Professional placement stories and experiences

The professional placement experience is your real-world introduction to a rewarding career in education. It’s the chance to put what you have learnt into practice, get valuable guidance from others and grow as a teacher. Here you can read about some of the experiences that previous students have had.

A Cook Islands Experience

Having the opportunity to complete a round of placement in the Cook Islands was life changing. Being immersed into a different environment and culture caused me to challenge myself and taught me things that have in turn changed my personal perspectives on teaching and learning. Many of the things learnt and experienced from this placement will guide my future teaching practices and I believe will make me a better teacher and overall educator.

Raesha Jayasinghe
Graduate Diploma of Education (Primary) 2012

A South Africa Experience

I never expected how much of a difference the South African education system would be compared with our own in Australia. Life is very different over there, the way they teach, the way they educate and the way teachers treat their students in class. I had the opportunity to travel to Roodepoort, South Africa to do my final teaching practicum in a private school and also a public school. It was a taste of both worlds: the poor and the rich side of society in South Africa. Before I left, I had little knowledge about South Africa and their way of life. It was such a culture shock when I first encountered how black and white it still is over there – what an eye opener for me! I now really appreciate how teachers and students should treat one another and how little we should complain back here in Australia about school and life. We are gratefully blessed with the teaching and learning resources we have here in Australia. Many students in the public school where I was doing my practicum in South Africa still had to share text books, pencils, and even chairs to sit on during class. This was really sad to see. New technology like smart-boards were not even evident
in the private school. One big difference I noticed though was how the students in South Africa adored going to school to be educated; they wanted to learn, whereas some children here take it for granted and complain. It was amazing to have experienced this practicum. It has given me a unique opportunity to gain the knowledge and skills to become a caring and understanding teacher. I know that being open- minded towards diverse cultures and accepting of different ways of life will enable me to cater for the different learning styles children will bring into the classroom.

Matthew Dang
Bachelor of Sport and Outdoor Recreation and Bachelor of Education (Primary) 2012

Local experiences

I had a fantastic time during my placement. The school was great and I enjoyed working with all of the teachers, students and my fellow Monash peers. I learnt a great deal about the primary school curriculum and was impressed and absorbed a lot of what I had seen. Michelle (mentor teacher) was a fantastic mentor, she helped me understand different areas of the curriculum and assisted me with the interaction of the different age levels and helped me how to approach and find solutions for various situations. I was very pleased to a part of and see the schools involvement with Auslan program; it was great to see the students and teachers learning and being part of such a valuable learning experience.

Samantha Vertkas
Bachelor of Arts/Education (Secondary) 2012

A placement at such a time in the course I felt was useful. Some thought that week 7-8 of Year 1 was too soon to be on placement, but I do not agree. This enabled me the opportunity to get a feel for the job, on the other side of it (teacher as opposed to student). It confirmed my interest in the profession and my observations will act as a firm basis for future placements and leter, employment. The school was very welcoming and encouraging for me to be involved. This particular school had a specific Science wing and teacher which was of particular interest to me as I am studying Science/ Education. I believe I now have a greater understanding of the knowledge that primary school students have as they enter secondary school.

Matthew DiPitta
Bachelor of Science/Education (Secondary) 2012

I had a valuable experience at my placement. The teacher and class I observed were really engaging and interesting and I saw many examples of the theories and big ideas discussed in tutorials and lectures. All the staff were really welcoming and open to assisting me or offering advice. I observed a variety of students in different leanring environments. It was a fantastic experience and I hope to continue learning during future placement opportunities.

Madeline Jackson
Bachelor of Arts/Education (Secondary) 2012

It was an amazing experience to spend this placement at this country kindergarten for several reasons:

Teachers and other staff were so very welcoming and generous in sharing their knowledge, skills and experience
Teachers and other staff worked very effectively as a team and happy to include me as a pre-service teacher
Such beautiful surroundings both at the kinder and the wider community
Strong links to the community
The teachers are very creative in their design and delivery of the kinder program.

I would recommend a country kindergarten very strongly to other pre-service teachers for placement.

Marjan Kiewiet
Bachelor of Early Childhood Studies 2012