Latest News

10Oct

Top tips for your study

On this page, you will find important information you need to know before you start your higher education or VET studies.

Tips for getting a HELP loan

1. Get a tax file number (TFN) early!

If you want to use a HELP loan or a Vet Student Loan to pay for your study, you must submit your valid TFN (or valid Certificate of application for a TFN) by the census date. Otherwise, you will not be able to use a loan for that study period.

  • Your TFN is a unique number allocated to you by the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) for tax, HELP repayments (including VET Student Loans and VET FEE-HELP) and other purposes. When you access a HELP loan, including a VET Student Loan, the debt is recorded against your TFN and repayments are made via the tax system.
  • You must advise your provider of your TFN within 21 days of receiving it. You have to provide your TFN because repayments on your HELP debt are made through the Australian taxation system. You must keep your TFN secure. More information is available in the VET Student Loans information booklet 2017.
  • If you do not have a TFN yet because you do not have a job, you must apply to the ATO for one.
  • Keep your TFN secure and treat it like your bank pin. HELP debts are recorded against your TFN so you must be sure about who you're giving your TFN out to.
  • If your information is not assessed as correct by the ATO, your application will not be finalised and you will be ineligible for a HELP loan.

2. Why do you need to protect your TFN?

Your TFN is an important part of establishing your identity when you start a new job, open bank accounts and apply for government benefits.

How can you keep your TFN secure?

Keep your TFN (and other personal details such as bank account passwords) secure by:

  1. not carrying them in your purse or wallet and not storing them in your mobile phone,
  2. not sharing them with friends (including on social networking websites),
  3. disposing of documents containing identity details by shredding or otherwise destroying them,
  4. installing up-to-date anti-virus software on your computer, and
  5. only providing your identity details to trusted or reliable organisations.

You can visit www.ato.gov.au for more information about TFNs and protecting your personal information.

3. Who should you provide your TFN to, in order to access a HELP loan (including VET Student Loans)?

  • You should only provide your TFN to access a HELP loan (including a VET Student Loan) once you have decided to undertake your course. Ensure you know exactly who you are providing your TFN to, and don’t be afraid to ask for proof of identity from anyone asking for your TFN.
  • Once you have expressed interest in enrolling in a course, your institution will assess your eligibility to undertake the course (i.e. whether you have the correct foundation knowledge to commence/will have to undertake an enabling course before enrolling).

Be mindful of who you provide your TFN/personal information to.

  • You should be aware that some education institutions use a marketing agent/broker to advertise their courses and enrol students. These agents/brokers DO NOT work for the Australian Government. You may see these agents/brokers at the train station, shopping mall, or outside other public places. They may even knock on your door or phone you. These marketing agents/brokers are required to identify themselves to you as someone acting on behalf of the relevant institution. If you decide to proceed with enrolling with the marketing agent/broker, you may need to provide them with some personal details. If you are uncomfortable doing this, you can instead enrol directly with the institution. However, never provide these marketing agents/brokers with your username or password from government agencies like Centrelink or MyGov.
  • Similarly, you should be wary of any education institution/marketing agent/broker offering you a free computer, tablet, phone, or other incentive to enrol. If it sounds too good to be true, then it probably is. Although most marketing agents/brokers do the right thing when recruiting students, there are some that don't. Some may try to pressure or trick you into handling over your TFN and other information like your name and date of birth. Remember, HELP debts including VET Student Loans are recorded against your TFN – so be careful of who you give this information to and do not give your TFN out just to obtain a ‘free’ product.

If you are considering undertaking a Vocational Education and Training course and an education agent/broker approaches you and offers to sign you up for a course where there is access to VET Student Loans, this practice is not acceptable. Greater protections are now in place for students and broker activity, and the offering of incentives and cold calling are banned. Visit www.education.gov.au/vet-student-loans for more information.

4. Know your census date (deadline)

  • Census dates are critical to requesting Commonwealth assistance/finalising your payment arrangements so that your enrolment is not cancelled. See Deadlines and withdrawals for more information.
  • If eligible, the census date is the last day you can access a HELP loan or a VET Student Loan to pay for your studies, or to withdraw your enrolment without incurring the fees or a HELP debt (including a VET Student Loans debt) for your studies. Even one day is too late, so don’t be caught out! Saying you were unaware of your census date, or that no-one told you, are not acceptable excuses.
  • Education providers set their own census dates, within rules set by the Australian Government. You must contact your education institution for information about when your census date is.
  • To withdraw from a unit or course without incurring a HELP debt (including a VET Student Loans debt) or losing an upfront payment, you need to complete your institution’s formal withdrawal procedures by the census date. You need to complete the formal withdrawal process for every unit you want to withdraw from, including any units for future study periods. If the course you want to withdraw from involved enrolling at more than one institution, you will need to withdraw from each institution separately. For more information about the correct withdrawal procedures, contact your institution directly.

