A 17-year-old student from Boston in Lincolnshire is the youngest teacher in the UK who is teaching children just a few years younger than him. Edvin Zuckovs, who started teaching at the age of 16, teaches social studies to children aged 10 to 13 in local schools.
As he cannot start an official teaching degree until he is 18, he is currently collecting unpaid hours and reports that can later be counted towards his diploma. He also teaches around three hours a week in schools. The teenager is also paid for four hours a week as a tutor, teaching other youngsters maths and English.
Edvin Zuckovs does all this alongside his GCSEs in English, maths, biology, chemistry, physics, Russian, German, history, economics, geography and religious studies. He said that he aims to inspire other youngsters and show them that as teenagers they can make decisions that will have a positive impact on their future.
Edvin said, “It’s a lot of work. I have a tight schedule. I have a lot to juggle. There’s a lot to do, like writing reports and giving grades, but it’s doable. I work as a part-time teacher a few hours a week to keep my schedule. It benefits my education- what you do now counts for the future.”
“Helping younger people find themselves and seeing kids excited tells me I’m doing my job well. Being younger and doing these things- I think it opens their eyes a bit more. Even if you’re young, you can achieve something if you believe in it. I use motivational things from my book in classes and at assemblies”, he added.
Edvin was first invited to speak at Carlton Road Academy in November 2021, after his book Young Life: Enjoy Life When You Can was published in 2021 at the age of 13- making him one of the UK’s youngest authors. He has then been asked to complete an extended project qualification at the school- the equivalent of an AS level by 2023, before teaching at two more schools, he said.
Edvin Zuckovs works as an unpaid teaching assistant with whole classes, but also one-to-one groups and workshops to help with PSHE lessons. He does this for free, as well as monthly assemblies at schools on goal setting and personal achievement. He has even held one such seminar at a school in Lithuania.
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