We
also learned about dealing with parents but I suppose you
learn a lot of that on the job, and as a parent myself I
know that experience counts for a lot as well. But there
are little ideas like it's sometimes better to talk to them
outside the school, somewhere neutral, because they mightn't
have had good experiences at school themselves.
And
sometimes all some parents hear from the school is negative
stuff. So it's good if you can ring up and say 'Billy's
had a good day at school. He's got work to show you'. That's
good for everyone. Everyone needs some positives.
The
there was a module about school structures. You know, until
it's explained to you, you don't really know how it fits
together, from the principal to the bursar. And the school
charter, for instance, I'd heard about it but we had a chance
to look at it in detail - what it was, how it came about
and what the school priorities were. And how important it
all was.
We
did a lot about computers as well. I'd been to computer
in-services before but when I was up there in Ballarat we
were all Koorie Educators and we were all really concentrating.
And that was the difference.
Then
there was an interesting module where we had to plan literacy
lessons over six weeks for two lessons per week and then
work back at school with kids who might have been having
trouble. So I talked to the teacher and came up with my
own lesson plans, using what we had learned at Ballarat.
Then I worked with a particular kid and we saw some results.
Working one-on-one you really feel you're involved, but
you need to know what you're doing and why.
So
learning about lesson plans was another good thing. I'd
heard about them but I didn't really know about them until
I had to do them myself. It's harder in a way than just
sitting in a class with a kid, doing a bit of reading and
writing, but it's better when you know what you're trying
to achieve and how you're going to get there.
The
course definitely helps you to plan and work better with
teachers, too. I had a lot of support from the teachers
at my school at the time. They'd stop classes so I could
talk to the kids about what I'd been doing in my course.
The
kids were great, too. Some of them miss you when you're
away for the course because I used to go out and play sport
with them at the end of the day, and stuff like that. They
always ask you how long you're going to be away for and
when you're coming back. But when you are back you find
you're a role model for the kids and you can tell them what
university's all about. They want to know. I tell them that
I hadn't been at school for a long time and I wasn't sure
I would be able to handle it. But you know, with the support
around you, you can do it.
Back
in the late 1990s, we realised that Koorie Educators
['Aboriginal Education Workers' or 'Aboriginal Education
Assistants' in other States] needed some more training
to help them do their job. We knew that a lot of Koorie
Educators didn't want to be teachers, though.