General tips for your studies

1. What are your provider’s student policies?

  • Your provider is your number one source of information for study-related queries. Student administration staff will be able to assist you with all enrolment and administration matters, or they will direct you to the appropriate area.
  • Find out your provider’s policy for contacting students. If its policy is to contact you by an in-house email system (e.g. a student mail account), it is your responsibility to check your email on a regular basis, either on campus or at your local public library. If you cannot access Commonwealth assistance or your enrolment is cancelled because you missed the census date, claiming you did not have access to email or being unaware you had to check your email are not acceptable excuses.
  • Find out your provider’s academic probation policy. If you are not progressing satisfactorily in your course your provider may choose to cancel your enrolment, regardless of whether you have already incurred a HELP debt or made an upfront payment for that study.
  • If you are undertaking a vocational education and training (VET) course, you must ensure you have registered for a Unique Student Identifier (USI) at www.usi.gov.au (Opens in a new window).

2. You are responsible for your own education.

  • Due to privacy requirements, providers cannot disclose information to your spouse, parent or anyone else about your payment details, HELP loan or VET Student Loan, attendance or other personal matters.
  • If you remain enrolled in a unit past the census date but choose not to attend any classes or hand in any assignments your provider is not obligated to find out why. You will incur the full student contribution amount/tuition fee or HELP debt for that unit.

3. Get involved!

If you are studying online or by distance, social media pages, blogs and online discussion groups are excellent avenues for connecting with fellow students.

4. Are you the first in your family to go to uni?

The First in Family (opens in a new window) website is designed to assist current and intending university students who are the first in their immediate family to go to university, in addition to supporting their families, and those who work within the higher education sector.

The dedicated resources on that website are designed to ensure a successful transition into the university environment.

5.What can you do if you have a complaint?

As a domestic student, if you are not satisfied with the quality of service or training being provided, and you think your provider is breaching or has breached its legal requirements, your first course of action is to have your complaint investigated through your provider’s internal complaints and appeals process. You can refer to your provider’s website for detailed information about this process.

If you are enrolled at an approved VET FEE-HELP or VET Students Loans provider, and you want to make a complaint, the information on how to do so is available at: http://www.education.gov.au/vet-student-loans/vet-fee-help-complaints.

Information for domestic higher education students is available from the grievances page.


Your Sincerely

Jake Davison

Manager of Commonwealth and Community

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09Oct

Risk factors associated with academic difficulty in an Australian regionally located medical school

Have you ever observed what your students’ attitudes are toward ideas and actions that are new, difficult, or complicated? Many students may be conservative learners – they worry about grades and want to “play it safe”, they don’t imagine different options, or they have low confidence that impacts their willingness to try new things.

Are Your Students Taking Risks In Their Learning?

Have you ever observed what your students’ attitudes are toward ideas and actions that are new, difficult, or complicated?

Many students may be conservative learners – they worry about grades and want to “play it safe”, they don’t imagine different options, or they have low confidence that impacts their willingness to try new things.

Have you ever considered that your teaching or grading practices may undermine students in taking the intellectual risks that are crucial to learning?

To encourage academic risk-taking behavior and create an environment that views failure as a possible means to success, the following suggestions may help:

 

Model academic risk-taking behavior:

Showing students examples of valuable risk-taking helps them move beyond a standardized-test mindset. Students should be encouraged to take academic risks when they are learning and through formative assessment. An environment where the fear of failing is only seen as the next step in success motivates and increases student learning and achievement.

 

Encourage peer-based learning:

Students are more willing to expose uncertainty and try out new ideas with a few peers than in the classroom. Think-Pair-Share (TPS) exercises can help students find the confidence to take a risk. TPS allows students to pose questions, provides time for individual thought and a time to discuss possible answers with a peer, and then ask for shared answers. TPS exercises can increase both student interaction and academic risk-taking behavior.

 

Start with low thresholds and allow for flexibility:

Not all students have the same level of tolerance to risk. You can scaffold risk-taking behavior, beginning with risks most students can participate in before you move to more complex tasks. Actively encourage, model, and support academic risk-taking actions to help students to increase their level of risk tolerance.

 

Reward academic risk-taking:

If you truly believe in academic risk taking, examine the practices in your classroom to make certain they align to the risk-taking actions. Be careful not to send mixed messages through your classroom activities and grading. Many students will decide that it’s better to be safe and right than to take a chance and possibly being wrong.

For most summative assessments, errors are not rewarded, but in formative assessment errors can be a powerful means to learning. The Georgia Milestones rubrics allow for students to demonstrate their knowledge in different ways. Students receive credit for what they correctly present – it is not a deficit scoring process.

Think about the Olympics – divers earn higher scores for difficult dives that may not be performed perfectly than the divers who perfectly performed easy dives. It is the rigor or complexity of the dive that is considered in the scoring.

Risk-taking and obtaining the right answer can appear to be contradictory goals for students in your classrooms. The time for students to “not play it safe” is during your formative instructional and assessment time – it is during the process of learning.

If we want our students to take risks in their learning, we need to create classrooms in which academic risk taking is encouraged and is a part of the learning process.


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New and Alternative Sources of Student Support and Funding

Philanthropy has been, and will continue to be, a potential source of funding for a variety of education programs and initiatives. In addition to these funds, city or county funding streams and services may be tapped by schools and districts to help meet the needs of the whole child. Leveraging these alternative resources can help provide students with necessary supports and services. Integrating quality services and funding streams can support the healthy development of students and in turn support their academic achievement.

