For many teachers, teaching starts as a profession. For Aroloye Oluwatosin, it became something much deeper, a mission rooted in improvement, advocacy, and structure systems that empower both students and instructors. With over 14 years of experience covering primary, secondary, and adult learning, the creator of Oluko Online School has actually built a reputation for promoting teacher growth, visibility, and sustainable opportunities beyond the classroom.
Known for her operate in teacher training and expert advancement, Oluwatosin believes the education sector frequently demands excessive from teachers while giving insufficient in return. Her viewpoint is easy however powerful: instructors are worthy of more than survival; they should have development, self-respect, and a life they are proud of.
In this edition of My Mentor Life, she talks to Temitope Kareem about the psychological truths of teaching, the quiet fatigue teachers carry, why she practically stopped a number of times, and the minute that entirely altered how she approached the classroom.
Temitope Kareem (TK): How did you become a teacher?
Aroloye Oluwatosin (AO): I didn’t just “become” an instructor in the conventional sense. Mentor found me through duty. It started with helping others understand what they were struggling with, and in time, I understood I wasn’t simply explaining, I was changing. That’s when it became more than a job.
TK: What did you believe teaching would resemble and how incorrect were you?
AO: I believed teaching was almost passing knowledge. I was wrong. Mentor is psychological labour, mental work, management, and sometimes survival. Nobody prepares you for how much of yourself you need to give.
TK: Walk us through your side of the classroom. What does a common day appear like for you?
AO: My classroom goes beyond 4 walls. It’s conversations, planning, mentoring teachers, building systems, and considering how to make learning available. A common day is a mix of teaching, creating, fixing problems, and constantly adjusting.
TK: What is the hardest part of this job nobody speak about?
AO: The quiet exhaustion. Appearing every day even when you’re not alright. Pouring into others when you’re running low yourself. And doing all of this in a system that typically neglects your worth.
Read episode 3 of “My Mentor Life Series “
TK: Inform us about the moment that altered how you teach forever.
AO: The minute I understood that students don’t simply need info they need to be seen. That changed whatever. I stopped teaching topics and started teaching people.
TK: If you could go back to your very first day as an instructor, what would you tell yourself?
AO: Don’t lose yourself attempting to prove your worth. Construct your skill, but also build your voice. You will require both.
TK: Have you ever wanted to give up? What took place? What made you remain?
AO: Yes, many times. Not because I didn’t like teaching, however since the system can drain you. I remained since I understood leaving wouldn’t fix the issue. I needed to build something much better. That’s how Oluko was born.
TK: What does the education system get fundamentally incorrect about instructors?
AO: It treats instructors like changeable labour instead of nation home builders. It ignores their growth, underpays them, and expects quality without support.
TK: If you had 5 minutes with a policymaker, what would you say?
AO: Stop developing policies without listening to instructors. Buy their development, not just the system. A broken instructor can not develop a strong student.
TK: Has this job impacted your life outside the class?
AO: Yes. It has actually shaped how I think, how I relate with people, and how I see the world. However it has also taught me the value of boundaries and self-preservation.
TK: What’s the student story you’ll bring with you for the rest of your life?
AO: The trainee who didn’t think in themselves till somebody did. That moment when self-confidence changes fear, that’s something I carry each time.
TK: What do you desire your students to bear in mind about you twenty years from now?
AO: That I saw them. That I believed in them before they believed in themselves. And that I showed them they might become more.
TK: In one sentence, how would you describe your mentor life?
AO: A constant journey of putting, building, and redefining what it suggests to genuinely educate.