Leadership Development Program

As it stands, not every child in Australia has access to the education they deserve: children from the lowest income households are on average three years behind in school. Teach For Australia seeks to break the cycle of educational inequity, to level the playing field for young people across Australia by recruiting and developing leaders in education.

Over two years, as an Associate in our award-winning Leadership Development Program, you’ll teach subject areas directly related to your previous studies – and you’ll become part of a dedicated community committed to tackling educational inequity.

As a leader in the classroom, you’ll share your passions with young people and act as a role model and mentor. You’ll develop the skills and experience to enable you to lead effectively, with the opportunity to make a tangible positive impact on students, schools and communities – every single day.

You will teach in subject areas directly related to previous studies (regardless of whether you have just graduated or are more than 10 years out) and in accordance with the subject requirements of placement schools. All Associates teach secondary school level classes ranging from Year 7.

Teaching is not an easy profession – and the nature of the program is even more challenging. We provide Associates with a comprehensive network to support their professional development and successful completion of the program, and to maintain their health and wellbeing.

Your Teaching and Leadership Adviser (TLA) is an experienced teacher who will provide rigorous one-on-one coaching, regular classroom observations and pastoral care to guide your development as a teacher and leader throughout the program.

Your ACU Academic Mentor will support and supervise your progress throughout the degree and guide your achievement of the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers.

Your School Mentor will be an experienced teacher at your placement school who will provide day-to-day practical support and assists with integration into life at the school and within the local community.

The Teach For Australia community is a national network of leaders who share best practice, emotional support and collaboration towards achieving change. Each member of the cohort will have different passions, interests, skill sets and strengths, but you will share the Teach For Australia experience and commitment to tackling educational disadvantage.

Associates are able to access all ACU Student Services including course and assessment advice, administrative support and health and wellbeing services, regardless of placement location.

Associates can also connect with the global network of leaders around the world as part of the Teach For All network, with Alumni available to discuss international education and classroom best practice, school leadership, social innovation and policy.

Associates’ salaries are comparable to other graduate teachers, and increase as commensurate with experience and progression.

During the program, Associates are employed and paid by the relevant government department of education or school. Salaries and other employment conditions will vary depending on the state or territory of placement.

The majority of program costs are covered by Teach For Australia, in partnership with the Australian Government, on an assisted scholarship. Associates are required to contribute a portion towards the Master’s degree, with access to FEE-HELP for these payments (eligibility requirements apply).

All candidates must meet four criteria to be eligible to apply for the Leadership Development program.

• You must be an Australian citizen or Permanent Resident at time of applying (New Zealand citizens must have Australian Permanent Residency at the time of applying).
• You must hold a Bachelor degree in a discipline other than teaching by end of the year.
• You must be willing to accept a placement within one of our jurisdictions.
• Be able to enrol in at least two learning areas (see below).

Several components make up the program to ensure you are continually supported and developing throughout the two years.

Teach For Australia Associates don’t start out as teachers. In fact, they come from all academic disciplines and career backgrounds. Throughout our  selection process, we assess for eight competencies we know are present in excellent teachers and leaders

Online application & assessment

The application is an opportunity for you to demonstrate your past experience and why you want to participate in the program. After you submit your application, you will be sent a link to register for web-based gamification assessment (hosted by Arctic Shores). All candidates must complete both parts of stage one in order to progress.

Interview (conducted virtually via Zoom)

If your online application is successful, you’ll be invited for a 45-minute interview, allowing us to better understand your experiences and motivations.

Selection Day

If you progress to this stage, you’ll be invited to a day of assessment activities including a a sample teaching lesson, mock parent-teacher interview, and group activity.

Throughout the process, we assess candidates many times and in numerous ways to ensure you have several opportunities to demonstrate your abilities, skills and experiences. We are looking for your ability to demonstrate the following eight competencies, which are based on evidence of effectiveness in the classroom:

• Leadership: Have you made meaningful contributions during university, extracurricular activities and/or work? Have you demonstrated leadership of people or processes in your endeavours?
• Commitment to our vision and mission: Are you eager to bring about change and make a difference in the lives of the students you teach? Do you passionately and actively believe in the power of education as a force for social justice?
• Communication and influencing ability: Are you a clear and confident communicator? Are you able to influence and motivate others? Do you have maturity and presence? Are you an active listener?
• Problem solving: Are you able to think critically, analyse information and generate relevant solutions to problems? Can you adapt quickly to new information?
• Organisational and planning ability: Are you able to plan, organise and prioritise your activities effectively to meet deadlines?
• Resilience: Are you willing to work hard with resilience and optimism to overcome obstacles? Do you relish a challenge and are you driven to succeed?
• Humility, respect and empathy: Do you operate with humility? Do you show respect and empathy towards others? Do you look for the best in the people around you?
• Learning and self-evaluation: Are you open to learning from others and do you seek out opportunities to do so? Do you take ownership for development with regards to your own performance?

We place Associates exclusively in schools serving low socioeconomic communities, working in the regions and communities that need the most support. Working in close collaboration with fellow Associates, teachers, school leaders and the community, participants are generally placed in a cluster within the same school and schools nearby, increasing the opportunity for impact within the communities we operate in.

Conditional offer

If you are successful at a Selection Day, we will extend you a conditional offer.

Placement

Once you’ve been placed, we encourage you to connect with your school and plan for potential relocation before commencing teaching in early 2022.

The placement process begins in September and runs through until December. We exist to meet school demand and the majority of placements are confirmed by mid-November. However, a number of Associates commence training at National Initial Intensive before their placement is confirmed.

The best way to find out if this is the program for you is to join us at an information session or workshop. You’ll learn more about our work, the program and what we look for in applicants.