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Once you have completed your application on the Student Placement Management System (SPMS) it is processed by the Professional Experience Office and subsequently, you will be advised of the location of your Professional Experience. Placements take a few weeks to finalise, so please be patient and do not contact the Professional Experience Team, they will contact you.
No. Once a PE placement has been made you are obliged to take up the placement. Forfeiting the placement will result in the PE being delayed until the next scheduled PE period. This will extend your course completion date.
In the School of Education the Professional Experience Officers make approximately 2000 placements for Pre-service Teachers throughout the year. To secure this number of Professional Experience placements, in excess of 3000 approaches are made to schools annually; some schools decline to take pre-service teachers. To ensure equity and to meet the needs of all pre-service teachers a centralised process for Professional Experience placements has been established. You need to be aware that every year it becomes increasingly difficult to place students in the locations requested.
Tasmanian Schools cannot accept requests from individuals and CANNOT approve Professonial Experience placements. If you are interstate or overseas, you are welcomed and encouraged to source your own placement. More details about this can be found in the Procedural Guidelines under Requesting a Professional Experience Placement.
You cannot be placed in a school where there may be a conflict of interest. More details regarding this can be found in the Procedural Guidelines under Requesting a Professional Experience Placement.
You are advised to seek a variety of Professional Experience placements. We strongly advise all pre-service teachers to consider the range of schools in which they could work: for example government, non government, large, small, advantaged, disadvantaged, progressive, traditional, co-ed and single sex. More details regarding this can be found in the Procedural Guidelines.
No. Professional Experience will be undertaken at strictly scheduled times during the year. The calendar for Professional Experience is published at the start of each year. You must arrange to be available for the entire period of your Professional Experience placement. Those with exceptional circumstances may request a variation.
With the possible exception of Professional Experience 1, no. It is important that from the outset as a pre-service teacher you are seen as a professional colleague not a volunteer. Sometimes, Professional Experience placements at the same school site can result in a conflict of interest for all involved.
Yes, contact the relevant coordinator. There are specific guidelines for applying to undertake such Professional Experience placements. More details regarding alternative placements can be found in the Procedural Guidelines under requesting a Professional Experience placement and opportunities for remote Professional Experience Placements.
No. Pre-service teachers cannot be given legal responsibility for a class, you are not a registered teacher.
No. Under the agreement between the education sectors a pre-service teacher is NOT to be paid during a Professional Experience placement.
No. Professional Experience placements must be undertaken full-time. You need to attend the school for full days/weeks as set out in the Procedural Guidelines.
An agreement exists between the Teachers Registration Board (TRB),Tasmania, and the University of Tasmania, Faculty of Education with regard to conducting Student Good Character Determinations for pre-service teachers wanting to undertake Professional Experience in educational sites.
The Department of Education and all non-government schools are therefore assured of the suitability of pre-service teachers to undertake Professional Experience placements in their schools. Check the TRB website for details on registration for opportunities to teach (LATS or Relief Teaching) in your final year.
A Student Good Character Determination is organised by the TRB. Only students who have received a Student Good Character Determination from the TRB will be permitted to participate in any Professional Experience session in, or visits to, any Tasmanian state or registered school. The clearance is valid for the duration of the course and the course applied for ONLY. You can find more details at www.trb.tas.gov.au. Interstate pre-service teachers must hold the equivalent relevant state clearance.
Some schools which are located in rural/remote areas may offer accommodation for pre-service teachers during their Professional Experience placement. The types of accommodation which may be available range from hostel type accommodation to boarding in the home of your colleague teacher or Principal for the duration of your placement. You will be expected to meet any costs associated with accommodation (and travel) during your placement. You may wish to discuss this with staff in the Professional Experience Office when considering where you would like to undertake your placement.
A school is entitled to expect the same level of commitment from a pre-service teacher as is required of permanent teaching staff. Your Professional Experience will be continuous and full-time. You must arrive and depart from the school as if you are a full-time teacher and endeavour to participate fully in school activities (with staff and students).
Punctuality and preparation are the keys to a successful Professional Experience. Utmost in your mind must be the safety of the students and yourself. Please read more in the Code of Conduct and Pre-service Teacher responsibilities pages.
The colleague teacher remains responsible for the management of their classroom programs and for ensuring that the work undertaken by the pre-service teacher during the Professional Experience is integrated into the total curriculum planning for each class. The colleague teacher remains responsible for the overall supervision of the class and the pre-service teacher. Please read more in the colleague teacher responsibilities page.