New and Alternative Sources of Student Support and Funding

Philanthropy has been, and will continue to be, a potential source of funding for a variety of education programs and initiatives. In addition to these funds, city or county funding streams and services may be tapped by schools and districts to help meet the needs of the whole child. Leveraging these alternative resources can help provide students with necessary supports and services. Integrating quality services and funding streams can support the healthy development of students and in turn support their academic achievement.

Disclaimer The links on this page are provided for users convenience and are not an endorsement. See full disclaimer.

Communities in Schools (CIS): This dropout prevention model is more than 30-years old and is designed to provide a range of services to at-risk students inside their school buildings. To facilitate integration of services, CIS places a site coordinator in its partner schools to work with school staff to identify at-risk students and their specific needs. CIS coordinators work with businesses, service agencies, health providers, and parent and volunteer organizations to secure the necessary services to support students and empower them to stay in school. CIS reports an annual per student cost of $192, and spans a network of 25 states and the District of Columbia.

Strive: The Strive model brings together community leaders from the business, civic, and academic sectors with the goal of building an education coalition to support the success of every child. Based on a common community vision, coalition partners focus on what works, and coordinating and aligning resources to support these strategies across the cradle to career continuum. To facilitate this work, Strive has developed a Cradle-to-Career Roadmap designed to track progress. This progress is reported to the community and used by funders to align their giving. Additional link here.

Community schools: Community schools are a set of partnerships between schools and community-based organizations to provide comprehensive academic, health, and social services to students and their families. These schools serve as a central location to connect the school community with available services and opportunities, creating the conditions for students to achieve in school and beyond. When schools and community partners collaborate to address community challenges such as poverty, violence, poor physical health, and family instability—and align their resources to achieve common results—children are more likely to succeed academically, socially, emotionally, and physically.

  • Schools Uniting Neighborhoods (SUN) – Multnomah County, Oregon’s SUN initiative is a county-led community schools effort. In collaboration with the City of Portland, six area school districts, dozens of community-based organizations, and the state of Oregon, the SUN initiative currently operates in 60 schools. Under the initiative, the city and county pool their various resources to provide students with social services and enrichment opportunities. Leveraging local resources has also attracted new funding, including philanthropic support, to ensure that an array of services is available to students and their families.
  • Evansville Vanderburgh School Corporation (EVSC) – This district-wide community school system in Indiana includes a network of more than 70 community organizations, businesses, and faith-based partners that have leveraged their funding streams to serve students in 42 schools. By blending district, state, and federal resources, EVSC is able to provide students and families with afterschool and summer programs, early childhood programs, parent education and involvement programs, programs for non-English speaking families, physical education and sports programs, substance abuse programs, programs to strengthen families and youth, and various health programs.

School-based health centers: There are approximately 2,000 school-based health centers around the country providing health care services to students, ranging from medical and dental care, to mental-health and social services. These centers are funded by a network of local health care organizations such as community health centers, hospitals, local health departments, nonprofits, universities, mental health agencies, and in some cases, school districts. Local, state, federal, and philanthropic dollars also support the work of these centers. Additional link here.

  • Lutheran Family Health Centers (LFHC) – Lutheran Family Health Centers in Brooklyn, NY, operates 15 school-based centers in every elementary and junior high school in Sunset Park. These centers provide students with primary medical care, mental health counseling, and dental services. LFHC is also a Promise Neighborhoods grantee.
  • Health Centers in Schools – Located in Baton Rouge, LA, this nonprofit organization operates health centers in 11 East Baton Rouge public schools. Each Center provides medical and mental health services and is staffed with a registered nurse, a nurse practitioner, a mental health therapist, a clinic coordinator, and a social worker. Specialists, including vision and dental providers and psychiatrists, can also be brought to the Centers to provide specialty services. Funding to support these centers comes in part from the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals’ Office of Public Health, as well as a group of 30 local partners.
  • HealthConnect in Our Schools – This initiative is an alternative model of school-based health care. It is part of a three tiered, quality-driven health initiative in Miami-Dade County, Florida. Teams consisting of nurses or nurse practitioners, health technicians, and social workers provide health and mental health services to students in 180 schools. Each team works with two schools to administer basic services to students. The work of HealthConnect is funded by The Children’s Trust, the Florida Department of Health, and the Miami-Dade County Public Schools.

Educational Service Agencies: Educational service agencies are public entities created by state statute to work with local schools and districts to provide high-quality educational support programs and services typically associated with central office administration. These agencies work with multiple schools and districts, enabling them to share costs and avoid redundancy in spending. To provide cost effective services and supports, these agencies combine local and state funds with grants, awards, fees, and other revenue generating streams.

  • Heartland Area Education Agency – This Educational Service Agency in rural Iowa works with 54 public school districts and 30 accredited private schools to provide services, programs, and resources in support of students, teachers, parents, and leaders. Specifically, Heartland AEA is using open source software and content to provide educational programs and services including professional development for teachers and administrators, online coursework for faculty and students, and is using other technologies to promote collaboration and provide supports.
  • Special Education Cooperatives – These cooperatives operate in a similar fashion as educational service agencies and provide special education supports to area schools and districts. They often pool resources to stretch investments and provide students with the services they need. For example, schools or districts may collaborate on hiring staff to serve students at multiple sites; a cost effective approach compared to contracting out for special education services or duplicating staff across neighboring schools while some needs may go unmet.

