Teacher Tuesday: Meet Ms Laura Davies

Teacher Tuesday: Meet Ms Laura Davies

Laura Davies Biology ClassThis week we have talked to Ms Laura Davies, who teaches Science and Biology in our Secondary School.

How many years have you been teaching?
13 years

When did you join KIS?
Last year, August 2016

Please describe the KIS community in three words:
Close-knit and busy

Why do you teach?
During my gap year between school and university I was travelling and I did some English teaching in Bangkok. Once I had graduated I remembered how much I had enjoyed teaching and so I decided to study for my Post Graduate Certificate in Education. I am still teaching 13 years later because I love it! There is never a dull moment โ€“ every day, every student, every class is different. It is such a busy job, sometimes exhausting, but the rewards are huge.

What are you looking forward to most this academic year?
All the new Biology field trips we have planned.

What is your favorite classroom resource and why?
I love those lessons that get the students really excited about Science: dry ice bombs, oobleck, making ice-cream, dissection, hawks/doves game theory. For many of these types of lessons we just use common household consumables.

Asking a Key Stage 3 student to set fire to junk food under a can of water so that they can work out the calorific content is one of their favorite lessons.

This is your second year co-ordinating the Secondary Student Council. What do you enjoy about this role?
Itโ€™s a lot of fun with all the different events we run and I like working with the students outside of the classroom environment. However, what I really enjoy is student empowerment. I love watching their confidence and self-esteem grow as they realise what they are capable of. I love it when the students push themselves to go the extra mile to run an event and then the sense of achievement they get from doing it well.

What do you think the students gain from being part of the Student Council?
So much! The ability to lead, to listen, to think critically, to plan events, empathy towards others, an awareness of civic duty, learning through service, a sense of responsibility, better communication skills and public speaking, better social intelligence, and greater awareness of self.

Describe a key memory from your time teaching at KIS:
The Easter Egg Hunt. This was a huge learning curve for me, working with Primary students, in comparison to Secondary students, is like working with a box of frogs – they just keep moving all the time! It was exhausting but so much fun.

If you werenโ€™t a teacher what job would you do and why?
I would be a Research Zoologist for David Attenboroughโ€™s team – travel and animals, combined with the odd pearl of wisdom from David Attenborough himself would keep me very happy.

KK is famed for its food; what is your favourite local dish?
Beef Rendang โ€“ absolutely delicious!