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More than 100 private school educators in NSW will give up their holiday to assess the applications of peers seeking Experienced Teacher status.
This month, the Association of Independent Schools NSW (AISNSW) held its annual teacher accreditation day at its Sydney office, with some teachers travelling up to 500km to take part.
Dr Geoff Newcombe AM, Chief Executive of AISNSW lauded the dedication of the teachers.
“We had 105 dedicated teachers give up part of their holidays to review applications from 260 of their peers for recognition as Experienced Teachers – a more challenging level of accreditation beyond Proficient Teacher that recognises their practice and increases their remuneration,” he said
“It’s been an annual event since 2006 that’s seen more than 2000 applications assessed by dedicated and highly trained teachers in a very collegiate environment.”
Luke Polson, a primary teacher at The Armidale School, came to Sydney for the opportunity to be among a fraternity of highly experienced and passionate teachers.
“This is very good for teachers like me in regional schools, because we don’t get opportunities like this to network with other teachers outside our own school,” Polson, who attained his Experienced Teacher status in 2018, said.
“It will make me a better mentor for future teachers – just having a better understanding of this whole process is what I am looking for.”
Selina Giles, a highly experienced Technical and Applied Studies (TAS) teacher at Newington College in Sydney’s inner west, said being part of the panel exposes teachers to different approaches that make each independent school unique.
“I don’t think of it as giving up my holidays; it’s just one of those professional developments I do each year that I truly value,” Giles, an AISNSW senior assessor, said.
“The blend of professional learning and the collegiality help me as a teacher and a leader in my school.”
Giles said this justifies what teachers are doing professionally and helps them identify areas of improvement.
“It keeps me on my toes and keeps me questioning my own practice,” she said.
“It’s really important to mix with colleagues outside of your own bubble. I think as teachers we get very caught up in the way teaching and learning happens in our school.”
AISNSW head of teacher accreditation, Estelle Lewis, said teachers recognised the event is exceptionally good professional learning and has many other benefits.
“They look at other teachers’ practice; they get great ideas, and they then internalise that for their own practice,” she said.
“Some participate because they want to support their fellow teachers, while others are simply curious because they’ve been an Experienced Teacher applicant and want to see what it’s like on the other side.”