Additional resources:


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School Based Traineeship or Apprenticeship

Network Secondary College  students can take part in School Based Traineeships (SBT’s) or School Based Apprenticeships (SBA’s) which allow them to take part in an apprenticeship or traineeship while completing their WACE. Students will be both part time employees and full time students, therefore they will be paid for their employment and receive valuable training and still be able to complete their secondary graduation. There are a large number of traineeships and apprenticeships available.

The benefit to students is that they:

  • Get paid to work
  • Gain Nationally recogised qualifications 
  • Gain valuable skills and experience in the workplace
  • Complete their WACE 

There are a large number of traineeships and apprenticeships available. You can access the Department of Training and Workforce Development’s Apprenticeship Office to find out more information: http://www.dtwd.wa.gov.au/employeesandstudents/apprenticeshipoffice/Pages/default.aspx

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ARTS TEACHER MAKES WAVES ON LONDON’S WEST END

When Daniel isn’t busy teaching and heading up the college’s Academy of Digital Media, he is a professional film producer and cinematographer – and his latest feature film collaboration, 3rd Night, recently made its world premiere in the heart of London’s West End.

When Daniel isn’t busy teaching and heading up the college’s Academy of Digital Media, he is a professional film producer and cinematographer – and his latest feature film collaboration, 3rd Night, recently made its world premiere in the heart of London’s West End.

Daniel always keeps his finger on the pulse thanks to the college’s commitment to industry-based professional development, and the real winners are his students.

“The importance of remaining relevant and practicing what I preach is both a privilege and a challenge that I’m happy to say is something Roleystone Community College has always supported,” Daniel says.

“Without the encouragement and understanding of the school community, these milestone moments just wouldn’t be possible, and it’s great to be able to share these experiences with my students.”

While in London for the launch of 3rd Night, Daniel said it proved that lifelong learning and collaboration can bring success if you aren’t afraid of hardwork, and he wants to share this lesson in his classes.

As the State’s only specialist school in digital media (film), students learn from a range of acclaimed industry professionals.

Recently Year 10 students studying the certificate II in short film met award-winning director Martin Wilson. As part of his visit, students gained valuable new skills from a pitch video Martin is developing for an upcoming international feature film.

Last year, two short films by the college were finalists in the prestigious Australian Teachers of Media (ATOM) awards, which celebrates the best of Australian and New Zealand screen content from the education sector and screen industry professionals.

With outstanding talent and state-of-the-art facilities, it’s exciting to see what’s next for students at Roleystone Community College.

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Health and safety responsibilities

Health and safety responsibilities

Health and safety at work is everyone's responsibility.

  • Employers have responsibilities towards you
  • You have responsibilities towards your employer and your co-workers

Your employer is responsible for making sure that the workplace is safe, and that your health and safety are not put at risk.

You are responsible for looking after your own health and safety. You must also take care not to put other people at risk.

You could put other people at risk by:

  • acting in an unsafe manner
  • not following agreed safe work practices
  • not acting to report a situation which could result in someone getting hurt

To ensure the safety of yourself and others, make sure you are aware of the correct safety procedures at your place of work. This means:

  • listening very carefully to safety information provided by your employer
  • asking for clarification, help or instructions if you're not sure about how to perform any task safely 

Activities

Students can complete the following Health and Safety Responsibilities activities:


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SCHOOL SUPPORT CHILDREN WITH DISABILITY

Government, independent and Catholic schools all have support and funding for children with disability. The type of education or school support your child can get depends on the school and the state or territory you live in. Your child’s school can explain what’s available.

School support: children with disability

School support for your child with disability

Children with disability can get a range of support and funding for their primary school education.

The Disability Standards for Education in the Australian Disability Discrimination Act say that schools must make reasonable changes so that students with disability have the same educational opportunities and choices as all other students.

Funding programs for students with disability

There are specific funding programs for students with disability. What’s available, what the programs are called and how to apply will vary depending on which state or territory you live in and whether your child goes to a government, Catholic or independent school.

The three school systems have different policies about how funding can be used. In general, it can be used to employ an integration aide, but it can also be used for equipment, professional support and training. There are also some funding programs to support students with complex medical and personal care needs.

It’s a good idea to ask your child’s school about what funding your child might be able to get and how and when to apply.

Learning support for your child with disability

Here’s a guide to the learning support your child with disability might be able to get at primary school.

Student support group
A student support group (SSG) is a cooperative partnership between you, school representatives and professionals who work with your child.

The aim of an SSG is to make sure everyone works together to support your child’s educational needs. The group should meet regularly (about once a term) to plan, implement, monitor, review, evaluate and adjust your child’s individual learning plan and the support your child needs.

It can help to take a friend or another person to SSG meetings. It can be very reassuring to have a second pair of ears, someone to take notes or remind you of things you want to cover, or just someone for extra support.

Individual learning plan
An individual learning plan is a document that sets out your child’s:

  • existing skills
  • learning needs and specific goals that can be accurately measured
  • any adjustments or curriculum modifications
  • personalised strategies and resources for developing skills and goals
  • strategies to develop your child’s resilience and, if necessary, social skills.

