Sometimes you have to take a step back to get started. That was the case for Laurenz, who decided to switch to secondary school after four agonizing years at grammar school. Today, eight years later, he is studying to become a teacher of German and sport at the University of Münster and has found his calling.
"Looking back, Plan B Realschule was a blessing for me, a turning point in my life so far. The slower pace of work opened up new scope for me, and when I was called to the stage of the Stadthalle Unna in front of over 120 students at the graduation ceremony as the fourth best in my year, everything clicked in terms of school," says Laurenz, who learned to deal with the burden of great concentration difficulties during this time.
Teachers as mentors and door openers to talent scouting
Laurenz's time at the Werner-von-Siemens comprehensive school in Königsborn was followed by the sixth form, which he remembers as the best years of his entire school career. This was due in particular to formative encounters: "I got to know my great teacher Markus Engelhaupt. He always accepted me for who I am and I was able to talk to him about everything in confidence," says Laurenz about his mentor, who also put him in touch with TalentScouting.
"I made full use of the counseling. It was important for me to develop professional clarity and my TalentScouts really supported me in this. They really went the extra mile for me!"
He eagerly took advantage of the offer for three years and is still involved in TalentScouting today: "I made full use of the counseling. It was important for me to develop professional clarity and my TalentScouts Sonja and Uschi gave me a lot of support. They really went the extra mile for me!" After years of preference for the police service and a taster semester of law as part of "SchülerUni.Bochum", career clarity ultimately meant the decision to study to become a teacher. Laurenz is thus following Markus Engelhaupt on the one hand - also in his choice of subjects - and his personal calling on the other: since his early youth, he has spent a large part of his free time volunteering to look after other people and children in particular, currently as a judo youth leader and in English tutoring, among other things.
"Later, I want to pass on to my pupils what my good teachers have given me. I want to encourage and explore talents, even the talents of children who seem difficult at first glance "
"It makes me happy when I can help others. Later on, I want to pass on to my pupils what my good teachers have given me. I want to encourage and explore talents, even the talents of children who seem difficult at first glance," says Laurenz, looking ahead. It is very important to him to develop the interpersonal component of the teaching profession alongside the professional one and to be there for those who really need help.
But Laurenz also invests a great deal in achieving his professional goals: The young man commutes from Unna to Münster five to seven times a week to work on his Bachelor's degree at the Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität or to teach sport at a school as a part-time job.
"Passing the sports entrance exam was a milestone for me and my life"
Having started in the 2018/19 winter semester with a combination of German and sociology, his great passion, sport, has now taken over from sociology. In summer 2019, Laurenz had to take what was perhaps the toughest exam of his life, the sports aptitude test. Out of over 400 participants, only around 100 were accepted after eight hours of drudgery in various disciplines.
"I reached my limits in the final 3 km run. Passing the test was a milestone for me and my life," says Laurenz of the result.
With diligence and dedication, he follows his motto that you have to go beyond your limits to achieve something. Laurenz has arrived well in the university cosmos, which is also ensured by the indispensable social networks that Laurenz maintains in the form of study groups as well as relaxed evening activities with fellow students. Every now and then it gets annoying when the last trains leave for home in Unna before midnight and Laurenz has to leave early. That's why - despite his attachment to his family and friends in Unna - he has the goal of finding an affordable apartment in Münster. For now, it would be the icing on the cake of Laurenz's remarkable journey.