School testimonials
Teach For Australia greatly values the support and involvement of our participating schools. We work together with each school to ensure that Teach For Australia Associates meet their placement schools' needs, are adequately prepared to contribute significantly to the schools' success and receive excellent support and training throughout their two years on the program. Our selection process and the competencies that we select for have been developed in conjunction with school representatives. School principals are also directly involved as assessors in our Selection Days.
"The selection process for Associates has assured their subject knowledge, willingness to learn, and eagerness to participate...As relatively fresh graduates, with high achievement in their fields, they have provided the curriculum with contemporary and relevant input.
We would confidently employ more TFA Associates! They have brought youth, enthusiasm, intelligence and humour to our school and its classes. They are capable and hard working, and we are proud to have them as colleagues."
Peter Hilbig, Principal, Stawell Secondary College.
"I had the pleasure of being invited to be part of the selection process for the 2011 Cohort. It is an extremely rigorous process and I only wish we had the time and resources to select all staff in this manner...The College routinely uses 'on Demand' testing and there is strong excidence that the Associates are making a difference.
I will not hesitate to continue to fill future vacancies with TFA Associates and they have certainly raised the bar in my school."
Trish Horner, Principal, Mill Park Secondary College.
Satisfaction across the network
Our partners in the UK and the USA both regularly survey leaders from their placement schools, the results of which show very high rates of satisfaction:
- 95% of participating principals rate Teach For America corps members as effective as, if not more effective than, other beginning teachers in terms of overall performance and impact on student achievement
- 61% regard Teach For America teachers as more effective compared with other beginning teachers in their schools with respect to their impact on student achievement
- At least one Teach First (UK) school attributed a rapid improvement in its standards almost entirely to the contribution of Teach First participants in a recent report by the Office for Standards in Education (Ofsted)
- Teach First participants were found to have transformed underperforming departments and made a very significant contribution to raising staff's aspirations of the students
For these reasons, both programs have a very high retention rate of schools who are involved in the program: 90% of principals from schools involved in Teach For America and 98% of those involved in Teach First ask for more participants.
For further evaluation of Teach For America, see their National Principal Survey Results, 2007. To read the full Ofsted report, see Teach First's website.
"Our school went from a 32% 5 A*-C GCSE pass rate to 74% in only four years. Our school ethos is now one of achievement and success when only a few years ago we were one of the lowest achieving schools in Brent. Much of this improvement is down to our involvement with the Teach First scheme."
Gill Ball, Headteacher Wembley High Technology College
"Our principals will line up to get a Teach For America teacher. They know from experience that Teach For America teachers are consistently good instructional personnel. Teach For America participants are very student focused and are highly committed to student success. Like all new teachers, they sometimes find the classroom a real challenge, but instead of succumbing, they rise to the opportunity, work through their problems, and come to a solution that will benefit the student, the teacher and the school."
Dr. Carl E. Harris, Superintendent of Durham Public Schools
If you are interested in finding out more about how your school can get involved with Teach For Australia, please email schools@teachforaustralia.org