The plan should talk about the learning areas in which your child needs extra support. It might also include information from professionals who work with your child. It should ensure that all teachers are aware of your child’s specific strengths and difficulties, so that there are both realistic and high expectations of your child’s progress.

Your child’s SSG will develop his individual learning plan.

Note that plans are called different things in different states and territories.

Other support plans
Your child might have other needs. These might include:

  • medical needs – for example, tracheostomy care, tube feeding or medications
  • personal care needs – for example, help with toileting or help at mealtimes
  • other needs – for example, behaviour support needs or help with social interaction.

The school should develop plans for managing these needs. The plans should be clear about what needs to be done, when, by whom and where. Very importantly, it should also make sure that your child’s needs are managed in a safe, dignified and respectful way.

Integration aides
Integration aides are school staff who support students with additional needs. They work under the direction of the classroom teacher and do things like:

  • supporting your child with classwork, including reading, writing, maths, art or sport
  • helping with personal care
  • supervising your child if there are safety concerns
  • going to therapy sessions with your child so that therapy can be used in the classroom – for example, your child’s aide might learn how to use aids, equipment or speech therapy techniques
  • preparing teaching materials like Social Stories™.

An integration aide can work with your child individually or in a group. The aide can also work with other children in the class when the teacher is working with your child.

Not all children with disability will need an integration aide. It will depend on your child’s individual circumstances. Encouraging independence and resilience is also important. For example, a student with high cognitive abilities but severe dyslexia might need multimedia options rather than an aide.

Professional support
Non-teaching professionals might visit and work with your child at school. These professionals might include psychologists, social workers, speech pathologists, physiotherapists and occupational therapists.

Some schools employ nurses or therapists on their staff. Some get professionals through their state or territory education authority. Others use private practitioners, funded by the relevant government program for students with disability.

A policy of inclusion
All schools need to have a written policy of inclusion, which shows that difference is valued and accepted and that there are high expectations of all students, including those with disability.

Home-based education support for your child
Most children with disability can go to school. But sometimes the severity of a child’s disability or the fragility of the child’s health means the child can’t go to school or has long periods away from school.

Some states and territories provide home-based education support programs for children with severe disabilities for the times when they can’t get to school.

These programs are developed by your child’s school in cooperation with you. Funding can help pay for:

  • salaries of teachers, education support staff and specialist staff
  • essential educational equipment.

The Australian Government also provides financial support for children who can’t go to school every day because of disability or health-related needs or because they live remotely.

Practical support for your child at school

Transport support
Many schools are accessible by local bus routes, or have a relationship with a bus company that serves their area.

In some states and territories transport can be provided for children with disability to attend mainstream school if other transport options aren’t appropriate.

Many specialist schools have bus or taxi services that your child might be able to use.

In most states and territories the government has a school bus network to supply free bus transport to students living in regional areas. Some independent and Catholic schools have bus services for all students.

Your child might also be able to get a travel allowance from your state or territory education department, or have transport costs funded through the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS).

Outside of school hours care
Outside of school hours (OOSH) care programs can get support and funding from the Australian Government to help them with creating an inclusive environment for children with disability. This funding can cover extra staff, resources, training or equipment.

Support for your child’s school

In some cases, funding support will go towards helping your child’s school with teacher professional development, so the staff can better support your child’s learning. Sometimes funding might help the school change its physical environment so your child can get around more easily.

Professional development
Schools provide regular professional development opportunities for teachers and other school staff. Professional development covers a wide range of areas including various disability topics.

You can also play a role in helping with professional development for school staff by letting them know about the strategies that you use at home to help your child learn and develop.

Equipment and building modifications
Government, independent and Catholic schools supply and fund equipment or building modifications – like ramps and toilet facilities – in different ways.

Discuss your child’s needs with your SSG and the school principal. If the school needs building modifications, it’s a good idea to start as soon as possible because they might take a while.

State and territory education and disability contacts

Your state or territory education department can give you more information about school support and funding for your child:


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HELPING OTHERS GIVE NEW MEANING OF LEARNING

When this special education teacher found a way for her students to leave their self-contained classroom to help their peers, they gained new perspectives and became more compassionate with others and themselves.

Helping Others Gives New Meaning to Learning

When this special education teacher found a way for her students to leave their self-contained classroom to help their peers, they gained new perspectives and became more compassionate with others and themselves.

How is this going to happen? Will it actually motivate them? Is there any way this will even work? 

These are the questions I thought about as I tried to arrange the desks in a way that would work for the 17 students in my self-contained classroom: I was the only special education teacher in the seventh grade who taught this class. Students were placed with me for reasons that varied from a severe learning disability to ADHD; several struggled with the array of emotional issues categorized as "emotional disturbance." 

I knew that many of the behavior issues I experienced with my students came from difficulties in their lives outside of school. But even if I understood some of the roots of their behavior, it's not as though I could fix them. No matter where I moved the desks, I knew they would be too close to one another in my small room.

See our Reframing Classroom Management resources for more on how to recognize and respond to student needs that show up in certain behaviors.

