Family affair as Dean’s daughter graduates
Fri May 06 2016 12:00:00 GMT+1200 (New Zealand Standard Time)
Family affair as Dean’s daughter graduates
06 May 2016
Professor Graeme Aitken, Sandra Aitken and their daughter Rhian Aitken with Rhian’s children Chanel, 12, Mikayla, 10, Lucia, 7, and four-year-old Niko.
There are likely to be more than a few tears in the Aitken family on graduation day. Rhian Aitken, daughter of Professor Graeme Aitken, Dean of the Faculty of Education and Social Work at the University of Auckland, will be graduating with a Bachelor of Education in Early Childhood Teaching and her proud father will be on stage at the Aotea Centre reading out her name.
And this is no ordinary achievement for 32-year-old Rhian, now the mother of four young children, who left school at 15 to work in various secretarial jobs and had no interest in further study.
“Had anyone asked me if I would go to university in those younger years I would have said ‘no way’,” she admits.
However it was watching her father graduate with a Doctorate in Education in 2006 that started her imagining what it would be like to wear a cap and gown herself one day.
“I hadn’t realised what a powerful thing it was to gain a degree and how much I wanted this for myself and for my children.”
After realising she loved helping young children learn, Rhian took on a job in an early childhood centre as an unqualified teacher, but knew she needed more knowledge.
Five years ago she enrolled in a three-year online programme at the University’s Faculty of Education and Social Work in Epsom, often studying between midnight and 3am, and sometimes all night.
“During my first year I found it tough to believe in myself, having not thought I could do it based on my lack of confidence from my schooling experience,” she says.
Reflection, she discovered, is a powerful tool in teaching.
“I was looking at my own values, ideas and beliefs and I learned so much more about myself during this journey and just how capable I actually was.”
Being a role model for her children was a key factor in her decision to go back to study.
“It was very important to me for my four young children to see that with hard work and persistence, you can achieve anything you put your mind to and that it’s never too late to chase your dreams.”
While getting no special treatment as the Dean’s daughter, she did get a lot of support from her tutors as a mother of four juggling study, work and parenting.
“I never felt like a number. They were always very understanding of my situation and open to finding time and ways in which to support me on my learning journey.”
And the support of her family was crucial on every level.
“I couldn’t have done this without their love, faith and belief in my ability to succeed.”
Not to mention frequent babysitting duties so she could snatch precious study time.
Friday’s graduation will be a chance for the whole family to celebrate.
“It all seems very surreal,” says Rhian.
“I’m so proud of myself for achieving this degree and to be doing this with my parents, - mother Sandra Aitken is the principal of Pt Chevalier Primary - my children, my niece and my sister alongside me.”
Media queries to Julianne Evans
Phone: 923 9336
Mobile: 027 838 9202
Email: julianne.evans@auckland.ac.nz