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Where do I come from?
Born in a small town in the South Island of New Zealand in the early 1960s, I grew up in a family in which school, family, religion and the outdoors were all considered important.
Descended from migrants who had been miners, sailors, farmers and domestic workers, mine was a family in which the trades and manual work were respected and encouraged, however education was seen as the way to improve your lot and build a better future.
GEOFF MARTYN
GDTE Portfolio
Final version
Who Am I?
I am an educator and career practitioner with over 20 years' experience in the secondary and tertiary education sectors, and with additional experience in public sector and private business environments.
What's my story?
Dean of Form Seven: "So , what do you want to do for a living?"
Geoff. "I don't really know, except I'm pretty sure I don't want to become a school teacher."
Contained in the two lines above are the seeds of the two main directions my career has taken since I left school and my home town - teaching and career practice. I have been a teacher and a career practitioner for most of my working life, notwithstanding shorter periods in the cycle, retail and the garden services industries.
The full story of my career journey is contained in the 'Paths along the way' document below, a thumb-nail sketch of the key stages in my journey is:
1. Growing and exploring: high school, university, and working in retail and the cycle industries.
2. Finding a direction: training for secondary teaching and getting established as an educator.
3. Serendipity: stumbling across a career practice role, retraining and working as a career counsellor.
4. The merging of two paths: career practice and tertiary teaching.
For more about Chapter 6 of this journey, my experiences since commencing at Otago Polytechnic, click here: Case Study 1.
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