“Everyone here is ready to work with children, so they’re all good people to hang around with.”
Subjects studied:
T Level in Education (Assisting Teaching pathway)
Kannon came to Truro and Penwith College from Penair School, and he’s studying a T Level in Education and Early Years on the Assisting Teaching pathway. “In Year 10 and Year 11 I was quite confused about what I wanted to do,” he says. “But I always wanted to work with children.”
He likes how many doors the course opens. “You can go into teaching, but also social work, nannying, child psychology, play therapy.” He’s not sure what he’ll do next, but he knows he wants to work with children. At the moment he’s thinking about social work.
College has felt different from what he expected. “The people were better, more mature, and the lecturers treat you more like adults. It’s a better experience.” He’d worried that the campus would be huge, but in practice it isn’t. “I stick to my one building.” His closest friends include his Penair friend Millie, who is on the Early Years pathway, and his classmates.
He enjoys the placement side most. “Not only am I in College all week, I get to go outside College and work in a school.” He likes being able to use what he learns in each place. “You put what you learn in College into placement, and what you learn in placement into the theories you learn here.” He also loves seeing the children. “It’s worth it, going into placement and seeing all the children happy to see me.”
Kannon admits that being male on a course with mostly female students almost put him off. “I was really scared about that, but I’ve made so many good friends here. There are other males who do it, and you make brilliant friends. It’s not awkward at all.”
He’s honest about the effort too. “You’ve got to put in a lot of effort, and you do get it all back. It takes the right person to work with children, and everyone here is ready to do that.”
The T Level in Education and Early Years lets students like Kannon combine learning in College with real experience working with children. Truro and Penwith College has 30 years of excellence behind it. In 2026, 80% of T Level exam entries achieved Merit, Distinction or Distinction*. This summer, 2,367 Level 3 students received their results, with high-grade performance significantly above national averages when compared with all further education colleges in England.
To find out more about T Levels at Truro and Penwith College, visit T Levels – Truro & Penwith College
