Australian Rural Education Award (AREA) 2012 Winner

Congratulations to 2012 Australian Rural Education Award winner, Kingston Primary School.

Kingston Primary School is based in Western Australia. It won the 2012 AREA for the Kingston Internship Model.

In second semester 2012, Kingston Primary School had 12 additional qualified teachers whose prime focus was to improve the literacy and numeracy outcomes of Kingston Primary School students. The interns:

• held a duty of care
• knew all of the students in their class
• knew all of the parents in their class
• understood Kingston Primary School procedures
• knew the culture of the school.

The Kingston Internship Model was based on Twomey (2007, p.63) who said, “The more effective the practicum component of the pre-service program, the greater the livelihood of retaining new graduates in the profession.”

From an intern’s perspective, the Kingston Internship Model provided:

• a supportive environment while learning
• the opportunity to put university education into perspective
• increased knowledge of classroom and school routines
• recognition by school staff
• the opportunity to know children for a full year
• a positive support network
• behaviour management knowledge
• opportunities for further professional development
• the experience of a full year of teaching
• increased knowledge of the curriculum and how to teach it.

We invite you to review the Kingston Primary School’s Internship Model presentation in SlideShare.