Craig Blythe's education has brought him home.

He grew up in Lloydminster, completed the university transfer (UT) program at Lakeland College, graduated with a bachelor of education from the University of Alberta, and now he is back in the community sharing the lessons he learned along the way with his third grade class at Rendell Park Elementary School.

Growing up in Lloydminster meant that Blythe was very familiar with Lakeland. When he graduated high school, he felt the college's UT program would be a nice stepping stone to ease the transfer to university. He credits the two years he spent at Lakeland with helping prepare him for his academic success.

“I really liked being the big fish in a small pond,” Blythe explains. “Being able to thrive at Lakeland really built my confidence as a person and a student. If I had just started off at the university, I might have been swallowed up in the first year. At Lakeland, I didn't feel like I was competing with my classmates. Instead, we were working together to get the best grades and to learn as much as we could together.”

The smaller class sizes helped him develop both his study habits and his comfort level when it came to participating in the classroom, and he thrived when he moved on to the university.
Getting first-hand experience with classes in the Lloydminster school system is also an important part of the UT education program and helped him as he reflected on the type of teacher he wanted to become.

“Because Lakeland College is so close to the surrounding schools, we were able to get some practical experience in the Lloydminster school system,” he says. “I built relationships with the teachers, administrators and superintendents in the school system. I think that had a big part of helping me get a job in Lloydminster, as well as helping me learn about the teaching profession in a real way.”

The lessons he learned at Lakeland have informed the approach Blythe takes to his own classroom. Though the students are much younger, Blythe knows how important it is for students to have a strong relationship with their instructor. He has also incorporated some of the activities he learned here at Lakeland with his students.

When Blythe started the UT program at Lakeland, he wasn't sure where he wanted to end up. It was his experience in the program that gave him the confidence and clarity when it came to a career in education.

“My experience at Lakeland College sparked my passion for teaching.”

Now he's come home to pass that passion on to a new generation of students.

Photos: (Top) Third grade teacher Craig Blythe leads a discussion with three of his students. (Bottom) Craig Blythe and a student learn about Saturn and outer space.