Do you have this policy from 2019?” I was teaching full-time through it all. Marking piles. Reports. Data analysis, cultural day preparation, exam invigilation. The usual teacher chaos, just with a QTS checklist taped to my diary.

And then came the final day.

Observation first. Interview second. One hour to go. My stomach was doing the usual gymnastics. I had my portfolio, my folders, my seemingly “I’ve got this” face on.

That’s when Sylvester sat down next to me.

Sly had already done his observation and interview the day before. He was officially free. He could’ve been anywhere. Getting coffee. Celebrating. Instead he pulled up a chair, looked at my papers, and casually asked, “Do you have this one particular document?”

I blinked. “That one? I thought that was only for the former school.”
He shook his head. “No, we need it for here too.”

An hour. I had barely one hour.

In that moment my brain did two things: panicked, and then got to work. With every online tool I had, with coffee in my tumbler and adrenaline, I built it. Typed, formatted, cross-referenced, uploaded. My fingers were flying. Was it perfect? Probably not. Was it done? Yes. Just in the nick of time.

Walk into the interview room. Sat down. Deep breath. Exchange of pleasantries.
First thing the assessor asks for?
That. Exact. Document.

I don’t know how to explain the feeling. Relief, shock, gratitude, and a little bit of “God was really looking out for me” all at once. I don’t know what made Sly come sit by me right then. I don’t know why he thought to ask that question at that minute. But I do know this: sometimes help shows up exactly when you need it, wearing a colleague’s lanyard and asking just the right question.

The interview went amazingly well. The observation was flawless! My students brought their A-game to lesson as usual and outdid themselves! And on Friday, I got the official email.

I am now a Qualified Teacher with full QTS to UK standards. After the Assessment Only Route. After Kokofu and London. After the late nights and the evidence folders and the “just one more thing.”

Should have been a walk in the park for me if UEW-K(at the time in 2020) had given me a PGCE certificate when that was actually what I had applied to do! I would have just needed to apply with my documents and gotten the QTS but when the system is foggy…

Anyway, I keep reading the email and smiling like an idiot… I did it! I did it! I did it! I didn’t give up!

Here’s what I’ve learned in these past 12 weeks, and I’m writing this for anyone in the middle of their own stressful procedure right now:

1. Your past experience counts. Those five years in Kokofu weren’t “before.” They were the foundation. The patience, the creativity with limited resources, the dedication to my work and to my students that made me plan high quality lessons even then, hand write notes in books, set exam papers, hand write and keep records of various exercises and tests, and kept all of them religiously because I genuinely wanted to see those kids succeed. That all mattered. Don’t ever think your earlier chapters are less important.

2. Ask the Slys. And be the Sly. That random question saved me. Check on your people in the final hour. Sometimes the smallest nudge is the biggest help. Last Christmas, a friend at work gave me a mug that says “Queen of everything” because according to her, I knew everything. I was every body’s go to person for any question at all. And I’m glad to be it! Someone became for me when I most needed it…the last minute…and it saved me.

3. You can do hard things, even, in an hour. I built a whole document under pressure and it was the first thing they asked for. Don’t underestimate what you can pull together when you have to. You’re more capable than your nerves tell you.

4. Celebrate the small wins out loud. I passed. I’m qualified. I’m allowed to be proud of that and post about it and do a little dance in my room. Oh I celebrate and will celebrate every win as if it’s the very last one!

And then there was the part that got me right in the chest.

My dad texted me back after I had sent him a screenshot of the email. My dad, who barely compliments, who shows love in quiet ways. He said he was proud of me and said I was a true replica of him.

For those of you who know what that means coming from a parent like mine, you know that’s everything. That sentence is going on the wall of my classroom and in my diary.

I don’t know what the future holds. The year is coming to an end soon and another one will start in September. New challenges, new classes, new paperwork I’m sure. But I do know I got here not because it was handed to me on a silver platter but through God’s grace, favour and through very hard work and diligence.

From Kokofu to London. From a non-QTS teacher to a full QTS teacher. From “can I do this?” to “I did this.” Worried about my celebrating this? I’ll pardon you. You have no idea the amount of stress involved, especially in an institution like mine.

Now, to anyone reading this who is in week 3, or week 9, or in the final hour: keep going. Build the portfolio. Whatever portfolio that is. For a masters. A PhD, a diploma, a business idea. anything at all. Ask the questions. Stay late if you must. And watch out for the Slys. Help has a funny way of sitting next to you right when you need it.

Thank you to my friend, Sylvia who did what every best friend has to do🥰, to my friend, to my dad and my little brother, Nana who did so much work sorting out my old books and paper stuff in order to trace and track all the paperwork I had from Kokofu, to my friends, Perpy, Naa, Alyna, Lebene, Tracy, Sylvia, Emma who stayed on the phone with me some nights when I was working and kept encouraging me, to my friend, Nana Akosua who proofread my long essays and summary indexes, to every mentor who observed, and to every child in Kokofu and London who taught me as much as I taught them.

We did it.

Cue the happy tears and the cup of tea ☕✨ or some cold juice because the weather nowadays just makes me not want anything to do with hot food!

On to the next!

With love,

Rosario💜