Behind the scenes of Mr Kemp!

“Come to peace with who you are and learn to love that”.

Mr Kemp - the infamous and incomparable A-level teacher who uses his persona in order to guide students into the real world of economics - uncovers the reality of becoming a teacher and why even after taking a 10 year hiatus from Coopers, he still manages to return. 

What got Mr Kemp into teaching?

Mr Kemp studied Economics at university yet when he was actually choosing his degree he “thought a lot about English Literature” and was intending to do it as a degree. Fortunately, he was guided into Economics, otherwise he would currently be teaching us how to annotate Macbeth and stressing the significance of semantic fields.

Following his degree, he worked in the city for a few years before finding his way to Coopers where he did his training and then worked at Campion before returning again. “Honestly, I thought I’d do some training and take it to work overseas for a year or two,” he stated, with little awareness at that time of the mark he’d leave on Coopers.

What was the 10 year break utilised for?

After taking up a higher role in Coopers for several years, he decided to take a break.

Throughout the long break from teaching, Mr Kemp took up several different jobs and each were very diverse to one another. “I bought a hotel, was an economic advisor for Highlands and Islands Gateway, became a bar manager and also did some delivery driving.” 

Evidently, Mr Kemp utilised his time for exploration and seeking new paths, however he still came back to teach at Coopers. Why is this?

“Why did you choose teaching? What is your favourite part about being a teacher?”

“Being in a class with 30 people who are all expected to listen”, he responds instantly, “And the ability to talk to people and give my opinion for an hour”. “Love the sound of my own voice”, he laughs.

Evidently, Mr Kemp finds an extraordinary passion for educating those who are interested in his subject. He dedicates his hours to formatting new stunts and tricks, integrating forms of imagination but also practicality in order to make sure his students remember, can defy and analyse different topics in Economics. Through this style of teaching not only does he gain the “crowds’” attention but he promotes his subject.

“How exactly did you find your style in teaching?”

“When I decided to ignore what people have told me about how to teach”, he reflects, “You should do this, do this, but forget that, I'll just be me”. Mr Kemp’s personal motto is to: “Come to peace with who you are and learn to love that.”

Who is Kemp’s inspiration?

Economically, Mr Kemp looks up to the former governor of Canada and England - Mark Carney, enjoys the ideas of J.K Galbraith and wishes he had “a fraction of Paul Krugman’s intellect”. However who he praised the most were the “People who I have worked with before and still are here”. Such as Mr Teece, Mr Lockwood and Mr Marshall “for still being on it and active” within education in Coopers. As observed, he admires quite a few people but when summarised down to three people…

“Out of Adam Smith, John Maynard Keynes and Karl Marx, who would you meet?”

“No question, Karl Marx”, he immediately states, “he has a reach and waft that most people don’t have” and is perhaps “the most important person in the last 500 years”. Yet he would feel “massively intimidated to meet him” as would many others. 

From this interview with Mr Kemp, not only did I discover that he’s had insight to a variety of diverse career paths but also I realised that he is destined to teach (specifically in Coopers) as it is where he finds his “peace,” as he quoted.

By Alexandrina Cojan