Dean of the Faculty of Psychological, Pedagogical, and Special Needs Education Tatyana Firsova made an informed choice when she decided to work at Saratov State University. On Russian Students Day, she remembers her studies and mentors who have helped her become a guide to the world of knowledge and science for a new generation of young people.
– How did you choose the course?
– I always knew that I would be a primary school teacher. All my childhood, there were younger guys around me, with whom I busily played in school – I taught them to read and write letters. And when the guys were at home, my family members and dolls were used. Therefore, after graduating from school with a medal in 1996, I did not hesitate to apply to Pedagogical Institute for the Faculty of Primary School Studies. Almost everyone dissuaded me, but my choice was deliberate and I do not regret it. I have already completed my studies at the Pedagogical Institute, SSU.
– How did you study as a student? Have you participated in the active life of the university?
– All my student years I was a real nerd – I studied, spent a lot of time in libraries. We were constantly making something, sewing, collecting an herbarium, making an album of decorative seams and a collection of physical items, creating models of a cyclone and an anticyclone, etc. In general, it is very interesting to study as a primary school teacher – mathematics, the Russian language, literature, pedagogy, psychology, decorative art, conducting, manual labour, family studies, and other amazing disciplines.
– Did you consciously connect your life with the university or did the circumstances develop that way?
– If they had told me in the year of graduation in 2001 that I would work as a teacher and become the dean of my alma mater faculty, I would never have believed it. It seemed to me that this was simply unreal. Of course, I immediately got a job as a primary school teacher at Gymnasium No. 1 and I have 2 months of school experience. But, then, Tatyana Morozova-Dorofeyeva called me (she was the dean at that time) and offered to work at the faculty on the condition that at any moment she would let me go back to school. I decided to give it a try. And I have been happy in my profession for 22 years now. I am grateful that the circumstances turned out this way and I made a choice between the school and the faculty in favour of the latter.
– What can you wish the students on Tatyanas Day?
– Believe in yourselves, your strengths and abilities, do not betray your dreams and reach your goals, listen to your hearts, follow your principles. I wish you bright impressions, interesting events, sincere happiness, true love, and brilliant prospects on the horizon of life. May your student years be unforgettable, warm, full of interesting lectures, professional trainings and trials, as well as meetings with life mentors, loyal friends, and reliable partners!
