Study of Teaching, Thornlie SHS
A course originated at Thornlie Senior High School has proven successful at raising the profile of teaching as a career option.
The idea for the course originated with Kath Partridge in 1997, when she worked at the school. She also wrote the syllabus outline and two texts to support the Year 11 and 12 subjects. The school's deputy principal Keith Bryant and principal Kaye Land also supported the program.
The idea behind the course was to encourage students to recognise that teaching was an interesting, appealing and worthwhile career option, Kath said.
Thornlie SHS Study of Teaching students Donna Maitland-Smith and Kate Lynch say the course is interesting and allows students to learn at their own pace.
"I thought that if students who were interested in teaching could study a course about teaching that would count towards their graduation, this could be a tremendous strategy to help students not only better prepare for their undergraduate teaching degrees, but also perhaps to capture their interest before they were 'turned off by teaching'," she said.
"Throughout the course, students recognise that the learning they do in the course is real and relevant. They develop interpersonal skills that they may not have developed in other subjects.
"Students are also required to present to small and large groups of students and this task serves to increase their confidence and self-esteem."
Kath believes that up to 100 students have completed the Study of Teaching program. As part of her PhD, she tracked the progress of eight former Study of Teaching students and completed rigorous qualitative case studies on them. Most of the students are now teaching and a couple completed their Childcare Diploma at TAFE before entering university to pursue teaching.
Keith Bryant said the course typically appeals to Wholly School Assessed (WSA) students, who use it as a stepping stone into post-school studies in fields such as childcare, community service or teaching assistant positions.Keith said a number of these students also pursue university studies.
"Many students are interested in using the course as a bridging tool," he said.
"Another motivation for the development of the course was to expose students to the teaching profession. Some students identify teaching as a long-term plan rather than as an immediate career idea."
Keith said the design and development of a vocational program for tertiary bound students was unusual at the time.
He said students learned about many aspects of teaching, including Aboriginal, rural and remote, and special needs education.
One of the highlights of the course for Thornlie SHS students is an annual camp to Kalgoorlie. The camp includes visits to 'old Kalgoorlie', local primary schools, a remote community school and the School of the Air.
Year 12 teacher, Helen Hagdorn, said a significant part of the course is structured workplace learning, in which each student is enrolled in two fortnightly blocks of pre-school or primary teaching.
Year 12 student Kate Lynch (17) said it was interesting to learn about different teaching styles.
Fellow student Donna Maitland-Smith (17) said students were able to learn at their own pace.
"The course camp was great and it was good to see the different teaching methods of the different types of students," Donna said.
* The Study of Teaching is currently offered at Thornlie, Rockingham, Harvey and Esperance senior high schools.
Thornlie SHS is in the process of seeking Curriculum Council endorsement for the revised and updated Study of Teaching course.