I sat down, looking up at the bulletin board and walls still blank after weeks of meetings and paperwork. Stapling thin yellow paper to cork board and punching out letters to create a showcase for positive behavior and accomplishments, I thought of ways I could better focus on student strengths. I was trying several new things this year, and hopefully they would help my students recognize that they already had the skills they need to be successful in school. 

Earlier in the week, I had spoken with a colleague and her teaching assistant who worked with several students with severe disabilities in a trailer a short distance down the sidewalk. I told them I'd been thinking about my students and that I had an idea that helping others might make a difference in their own behavior. "Send them to me," my colleague said. 

 

How It Worked

For many of my students, the opportunity to help others became my most coveted reward.
We picked a few days a week when only one or two students would be selected. By putting forth their best effort, following classroom rules, completing assignments, staying on task and encouraging their peers in my classroom, students worked toward this reward or others. If they'd earned the reward, at a designated time they would head down to my colleague's classroom. There, they'd help her students practice academic and daily living tasks.

 

Why It Worked

I watched kids lift their heads off their desks, completing their first full assignments in a long time so they could go help the students with whom they'd been matched practice greetings or learn their letters. It was clear that more of my students' needs were being met: Not only were they doing their work, but there were fewer behavior issues. They realized they knew something of value they could teach someone else. In teaching, they became motivated to enhance their own skills. 

 

What Students Learned

Helping others with challenges greater than their own gave my students a brief glimpse of a new perspective. They learned to be more compassionate and understanding, not just with others  but also with themselves. Even when something was difficult, they found, they could tackle it through hard work and perseverance.

Students who participated found more purpose in their learning. They knew that the more they learned, the more they would have to teach others. And they wanted to be on their best behavior: Their buddies were counting on them.

As students became more motivated and positive about school, their overall performance improved. Even though they were only 12 years old, my students had experienced so much of the ugly side of life that some had already given up in some ways. In helping others, I hope they found that everyone has skills and abilities that can make a difference in the world. In helping others, I hope they found ways to help themselves, too.

Parrish has been an educator for 15 years, first as a middle school special education teacher and now as an entrepreneur who started her own tutoring and supplemental education business.

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SUPPORT SERVICES FOR STUDENTS

There are many consumer protection and support services available for international students. This includes services provided directly by institutions as well as those provided by a range of state, territory and federal government departments.

Support services for students

Add to study guide There are many consumer protection and support services available for international students. This includes services provided directly by institutions as well as those provided by a range of state, territory and federal government departments.

Consumer Protection

Australian has a strong consumer protection framework to protect the rights of Australian consumers, including international students in Australia. The Australian Consumer Law includes a national law guaranteeing consumer rights when buying goods and services. You should contact the relevant government trade and consumer agency in your state or territory, if you:

  • Would like information about your consumer rights.

  • Have a problem with a consumer good or service that you have bought or are considering buying.

  • Would like to know how a business should behave under the law.

  • Would like to make a complaint about a business.

Visit australia.gov.au(opens in a new window) or www.consumerlaw.gov.au(opens in a new window) to find the relevant government agency for where you are living and studying.

Overseas Students Ombudsman

The Overseas Students Ombudsman (OSO) investigates complaints about problems that overseas students have with private education and training institutions in Australia. The Ombudsman’s services are free, independent and impartial. You can find out more about this service on their website: www.ombudsman.gov.au(opens in a new window). A number of OSO(opens in a new window)publications, including newsletters, can be found on the OSO website(opens in a new window).If you are studying at a public institution, such as TAFE colleges and many universities and schools, you should contact the Ombudsman in the state or territory in which you are studying to lodge a complaint. You can find details of what the Ombudsman can investigate on their website. Below is a list of the Ombudsman websites for all states and territories in Australia:

Tuition Protection Service

The Tuition Protection Service (TPS) is an initiative of the Australian Government to assist you if your institution (referred to as 'Education Provider' under the TPS) is unable to fully deliver your course of study. The TPS may also assist you if you have withdrawn from, or not started, your course and are eligible for a refund of tuition fees and the institution has not paid them.The TPS will ensure that you are able to either:

  • Complete your studies in another course or with another institution, or

  • Receive a refund of your unspent tuition fees.

Under the Tuition Protection Service international students have a number of rights and obligations. For more information visit the Tuition Protection Service(opens in a new window) website.

Support services

Institution support services

Student support forms a large part of Australia’s education system. Institutions provide specialist services to help international students adjust to life and study in Australia, and to achieve their goals. This includes student services such as:

  • Language and academic support.

  • Designated international student advisers.

  • On-arrival reception and orientation programs.

  • Childcare, health and counseling.

  • Student accommodation.

  • Employment services.

  • Prayer and worships rooms.

  • Banking, shopping and food outlets.

  • Clubs, societies, sport and fitness facilities.

Many Australian education institutions are like mini communities, so not only will you be able to undertake your studies amid world-class learning facilities, you will also be able to enjoy the social side of studying as well. You can join a club or society, improve your health and fitness in the gym, join a sports team, attend a social event, or volunteer for community service. To find out full details of what your institution provides please check their website directly.

Student associations

Australia has a number of student associations representing and assisting students from Australian institutions. National associations include:Most institutions in Australia also have their own student associations - you can visit your institution’s website for more information.

