teaching teachers 2006
The Parliamentary Education Office (PEO) has a home inside Parliament House, Canberra. From this base we reach out to teachers throughout Australia. In 2006 the PEO presented the following professional development programs:
- a Pre-service Teachers Program (PTP) for teachers-in-training from the Launceston campus of the University of Tasmania
- several Pathways to Parliament programs for primary school teachers in locations across Western Australia, Victoria and New South Wales
- a PEO Fellowships program for secondary teachers Western Australia.
2006 Teaching Teachers programs
Launceston pre-service teachers
In August 2006, four of these students consolidated their new parliamentary knowledge and understanding in the place where it all happens—Parliament House, Canberra. Students in the ir final year of teacher training and with placements in various primary schools close to Launceston were selected for the program. They were:
Michelle Youl - Trevallyn Primary School
Michael Campbell - Penguin Primary School
Jason Smith - Penguin Primary School
Janelle Murfet - Youngtown Primary School
Gabrielle Frurk - Perth Primary School
The pre-service teachers used PEO strategies and resources in the classroom for a week, with the support of PEO educators and the ir supervising teachers. This experience equipped the teachers-in-training with a unique set of practical classroom teaching skills derived from the parliamentary process.
In August 2006, these four students consolidated the ir new parliamentary knowledge and understanding in the place where it all happens—Parliament House, Canberra. During their week-long visit the students observed PEO educators facilitating parliamentary role-plays with students of all ages, abilities and locations and watched the chamber in action to see how the Parliament arrives at informed decisions. These new teachers will now enter the work-force in the confidence that they have a successful teaching strategy that fulfils many needs within and beyond the curriculum. The PEO wishes them well!
Pathways across Australia
During 2005 the PEO prepared a new professional development program for primary teachers—Pathways to Parliament—in 2006 Pathways took off!
The response from teachers attending the Pathways to Parliament program in 2006 has been most enthusiastic. Here is a comment from a happy participant, sent by email afterwards:
During the Pathways program, teachers representing various schools, come together in a host school and are introduced to a developmental sequence of PEO resources and strategies for teaching and learning. The host school is presented with a full set of resources, courtesy of the PEO. The multiplier effect of the Pathways program encourages participants to take the new learning back to many classrooms in numerous schools and creates professional networking opportunities between schools, local members of parliament and the PEO.
The PEO attended the Australian Primary Principals Association (APPA) conference in Alice Springs in September 2006. During the conference the PEO was able to meet with principals from right across Australia who want to host Pathways to Parliament in 2007.
The ‘Black Swan’ fellows
The PEO Fellowships program is for the professional development of educators who are already well established in secondary schools. For many parliamentary fellows it is a profound experience and one that can change the course of their teaching career.
The Hon. David Hawker MP, Speaker of the House of Representatives pictured with the Black Swan fellows
The following teachers were invited to participate in what was nick-named the ‘Black Swan’ fellowship program during February 2006:
Mike Filer - Australind Senior High School
Lynette De San Miguel - Wesley College
Lorna Wardle - Morley Senior High School
John Willmott - Tuart College
Alana Young - Mt Lawley Senior High School
Ros Marshall - John Curtin Prime Ministerial Libaray
Their visit was planned to coincide with one of the first parliamentary sittings of the year and included committee hearings of budget estimates. A very full immersion program had the group sometimes running between assignments, combining observation of parliamentary debates and hearings with visits to members and senators and exploration of the building including its underground workshop, the press gallery and the parliamentary library. As always, this program was supported by a large number of other parliamentary officers working in the building who gave time and hospitality beyond expectations.