As a pre-service teacher you will NOT be given legal responsibility for the class during any Professional Experience placements.
Pre-service teachers must plan ahead in terms of:
On your first visit to your school look at the standard of dress of your teacher colleagues and ask your colleague teacher about the dress code of the school. You must present yourself as a member of the profession. Specific details about this can be found in the procedural guidelines under school requirements.
Dignity, respect, integrity, empathy and justice are part of the code of conduct you will sign onto as a registered teacher and as a pre-service teacher you will be expected to adhere to these principles and to be treated by your teacher colleagues as a professional. Remember the little things: pay your tea money, park your car in the designated area, adhere to the laws regarding smoking, say thank you to your colleague teacher.
Your first responsibility is to make contact with the school BEFORE the school day begins (or the night before if possible). Remember a classroom of children may be counting on you. On the first day you return to the school site you must complete a Leave of Absence Form. The form must then be faxed to the Professional Experience Office on +61 3 6324 3453.
The school is advised to keep the original copy of the Leave of Absence Form for the purpose of recording the accurate number of days completed by you during the placement.
Please make sure you inform your university mentor, the school principal and colleague teacher. Providing you are in good health (a medical certificate may be required at some schools) you will be able to take part in a Professional Experience placement up to 6 weeks before the birth of your child and 6 weeks after the birth.
Yes you do. ALL days must be made up to allow you to meet Teacher Registration requirements when you complete your degree. You need to negotiate with your Colleague Teacher a mutually agreeable schedule to allow all missed days to be made up.
You cannot make up missed days when University lectures and tutorials are scheduled. You need to fill in the Negotiated Days Following Absence and ask your colleague teacher to sign it. After completion the form must be sent to the Professional Experience Office and be received prior to you commencing the negotiated days. For ease of delivery the form can be faxed to the Office on +61 3 6324 3453.
Schools and their grounds are smoke-free zones, thus no smoking is permitted on the school site during your Professional Experience placement.
You need to advise your colleague teacher and school principal of the accident and fill in an Accident and Incident Form available at the school. This document will then be sent to the Director of Professional Experience. Costs incurred, beyond those covered by Medicare, can be claimed through UTAS Personal Accident Insurance. Please speak to the Professional Experience Office for assistance.
Social events are not deemed to be legitimate reasons for not attending your Professional Experience placement.
If you have not commenced your Professional Experience placement, you need to contact the Professional Experience Office immediately. The Professional Experience Office will want to contact your placement school to make an apology as soon as possible.
The School of Education prides itself on its presentation as a professional organisation and early notification of any Professional Experience changes is essential. If you have already commenced the Professional Experience placement and then decide to withdraw you will need to make immediate contact with the university mentor, the Professional Experience Office and the Principal and colleague teacher of the school. See Withdrawing from Professional Experience for more information.
Confidential counselling services are available at the University to assist you through this time if you so desire. Go to http://www.studentservices.utas.edu.au/counselling/
This means that there are concerns about you being able to complete your Professional Experience successfully. You will be advised in writing of the reasons you have been placed at risk. Your university mentor will be notified of your position by your colleague teacher and you can expect a meeting to be held with you, university and school personnel to plan how you can be supported at that time.
Subsequent satisfactory improvement in the highlighted areas of weakness could result in you passing the Professional Experience placement. See the Professional Experience at Risk Policy for more details.
Unfortunately some pre-service teachers do not achieve a satisfactory rating on every Professional Experience. If you are not successful on a Professional Experience placement the university mentor your colleague teacher, and your school principal will meet to discuss the details of your Professional Experience.
You will need to repeat the Professional Experience in the next scheduled period at a different location in a similar school. An individual preparation for placement plan needs to be completed before another Professional Experience placement can be undertaken. Contact the relevant Professional Experience Leader for more details. UTAS policy is that two (2) failed Professional Experiences in one year will result in termination of your degree.
It is quite possible that you will not form a lasting friendship with every colleague teacher on every Professional Experience placement. Your quest is for a professionally rewarding experience that will allow you to grow developmentally as a pre-service teacher. If you feel you are not being treated fairly or in line with the TRB Code of Conduct contact your university mentor for advice.
Our best advice is if you need assistance ask for help. Even if you approach the wrong university person he/she will direct you to the responsible person to assist with your concerns.
Remember it is best to deal with problems when they arise. Issues are much easier to handle when they first come up and this can save much anxiety and stress for you, and indeed all, involved.
If your question is not answered here, have you read the Procedural Guidelines?