Disability support

Australia has laws that protect individuals from discrimination in many areas of public life, including education. A person with a disability has just as much right to study as any other student. This means that institutions cannot:

  • Refuse admission on the basis of disability.

  • Accept a student with a disability on less favourable terms than other students (for example, asking for higher fees).

  • Deny or limit access to a student with a disability (for example, not allowing access to excursions, or having inaccessible student common rooms or lecture facilities).

Many institutions offer services for students who require assistance with their studies because of a disability or chronic medical condition. These may include voice-recognition software, hearing aids or note-taking services. You should contact your institution several weeks before you arrive to make the appropriate arrangements for your specific needs.Institutions must make every effort to accommodate a student with a disability. However, the institution is not legally required to make modifications if the changes involve major difficulties or unreasonable cost. The institution has to prove the changes are unjustified and, before making such a claim, must have direct discussions with the student and seek expert advice.If you are experiencing a problem with your institution, you should first talk to staff at your institution. If informal discussions do not resolve the problem, you have the option of lodging a formal complaint. Institutions are required to have a process for students to register complaints. If you feel you have a legitimate complaint that is not being recognised by your institution, you should approach the Australian Human Rights Commission. Confidential enquiries can be made by telephone but a formal complaint must be lodged in writing before the commission can take action. Find out more about disability rights in Australia at the Human Rights and Equal Opportunities Commission(opens in a new window).

Childcare

While many larger institutions have childcare facilities with trained staff, there are also a wide variety of private and not-for-profit childcare centres available around Australia. The Australian government provides financial assistance to help parents with childcare costs. International students who receive direct financial assistance from the government, through a government scholarship, may be eligible to receive the child care benefit. To find out if you are eligible for child care financial assistance, read more at the Australia.gov.au(opens in a new window) website. 

Other support services

Some other support services that may be useful to know while you are studying in Australia are:

Emergency matters

  • Contact details - 000

  • Service details - Life threatening situations, such as a car crash or a fire.

Local police – non urgent matters

  • Contact details - Call 131 444 (everywhere except Victoria). In Victoria you need to call your local police station (consult your local Telephone Directory)

  • Service details - Police attendance for non-urgent matters.

Lifeline(opens in a new window)

  • Contact details - 13 11 14

  • Service details - Lifeline provides crisis support, suicide prevention and mental health support services across Australia. These can include stresses from work, family or society and physical and mental wellbeing. Lifeline offers support services by phone or through their online chat available on their website.

Kids Helpline

  • Contact details - 1800 551 800

  • Service details - If you're between 5 and 25 and you're feeling depressed, worried, sad, angry or confused about things like your studies personal relationships, Kids Helpline offers free 24 hour, 7 day telephone counseling support (anonymous if you prefer).

Poison Information Centre

  • Contact details - 131 126

  • Service details - Provides advice on the management, assessment and treatment of poisonous products including non-prescription pharmaceuticals, household and industrial chemicals, and plant and animal venom.

Sexual Assault counseling service

  • Contact details - Search online for 'rape crisis centre' in your home state

  • Service details - If you, or anyone you know, has experienced or is at risk of sexual assault, call one of the state-based sexual assault counseling services. These provide a free 24 hour, 7 day a week telephone counseling service (anonymous if you prefer). Many are connected to hospitals or government health departments to help you if the assault has left you with injuries.

This Article Is republished from http://www.studyinaustralia.gov.au/ If you like to have a look you are welcome to 


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ARCHIVE YOUR GOAL THROUGH FURTHER EDUCATION

Did you know that further education can help you achieve your primary goals in life? By investing in your future and studying remotely at a distance learning school in Cape Town or surrounds, you will be giving yourself the best possible chance to reach your dreams.

Achieving your Life Goals Through Further Education

Did you know that further education can help you achieve your primary goals in life? By investing in your future and studying remotely at a distance learning school in Cape Town or surrounds, you will be giving yourself the best possible chance to reach your dreams.

Every school leaver has at least one dream. Some may have decided early into high school that a BCom degree in Cape Town is the way to go. Others may have practical mini goals on how to pursue a career in retail. Whether your goals are clear, or they are still being fine-tuned, studying further is your best chance at turning those dreams into a reality.

How Higher Education Helps You Achieve Your Goals

Higher education in Cape Town and the rest of the country is undeniably important from a national and even global perspective. Education helps to achieve growth, stability and a healthy economy. But for individuals, higher education plays an equally important role in helping students reach their goals.

