During placement
While on placement, you are expected to undertake certain teaching activities and conduct yourself professionally. Read the sections below to learn more about these expectations.
Placement structure expectations
Each placement subject has specific expectations about how much time you will spend teaching and what other activities you should be undertaking during your placement. Ensure you read through these requirements below and inform your supervising teacher of them so you both know how your professional experience should be structured.
EBECEO placements
The three placements in the Bachelor of Early Childhood Education Online occur in EDU2ULD, EDU3CAT, and EDU4WBL. Placements should be undertaken on a full-time basis. In exceptional circumstances, placements may be undertaken on an equivalent part-time basis (minimum of three days per week). Select your placement subject below to learn about the activities you will undertake while on your placement.
Bachelor of Education (Early Childhood & Primary; Primary; Secondary) placements
The five placements in the Bachelor of Education occur in EDU2002, EDU2004, EDU3001, EDU3002, and EDU4007. Placements should be undertaken on a full-time basis. In rare circumstances, placements may be undertaken on a part-time basis for students with Learning Access Plans.
Select your placement subject below to learn about the activities you will undertake while on your placement.
Depending on individual study plans, PSTs may take EDU2002 and EDU2004 as either their first or second placement. Select the appropriate option below.
Placement structure for EDU2002 (Early Childhood & Primary) [PDF 162KB]
Placement structure for EDU2002 (Primary and Secondary) as a first placement [PDF 101KB]
Placement structure for EDU2002 (Primary and Secondary) as a second placement [PDF 161KB]
Depending on individual study plans, PSTs may take EDU2002 and EDU2004 as either their first or second placement. Select the appropriate option below.
Placement Structure for EDU2004 (Early Childhood & Primary) [PDF 153KB]
Placement structure for EDU2004 (Primary and Secondary) as a first placement [PDF 101KB]
Placement structure for EDU2004 (Primary and Secondary) as a second placement [PDF 161KB]
Master of Teaching (Primary and Secondary) placements
The three placements in the Master of Teaching occur in EDU5013, EDU5017, and EDU5025. Placements should be undertaken on a full-time basis. In rare circumstances, placements may be undertaken on a part-time basis for students with Learning Access Plans.
Depending on your study plan, EDU5013 and EDU5017 may be taken as your novice (first) or consolidating (second) placement. Select your placement subject and type below to learn about the activities you will undertake while on your placement.
General expectations
Aside from the teaching load expectations mentioned above, there are other duties that you will be expected to engage in throughout your placement. You will:
Whenever you are not teaching, you will observe the classroom activities and assist the supervising teacher wherever possible.
For placements in Primary and Secondary settings, use the Lesson Observation Form [PDF 193KB] to structure and record your observations.
For placements in Early Childhood settings, your service may require you to complete a permission or consent form to observe children while on placement. If a service explicitly requests this, please use the La Trobe Permission to Observe Form [PDF 107KB]. You do not need to submit this form to the university, but you should keep a copy for your records.
If not requested by the service, a permission form is not required to observe children while on placement, as your observations are purely for educational purposes. However, it is best practice to:
- Let the family of a ‘focus child’ know that you will be observing their child;
- Avoid taking photographs of a child’s face;
- Use a pseudonym when referring to a child. This is particularly important when retaining documentation beyond the classroom, including when using it in an assessment task.
Forward planning of lessons is helpful to you and your supervising teacher. For school settings, use La Trobe’s Lesson Plan Template [PDF 501KB] and/or Early Childhood Template [PDF 165KB] to prepare all lessons in detail. Submit your plans to your supervising teacher the day before the lesson is to be presented, or earlier if requested. This gives you time to receive feedback and adjust if necessary. Also check timetables and plan any physical requirements (e.g., equipment, room availability, photocopier use) well in advance.
You should receive feedback from your supervising teacher after you teach, and the two of you should reflect on your teaching. You should also reflect alone on your teaching and the feedback you receive. You may be required to critically annotate your lesson plans after teaching; ensure you read the Subject Learning Guide (in the LMS) for your subject so you know the specific requirements in the weeks of your placement.
