Some years ago Martijn van Mourik made the switch from IT to education. He now has his teaching qualification and looks back with satisfaction on the road he has travelled. ‘I really like teaching,’ he says. ‘Also because I can combine my work at school with other activities. That variety suits me well.’
Martijn started his career in education at Regius College in Schagen, but because computer science is a small section -at most schools even a one-man section- he has also been working at Han Fortmann College in Heerhugowaard for some time now. ‘In Heerhugowaard, I am now walking along with a colleague who is retiring next year. We are preparing the coming school year together and I am taking over tasks step by step.’
Martijn currently works 16 hours a week, spread over two days. ‘Officially, I am still partly attached to Regius, but in practice I mainly work at Han Fortmann. I teach a few lessons in the lower school and am also busy with all kinds of other things.’ For instance, he studies artificial intelligence and collaborates on new in-depth lessons for the lower grades. ‘Students will soon be able to focus more on themes that appeal to them, such as sports, technology or computer science. I myself want to do something with game development, where pupils learn to make a simple game.’
Looking back on his lateral entry route, Martijn is mostly positive. ‘I have been working on it intensively for two years. Two days of teaching, one day a week to university and also self-study. If you really devote time and attention to it, it is quite doable.’ He does stress that the course requires commitment. ‘A lot is expected of you, but if you keep up, it is achievable. Computer science is a small field, but there is also limited intake. I did my course with one other lateral entrant. That also shows how big the need for teachers is.’
Besides his work in education, Martijn is still active in the company he runs with his brother. ‘We collect pinball machines and organise company outings in our gameroom. I mostly do that on weekends. The nice thing is that there are many interfaces with education: technology, programming and working with groups of people.’ Looking ahead to next school year, Martijn concludes: ‘After my colleague leaves, I will take over the computer science section and start working more hours. Until now I always ran with other teachers, soon I will have to do it myself. I see that as a nice next step.’