Carly Wenner at a rice paddy in Bali, Indonesia
I graduated from the Teacher Education program in the Fall of 2011 with a specialisation in Social Studies.
I am now a World History and English teacher at a public secondary school in Singapore, which I had applied to at UBC’s education job fair earlier that year. I knew that being a TOC right after graduation wasn’t for me; I wanted to have my own classes and thanks to the large need of humanities teachers in Singapore, I’m able to have that.
I’ll admit it has been a challenge adapting to an education system that is different from Canada’s, but the experience I’m gaining in the classroom is invaluable. I love getting to share ideas with other teachers and learning new perspectives. And for the days when the challenge is tougher, I know that I have an amazing network of teachers whom I met at UBC that I am able to bounce ideas off of and get great advice from.
But enough about work. The greatest thing by far about living abroad is the constant learning of new cultures. Like Canada, Singapore is a diverse country with four official languages. It is truly a globalised
city that embraces multiculturalism, which is most apparent in the food here. Singaporeans love to eat.
Another great thing about Singapore is the proximity to some of the most beautiful countries in the world. Working and living in Asia has allowed me to understand more about the topics I teach in history and it also means I have the opportunity to visit the places I’ve seen in textbooks, including thousand year old temples and picturesque rice paddies.
Teacher Education Office
2125 Main Mall
Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4
Tel: 604.822.5242
Fax: 604.822.8227
E-mail: teacher.ed@ubc.ca