Across all your planning and teaching, keep in mind the professional experience goals that you set prior to placement and ensure your classroom activities are helping you to achieve those goals.
Participate in the daily life of the setting (e.g., staff meetings, excursions, special gatherings, sports days etc.). Keep a record of these events.
Midway through your professional experience, your supervising teacher will evaluate your progress in the Midpoint Report, which you can see in the Assessment section of this guide. You will also set 1-2 goals for the rest of the placement. This process is not a mandatory formal assessment, but rather designed to ensure you’re keeping on track.
If you need help during your placement or feel at risk of failing the placement, speak with your supervising teacher, SPC, or the University’s Placement Partnering and Operations team. Additional support is available from an academic School of Education staff member if needed. Read more about what to do if something goes wrong in Help for PSTs.
Remind your supervising teacher to complete the Supervising Teacher Report on the final day of your placement. (The Assessment section of this site has further information on this process).
Before you leave the placement setting, thank your supervising teacher, SPC, and Principal and give them a thank-you card. Also remember to return any resources that you might have borrowed from the school.
Professional conduct during placement
PSTs are expected to behave professionally at all times during placements. Key areas to be aware of include attendance, interactions with staff and students, and mobile phone, camera, and social media use.
Arriving punctually is an important part of being professional. Arrive 15-30 minutes early and stay until any meetings and commitments are fulfilled. Expect to be present from 8.30 a.m. to 4 p.m. at least.
If you are sick, running late, or unable to attend for any reason, immediately notify the school or setting. Also notify Placement Partnering and Operations via the Work Based Learning Placements Student Enquiry form. Days missed must be made up by arrangement at the same placement location as soon as possible. All required days of professional experience must be accounted for at the completion of the course. Public holidays do not count towards your placement. Student-free days are counted as completed placement days provided that you are involved in the day’s activities.
Think of your supervising teacher and other staff as colleagues. You’ll be learning from them and gaining valuable feedback, but you’re also there to contribute to the classroom. Take initiative and be alert to ways to help the supervising teacher. You should also mix with the other staff at recess and lunchtimes. This helps you understand the broader functioning of the school or setting and can give you useful information about the kinds of issues teachers face in their work.
Ensure that all your communications, whether in person, via phone or via email, are professional and respectful.
When it comes to receiving direction or feedback from your supervising teacher, try to be receptive and avoid taking criticism personally. Remember that your supervising teacher is drawing from their experience and knowledge to help you develop as a PST, so you should take their feedback seriously and act on their advice. Also, see these discussions as a dialogue: it’s important that you understand the feedback so you can implement it effectively. Don’t be afraid to ask for clarification.
Ensure you maintain an appropriate relationship with students inside and outside the classroom. Your rapport with students should be such that they like and respect you as a professional. Avoid acting overly familiar with students or it may be difficult to manage them. This doesn’t mean, however, that you should take on a classroom persona that is not in keeping with your normal self. Students generally appreciate authenticity and naturalness in a teacher, so try to be yourself. In other words, it is fine to be friendly but remember you aren’t students’ friend.
Additionally, be very conscious of student safety. Become aware of safety regulations and report any accidents, injuries or sickness immediately. Never give students permission to leave the school grounds, and do not drive them home or anywhere else. Refer incidents of concern to the supervising teacher.
Finally, you must respect students’ privacy and maintain confidentiality regarding health and family issues, except when appropriate, necessary, or legally required. PSTs should also treat students’ academic information with sensitivity.
Ensure that you’re aware of the school or service’s policy on mobile phone use, such as turning phones off, silencing them, and/ or leaving them in a designated area. Similarly, any video recording and/or photography must adhere to the policy determined by the organisation. This may include no direct photography of children or obtaining written permission from parents.
Also, while on placement, be mindful of the potential consequences of using social networking sites. Although your profile may be private, there is always a chance that your posts may become more broadly available – including profile pictures. Refrain from posting any information about placement, including identifying information and/or opinions. Do not give students or parents your mobile phone number or connect with them on social media, even once your placement is complete.
Next step
Now that you know what you’ll do during placement, learn about how your placement is assessed and preview the report your supervising teacher will complete in the Assessment section.