After returning from a much needed visit back to the States, I was eager to begin my next adventure back here in Australia. It was finally time to begin my first experience in the Australian public school system.
I spent two days in the Pre-employment Program for Overseas Trained Teachers where we discussed everything from testing to discipline. We even spent half of one day just on child protection and had to get a certificate for our training. The two days were very informative and very eye opening for me to realize that no matter where you teach in the world, for the most part, kids are the same, learn the same ways, and have the same expectations. I was in a room of about 25 other teachers who have taught anywhere from 2 years to 25, Kindergarten to college, and in England, the US, New Zealand, South Africa, Brazil, Hong Kong, and several other smaller countries on this side of the world! It was a really unique opportunity that I’m so glad I was part of.
The first day I woke up extra early so I could make sure I arrived early. I walked up to catch a bus into the city, took a 50 minute train ride to Blacktown where I needed to be, and then walked about 15 minutes to get to the right location. I found the conference room in the building and was happy to see several others who also arrived 30 minutes early! J I sat down next to a couple of people and heard an English accent and an American accent. I asked the guy with the American accent where he was from and he said Kansas City!!! I almost fell off of my chair! I mean talk about a small world! So I discovered that he taught at Lee’s Summit North, he lived in Prairie Village, his 2 kids went to school at Prairie Elementary in the Shawnee Mission School District, and his wife was a sorority sister of my BJF teaching colleague, Diana. He and his wife moved over in December because of the company she works for. It was awesome!
Both days we had unlimited coffee and tea. We also had Morning Tea- one day with scones, jam, and cream and the next day with cakes, cookies, sweet rolls, and all kinds of sweet treats. The Aussies love a proper Morning Tea! J
We were given a large amount of paperwork, booklets, and other informative items to read and become familiar with before we actually begin teaching. Those of you who are also teachers will appreciate this- we received a 3 page print out of commonly used acronyms in their education system! I was shocked to see how many were new and how many were similar to what we use in the US but worded in another way. Let me know if you want to learn some new ones! ;) I found out late in the day on that Friday of orientation that I would be doing my school placement (somewhat like a student teaching experience) in a 6th grade class starting Monday. I immediately was a nervous wreck and not sure what lessons I would teach since I was expecting a K-3 classroom. I spent the whole weekend worrying and attempting to come up with some ideas. Luke was going to be traveling the whole next week which meant I had no Internet access. Having very limited 6th grade resources, only Internet on my phone, and not a clue where to begin was overwhelming at first!
My next blog will give you my full week’s experience in the classroom. After the two day orientation and the five day classroom placement I still had a formal interview with someone from the New South Wales Department of Education. The following Tuesday I went back to Blacktown for my interview. My supervising teacher gave me a very nice assessment and reference to the interviewer. I was officially hired after my interview! I think I skipped all the way back to the train station with a very big smile and a huge weight finally lifted off of my shoulders.
I’ll explain the process, as many of you have been asking. The next step is now I can “casual teach” or be a “temporary” teacher anywhere in our whole state of New South Wales. I am unable to have a permanent position because I am not a permanent resident of Australia. Throughout this entire process I discovered that getting a permanent position for ANYONE is quite a lengthy process and the majority of teachers start out with casual or temporary work for several years before they are hired and placed permanently with a school. Casual is subbing for anywhere from 1 day up to a 4 week block. Temporary is 4 weeks up to a year and is what I would love to have happen! I met several teachers at the school last week who have a one year temporary position and will be going on to another school next year. Basically, it’s like having your own classroom with planning your own lessons, etc. The temporary teachers also get benefits, paid holiday leave (4 weeks of vacation) and all of the other perks of a permanent teacher. Maternity leave in Australia can be taken for up to 12 months so getting a position for someone on maternity leave would be great!
July 5-18 are the school holidays between Term 2 and Term 3. On the 18th, I will take my resume and my official “Approval to Teach” document to the schools I would like to casual teach for. Right now I am planning on going to 3 schools in our area. The principal at the school I was in last week was very supportive and assured me that it is great having my foot in the door already. She said I will have no problems getting casual work on a steady basis there! J
I will let you all know after my first day. I really appreciate all of the kind notes and words in the past couple of weeks. This is something I have really been looking forward to and needing to have back in my life! I am also very excited to have this experience to add to my resume and hope that I become comfortable and appreciate teaching ALL grade levels on a regular basis. I know I can!
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