Mid-career professionals interested in teaching
 |
Mid-career professionals who are looking for a change in direction need look no further than the education program at Macquarie University.
During the last decade the student population at Macquarie has changed to include a high percentage of mature-aged students. Approximately 50 per cent of students enrolled in teacher education courses are mature-aged and come from a wide range of backgrounds including business, law, full-time home duties, early childhood and service professions.
A key feature of the Vincent Fairfax Family Foundation supported Teachers for the Future program at Macquarie is a focus on attracting mature-age professionals into teaching.
"The existing teacher education program is extremely well regarded," says Professor Ian Gibson, Vincent Fairfax Family Foundation Chair in Education. "Our current project is looking at finding ways to add value to the existing program by focusing on the mature-age student experience."
A series of research grants has provided support for a number of groups to explore the mature-age experience. "We need to understand their experience because they bring a different set of skills to teaching than school leavers and therefore need to be treated differently," says Gibson.
Gibson, along with Dr Wilhelmina Van Rooy and Dr Michael Cavanagh from the School of Education have been meeting with an established cohort of mature-aged learners who are set to graduate next year. Through these meetings they are trying to establish the components of support that could make their transition to teaching more effective.
"What we discover from the current cohort of mid-career professionals and from collaborating employers will be incorporated into the 2008 program," he says.
Teachers with experience
Another major goal of this initiative is to increase the numbers of teachers with experience and maturity entering the profession as many of the baby boomers are retiring and taking with them their organisational memory and knowledge.
"We are particularly focusing on mid-career professionals who want to become high school science, technology and maths teachers, which is the greatest area of need," explains Gibson.
Industry Partners
Gibson has also established links with the Northern and Western Sydney Regions of the Department of Education and Training, as well as the Catholic Education Office. These employers will work together with Macquarie University to provide support during the initial years of teaching.
The largest attrition rate of teachers comes during the first five years in the profession and this program is designed to reduce the numbers of new teachers who leave the profession.
"We want to ensure that we don't lose any teachers," says Gibson. "The University and employers will work together to support mature-aged graduates when they start teaching. We want high quality, dedicated and experienced professionals in front of our kids and these mid-career professionals can add value to the learning environment."
For further information contact Professor Ian Gibson ian.gibson@mq.edu.au