Course overview
This course will build on preservice teachers' prior professional experiences in education sites and schools and to prepare future graduates for the challenges and opportunities of teaching in rural/regional communities. Preservice teachers will further develop their knowledge of the pressure faced by rural schools to attract and retain quality teachers. Preservice teachers will re-examine the teacher education curriculum and focus on ways to prepare teachers more effectively for rural and regional communities. Preservice teachers will also develop further understanding of rural teacher identity and the impact this has on their learning. They will obtain the skills to be school ready by taking a whole school focus: understanding rural teacher identity and teachers' work.
Course learning outcomes
- Understand the rural social space and develop a professional empathy about the implications for rural and regional education
- Investigate historical and contemporary issues and policies related to educational provision, specifically with regard to the employment and retention of teachers in rural and regional contexts
- Critique of strategies related to how to work collaboratively with colleagues, school support staff, other professionals and community-based personnel to enhance student learning outcomes and wellbeing in rural and regional communities
- Explore the opportunities and challenges of teaching in rural and regional contexts particularly in relation to leadership in the school and wider community
- Select strategies to work and live productively in a rural or regional context with an appreciation of the significance of place