The ethos of leadership development within Teach For Australia doesn’t just extend to Associates; it’s also an opportunity to foster a stronger culture of leadership within your school’s existing teaching body.
Teachers teaching teachers
As part of our commitment to ensure Associates are placed in supportive school environments, participating principals select an In-school Mentor for each Associate who has the skills and capacity to support the Associate on a day-to-day basis.
Mentoring a Teach For Australia Associate provides an important leadership role for experienced teaching staff. Through their study at MGSE, Mentors receive training to support their work as pedagogical coaches, in providing pastoral care, and in developing new emerging school leaders.
“One of the staff members commented to me the other day... ‘I love it now that the talk about teaching is just on such a higher level and that there’s so much conversation in the staff room around teaching’ – and it’s because the Associates are there.”
Trish Horner, Principal, Mill Park Secondary College
Formal qualifications for In-school Mentors
The In-school Mentor receives funded formal education from MGSE, requiring a commitment of five days over the two years, which when successfully completed (if undertaken in assessed-mode) will earn them a Professional Certificate in Education (Teach For Australia Mentoring) from MGSE.
Mentors work closely with the Associate’s Clinical Specialist and Training and Leadership Adviser, play a role in Associate assessment, and may apply their mentor training toward a 25% equivalent of a Masters qualification (if completed in assessed-mode).
An opportunity for principals to lead from the front
Participating in the Teach For Australia program offers principals the opportunity to further develop their network of like-minded leaders - across educational policy, school leadership and academic delivery - who are making an exciting contribution to the conversation on addressing educational disadvantage in Australia.
From participating in selection days and attending networking events, to speaking on leadership panels and volunteering for media engagements, our partnering principals and their senior leadership teams are invited into a number of opportunities through which they can contribute their invaluable insights and experience toward furthering a culture of leadership and innovation throughout all facets of our program. We deeply value the community of Teach For Australia principals, and regularly seek their guidance on how to improve the program to suit their needs.