Some of the ways that studying at a distance learning campus in the Western Cape can help you get ahead include the following:

  1. Studying further provides a clear career path. Taking the first step towards that goal of becoming a real estate mogul begins with a Higher Certificate in Management for Real Estate Agents. Making the move towards a future in retail starts with a Higher Certificate in Retail Management. Every goal requires a series of steps that get you closer to success – education is very often the first step. What makes distance education even more valuable is that allows you to study while working. This means that you can find part-time work within your chosen field, studying at the same time. Experience + knowledge = lasting success!
  1. Studying prepares you for challenges. No success story is without some level of challenge and hard work. Higher education helps you prepare for the hard work by teaching you how to learn, how to manage your time, how to map out your goals, how to deal with pressure, how to stay organised and how to deal with stress. Once you complete your studies and enter the working world, you will be far better equipped to deal with whatever challenges come your way. As a result, you will also be primed to succeed – even when things get tough.
  1. Studying allows you to gain critical skill. There are a number of courses offered by REGENT Cape Town, including degrees, diplomas, Higher Certificates and short courses. You may find that a full degree such as a BCom is sufficient to reach your goal. But you may find that the more skills you develop, the more you are able to grow. You may be interested in a medical administration career, for example, and, after completing a Higher Certificate in Healthcare Services Management, you may find that additional short courses help you map out a better career. Likewise, you may be interested in HR, completing a Higher Certificate in Human Resource Management and up-skilling with short courses in areas such as conflict management or leadership.

Further education is often seen as a goal in itself. But for many people, studying is only the beginning. Qualifications help you to develop new goals, while also helping you to live your dreams.

Interested in studying further at a trusted distance education school in Cape Town? Contact REGENT Business School today and let us know what goals we can help you achieve.


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This World Teachers’ Day, join us in celebrating educators and their passion for learning

This World Teachers’ Day, join us in celebrating educators and their passion for learning


Let the world know about someone who has inspired you to keep learning

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TEACHING PROBLEM SOLVING: LET STUDENTS GET "STUCK" AND "UNSTUCK"

Teaching problem solving: Let students get ‘stuck’ and ‘unstuck’

In the real world, students encounter problems that are complex, not well defined, and lack a clear solution and approach. They need to be able to identify and apply different strategies to solve these problems. However, problem solving skills do not necessarily develop naturally; they need to be explicitly taught in a way that can be transferred across multiple settings and contexts.

Here’s what Kate Mills, who taught 4th grade for 10 years at Knollwood School in New Jersey and is now a Literacy Interventionist at Red Bank Primary School, has to say about creating a classroom culture of problem solvers:

Helping my students grow to be people who will be successful outside of the classroom is equally as important as teaching the curriculum. From the first day of school, I intentionally choose language and activities that help to create a classroom culture of problem solvers. I want to produce students who are able to think about achieving a particular goal and manage their mental processes. This is known as metacognition, and research shows that metacognitive skills help students become better problem solvers.

I begin by “normalizing trouble” in the classroom. Peter H. Johnstonteaches the importance of normalizing struggle, of naming it, acknowledging it, and calling it what it is: a sign that we’re growing. The goal is for the students to accept challenge and failure as a chance to grow and do better.

I look for every chance to share problems and highlight how the students—not the teachers—worked through those problems. There is, of course, coaching along the way. For example, a science class that is arguing over whose turn it is to build a vehicle will most likely need a teacher to help them find a way to the balance the work in an equitable way. Afterwards, I make it a point to turn it back to the class and say, “Do you see how you …” By naming what it is they did to solve the problem, students can be more independent and productive as they apply and adapt their thinking when engaging in future complex tasks.

After a few weeks, most of the class understands that the teachers aren’t there to solve problems for the students, but to support them in solving the problems themselves. With that important part of our classroom culture established, we can move to focusing on the strategies that students might need.

Here’s one way I do this in the classroom:

I show the broken escalator video to the class. Since my students are fourth graders, they think it’s hilarious and immediately start exclaiming, “Just get off! Walk!”


When the video is over, I say, “Many of us, probably all of us, are like the man in the video yelling for help when we get stuck. When we get stuck, we stop and immediately say ‘Help!’ instead of embracing the challenge and trying new ways to work through it.” I often introduce this lesson during math class, but it can apply to any area of our lives, and I can refer to the experience and conversation we had during any part of our day.

Research shows that just because students know the strategies does not mean they will engage in the appropriate strategies. Therefore, I try to provide opportunities where students can explicitly practice learning how, when, and why to use which strategies effectively so that they can become self-directed learners.

For example, I give students a math problem that will make many of them feel “stuck”. I will say, “Your job is to get yourselves stuck—or to allow yourselves to get stuck on this problem—and then work through it, being mindful of how you’re getting yourselves unstuck.” As students work, I check-in to help them name their process: “How did you get yourself unstuck?” or “What was your first step? What are you doing now? What might you try next?” As students talk about their process, I’ll add to a list of strategies that students are using and, if they are struggling, help students name a specific process. For instance, if a student says he wrote the information from the math problem down and points to a chart, I will say: “Oh that’s interesting. You pulled the important information from the problem out and organized it into a chart.” In this way, I am giving him the language to match what he did, so that he now has a strategy he could use in other times of struggle.

The charts grow with us over time and are something that we refer to when students are stuck or struggling. They become a resource for students and a way for them to talk about their process when they are reflecting on and monitoring what did or did not work.

For me, as a teacher, it is important that I create a classroom environment in which students are problem solvers. This helps tie struggles to strategies so that the students will not only see value in working harder but in working smarter by trying new and different strategies and revising their process. In doing so, they will more successful the next time around.


This sources Is republished from Brookings website, go visit their website for more

https://www.brookings.edu/blog/education-plus-development/2017/10/31/teaching-problem-solving-let-students-get-stuck-and-unstuck/

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