Djamila Boothman

English Teacher

I have taught at a secondary school for 7 years. Prior to this I lived in Antigua and volunteered at a School for male young offenders. Prior to this I had managed a music, media and arts project delivering accredited workshops in music, media and arts.

I have a passion for reigniting passion in young people. The perception that they don’t want to learn or be successful is a myth. High expectations and believing in them is often the catalyst to getting them to believe in themselves.

I believe that there is a bright future and career for every single young person and my role as careers leader allows me to make contact with a range of employers to seek out unique opportunities for my students.

My students, many of whose socio-economic background is documented as being extremely challenging, would tell you about their participation in Brexit conferences, raising thousands of pounds to build a well in Uganda by walking, their appearance in lightbox displays around the capital, attending a film festival in Manchester. I actively seek out opportunities for my students to experience success as I firmly believe that school is the place that prepares students for the world of work. Students who have a positive school experience expect to move into positive experiences in higher education and employment. The same applies where the experience has not been positive. I take particular pride in the work that I have done with students with special educational learning needs; my training as a Teaching assistant provided me with invaluable experience and skills in supporting learners with speech, language and communication needs as well as specific learning difficulties such as dyslexia, ASD, global delay disorder.

I believe that developing self pride supports a stronger sense of self identity and that this is critical for black children living in Britain. I run workshops for black children at school to mitigate against the lack of cultural competence and black leadership/ decision makers in school as I believe that this sets many up to fail where school policy and the curriculum are concerned. Until this changes there will always be a need for this type of support for black children who are subjected to mainstream education in the UK. Last year I planned, secured government funding and delivered the first ever Windrush festival in the UK in order to celebrate the Windrush generation and their children a year on from the Windrush scandal

I am available for tutoring in North London or online only