How to become a hairdressing teacher: personal experience

Recently, on our Instagram page there was a live broadcast on the topic “How to become a hairdressing teacher at VPU?”, during which we and Svetlana Belousova , hairdresser-fashion designer, top stylist, teacher of the highest category with 30 years of experience and ABC judge, We discussed many interesting issues on the topic.

How did you come to the conclusion that you want to connect your life with teaching?

I come from a long line of teachers. Grandmother, mother and aunt are teachers. Becoming a hairdresser was not considered at all, even though it had been my dream since childhood. At the home council, when I voiced my desire to become a hairdresser, everyone grabbed their heads (laughs). How is it that there will be a hairdresser in the family of teachers.

Therefore, I had to cheat and become a teacher, but of hairdressing. I gave my mother all of my higher education diplomas, but I kept my main education diploma as a hairdresser. In total, I have a diploma in psychology, a diploma in engineering and a master's degree in teaching, so I have been studying and teaching all my life.

During my experience, I taught at a school and worked in a salon. Because a teacher who can tell but cannot show is not a teacher. So for many years I taught one day and worked in a salon the other.

What are you teaching now?

Now I am a teacher of the highest category, so I teach in high school for third-fourth courses. The teaching process is very exciting. I'm just teaching now because it's incredibly interesting. After all, in the fourth year, the work is fiery: there are theses, collections, participation in competitions.

What do you like most about your job?

Probably love for children. It's interesting to communicate with them. Watch how at first they don’t know how to do anything, and then become successful and famous craftsmen, technologists, and open their own salons. We still communicate with many of them, and this is very valuable.

How can a master benefit from teaching experience?

For a hairdresser, this will be a new but very useful experience, because teaching gives skills such as patience, communication, kindness and stress resistance. Teaching always dispels any fears in public speaking and public speaking. When I came to teach, my oratorical abilities were not developed at all.

Becoming a teacher is easy, but becoming a good one takes hard work. This is difficult, because you need to find an approach to each student. Not everyone perceives information quickly and easily. You always need to help students and be a friend and ally for them. All these qualities will definitely develop.

Is a teaching degree required for this job? Or are practical skills more important?

For example, we have experience when a student showed himself to be good during his studies: he studied, participated in competitions, and proved himself. When at the end of the training we see that he is an accomplished teacher who knows how to work with a team, we offer to try his hand at teaching.

But first not as a teacher, but as a master of industrial training. While a person gets used to his place of work and his responsibilities, he should have an education in time. Because without higher education you cannot teach, but you can become a master and then continue your studies in parallel.

What is the most important thing for you in your work?

Find contact with students. When it is found, you realize that they understand you. It is important to become a friend and help them. It is important to convey your love for the profession and professional qualities. Always learn. After all, a teacher is a profession that requires you to be on top of your game, catch all the new knowledge and convey it to your students. I would like to teach this to my students. Let them know that there is no stopping in this profession.

How do you keep yourself in good shape and keep your finger on the pulse?

I participate in championships, or rather, I prepare students for participation. You go through everything with them, go through a lot of material when you prepare with them. It's like a breath of fresh air. Those who have never participated in championships have lost a lot.

What do you need to know/be able to do to become a teacher? Do you need to be a generalist or, perhaps, realize yourself as a teacher, being a colorist?

Everyone has their favorite topics, not without this. But to teach in higher education, you need to be a universal master. You need to know everything - modeling, drawing, and labor protection. You need to know and convey what they are needed for.

For example, I love colorism, and I try to teach it to students more. Sometimes I even go too far with this, but then the students are grateful to me.