For the team at Para West, the experience of teaching in the PAL course in their second year was completely different to the challenges and uncertainties of their first year in 2002.
It’s hard to make the comparison because we are so much more at ease, I think, as teachers. The four of us have all said “It’s so much easier this year.” [And] I think we have conveyed this to the students [because] the students seem to be coping more easily this year.
The team is the same group as last year’s at Para West, [and] it’s been fantastic to work with the same group of teachers…from a management point of view.
We have a very supportive team…[and] our determination to make this pilot work has meant that our communication with each other has been open and effective.
And the teachers, including the coordinator, all obviously enjoyed teaching in the PAL program considerably more in 2003, with the confidence arising from their experience in 2002 not only of the expectations and standards required but the knowledge that they and their students had been successful in the first year of the pilot course. The workload, while obviously a challenge, was also considerably less the second time around. For example, in reference to the additional teaching materials each of the Para West teachers produced for themselves and their students in 2002,
Now in the second year it’s not as necessary to have so many props for us, if you like. I don’t think any of us have done a huge amount more development [of teaching and learning support materials]
The examples of the 2002 students’ work at Para West in each of the PAL subjects were significant in guiding the teachers at the other schools, as well as bolstering the confidence of the Para West teachers.
…being able to share those might have bolstered the way a bit for the other teachers. And answering the kind of questions…school based rather than university based, ...[about] organisational things
And the experience of teaching for the staff and learning for the new 2003 students has been enriched by contact with the 2002 PAL ‘graduates’:
Early in the year almost all of them came back and met this year’s group
There will be a form of graduation ceremony, at which the 2002 group will receive their certificates of completion and achievement from the University, during the campus visit for the 2003 group, to be held at the University’s Magill campus in June 2003
The teachers at the three new schools faced some of the challenges of the first year at Para West, in terms of the additional preparation demanded of them as teachers and their lack of confidence about the expectations of the course and especially its assessment standards. However this was been considerably eased by the additional support available from the Para West teachers and coordinator, as well as the ongoing guidance from the relevant academic as occurred in 2002. The latter was most significant in the first month or two of the year and has subsequently become less intensive in both its need and expression than in 2002.
…being able to send work to Magill and get feedback from [the academics] was just so reassuring…But then we only had to use them in the first month and [now] we are alright.
As at Para West, the teachers involved with the PAL course in each of the three newer schools formed and worked in supportive teams within their schools,
…we do have team meetings. And we have done moderation together, and we’ve shared experiences [about the students and the course]
…the team is working well, the sense of teamwork is good…we’re all keeping each other afloat
as well as seeking and receiving guidance and advice from the Para West team and, less frequently, the University staff. The quality and availability of the latter was acknowledged in all of the teachers’ interviews.
The preparation for the teachers in the three new schools, especially those responsible for Critical Literacy, was very demanding as was the challenge of dealing with such different materials and such a different course.
They find the preparation hard going
…didn’t quite know where to pitch it
…it was all new conceptually
…the genre has been really difficult because it’s different to secondary school…so the University of South Australia have been teaching us also, as teachers
However, as with Para West in 2002, the teaching rewards and their professional satisfactions from coming to terms with the demands of the new course and seeing the growth and development of their students, and the individual stimulation for the teachers from these intellectual challenges were also evident and readily expressed.
I think the bottom line is they’re enjoying it but are finding it quite demanding
I’ve enjoyed it and have been learning myself from teaching the course
Professionally it’s been great…A new lease of life…Very exciting…Very rewarding…Professional growth
…the interest and the success and the joy of working with them, they restore your faith in the goodness of your job. You know, the contribution to society.
Most, probably all of the teachers commented upon the challenges and satisfactions of teaching students who not only were extremely motivated but who responded so positively to the learning and opportunities for intellectual growth.
…it’s enhanced their life. They are loving it [and] it is opening up the world for them. I think it’s very, very powerful.
It’s just the joy of learning you see in them.
They are going to be just wonderful at uni.