Frequently Asked Questions

Any missed days MUST be made up and it is the responsibility of the student to negotiate a time with the education setting.

This will vary depending on the placement your Pre-Service Teacher is completing. For more specific information please refer to the Additional Supervising Teacher Resources and in particular the expectations and requirements pack relevant to the unit being completed.

Pre-Service Teachers are required to maintain their own valid Child Safety Screening Clearance (CSSC) as per Australian state and territory regulations. Swinburne University of Technology Pre-Service Teachers are required to apply and/or provide a copy of their current CSSC. Swinburne Online does not assess a person’s suitability to work with children, however we encourage our Pre-Service Teachers to arrange an interview or planning visit prior to commencing their placement.

As part of the placement, Pre-Service Teachers are required to be involved in all aspects of the early childhood setting or school shadowing their Supervising Teacher and working similar hours. For example: yard duty, staff/level meeting or professional development, collaborating with other teachers and engagement with parents and carers which may fall outside of normal school hours. To have the opportunity to meet this requirement, Pre-Service Teachers are required to attend full work days during their placement (minimum 7.5 hours excluding breaks).This must also include a minimum of 25 hours contact time with students per week. 100% attendance is expected.For placements in early learning centres or childcare centres, Preservice Teachers should be prepared to work variable “shifts” and changing rosters within the typical 7am – 6pm operational hours.

Please see How Placements Work.

Payment is made for the supervision of our Pre-Service Teachers. Please visit Claim for Payment for more information.

If permitted by the setting, Pre-Service Teachers are encouraged to attend school camps and excursions. This may include if the students being supervised are from classes that the Pre-Service Teacher has not been teaching initially. Pre-Service teachers must notify the Student Advisors prior to attending a school camp. These events count toward the placement attendance provided that the Pre-Service Teachers are able to meet the teaching load requirements outlined in the Additional Supervising Teacher Resources and in particular the expectations and requirements pack relevant to the unit being completed.

Swinburne University of Technology’s public liability insurance policy covers the University for any claims made against it related to personal injury to other parties or damage to the property of others. During the placement, Pre-Service Teachers are regarded as an extension of the University and the policy protects them against such claims that may arise from activities associated with the placement. Please note, that Pre-Service Teachers are not paid by the University and therefore not covered by the University’s Workers’ Compensation policy. In the event of an accident, injury or damage while undertaking an Education Placement activity the PST should contact the following people, as soon as practicable:

• Supervising Teacher / Pre-Service Teacher Coordinator
• Student Advisor Team
• Online Learning Advisor

A setting/school incident report should be completed, if appropriate and as advised by the Student Advisor team, the SOL Incident report.

A Conflict of Interest (COI) exists where the Pre-Service Teacher:

• Is employed (e.g., as an educator, teacher aide, technical assistant or administrator)
• Attended as a student (in the last 10 years)
• Has family members or close friends employed or attending the setting

As part of the process for arranging a COI placement, the Pre-Service Teacher must apply for a COI waiver. COI applications are considered on a case-by-case basis, and it is at the discretion of the education setting if they are comfortable in waiving the COI. The education setting will be contacted to confirm via email they are aware a COI exists and are comfortable in assessing the Pre-service Teacher fairly, objectively and in an un-biased fashion, to the requirements and expectations of the placement. All Pre-Service Teachers completing placement within the Graduate Diploma of Early Childhood Teaching can complete placements within their own workplaces.

In many states, there are rules allowing Pre-Service Teachers permission to teach prior to graduation. These rules are temporary and alternative authorisations to teach that enable individuals who do not meet the qualification requirements for teacher registration to undertake the duties of a teacher in a school. Pre-Service Teachers and their school employer need to go through a process of applying for this directly with the relevant registration body in their state. This process is not handled by Swinburne Online as the Initial Teacher Education course provider, but we may assist in confirming a PST’s eligibility as part of relevant state registration processes. What is important for us to clarify, is:

• EAT/PPT is ‘employment’, and typically this teaching will not be ‘supervised’.
• ‘Placement’ must be ‘supervised’ by appropriate Supervising Teacher/s.

The EAT/PPT is ‘employment’ is therefore separate to the ‘placement’, as ‘placement’ needs to be ‘supervised’ teaching practice under AITSL accreditation requirements. Therefore, if a Pre-Service Teacher wishes to undertake a placement at their place of employment this presents a Conflict of Interest (COI), so the COI must be considered by the placement school/employer and formally waived before the placement can be approved. Pre-Service Teachers must complete a minimum of 3 days per week of supervised placement.