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Information for completing students

INFORMATION FOR COMPLETING STUDENTS IN THE PRIMARY BTCHNG AND GRADUATE DIPLOMA OF TEACHING PROGRAMMES

This document contains information about the following:

Official Date of completion of qualification & Official Statement of completion

For students completing at the end of semester A 2019, the Board of Examiners meets in July to confirm qualifications.  Shortly after this students will receive, by mail, their statement of completion.  Students should ensure that the University has their correct address – the quickest way to do this is through I.waikato.

For students completing at the end of semester B 2019, the Board of Examiners meets in late November to confirm  all grades and qualifications. Students will receive, by mail, their statement of completion and their academic record before the University closes for the year.  Students should ensure that the University has their correct address – the quickest way to do this is through I.waikato

For students in the primary graduate (PTEG) programme and students in the Primary BTchng who have been granted deferred practicum in November-December, the official completion date is 16th December. Their documentation will be finalised in late January.

Eligibility for employment as a teacher, including as a relieving teacher
see also the section below on teaching in term 4 of 2018

Pre-service teachers are not eligible to be employed as permanent teachers in schools until they have completed their teaching qualification (i.e. have completed and passed all assignments and examinations), and this completion has been confirmed by the University’s Board of Examiners (see dates above), they have received their University statement of completion, and they have applied for provisional registration with the Education Council.

Date of issue of  Reports

Mid-year completing students will receive all of their practicum reports, including those reports from their final practicum, as soon as is practicable after the end of practicum. Students may use these reports to apply for positions. Students who are completing their programme at the end of semester B will receive notification of the date that practicum reports are available some time in the first half of semester B.

Applying for teaching positions prior to receipt of Statement of Completion

Pre-service teachers may apply, at any time, for any positions that begin in term 1 of 2019 (permanent or long term relieving teaching positions) prior to completion of their qualification.  However, this will be on the understanding that they cannot take up positions until after completion, and on the understanding that the employing school will rescind any offer of employment if they fail to complete their qualification and are therefore not eligible for provisional registration.  You will have to supply your own supporting information (such as certified copies of results slips, references, referees’ names and contact details etc). You will need to advise that you will complete your qualification as at 24 November (or at the end of your practicum, if it is in November-December).

The Faculty does not supply tentative statements of completion.

Practicum Reports may be used in applying for teaching positions

All practicum reports will be given to completing BTchng students as early as possible in semester B so that they can be used for applying for teaching positions. Students may use all or parts of their reports in their applications and may be asked for these by the Principals of schools in which they are applying for positions in.

Applying or Provisional Registration

When applying for provisional registration, applicants need to send a certified copy of their university Statement of Completion along with the application form, to the EDUCANZ.  Application forms are available on the EDUCANZ website (see below this section for details).  The Education Council of Aotearoa New Zealand has signaled recently that pre-service teachers may make application before they have received their Statement of Completion. This means that pre-service teachers finishing at the end of Semester B should begin the registration process in the second half of Semester B. A note should be attached to the application to the effect that the Statement of Completion will be sent as soon as the student has received it.  Due to the large numbers of graduates from teacher education programmes who will be applying for registration in December, it may take some time before you receive your registration card.  All are advised to keep a photocopy of their completed application form to use as proof with potential employers, that they are eligible for and have applied for provisional registration.
Teacher payroll offices will not pay you the registered teacher salary rate without proof of registration.  Students who have lived overseas must seek a police vet from the country/countries in which they have lived.  This process may take 40 days or more.  Students are advised to begin this process well in advance of their completion date, so that they have their police clearance ready to send off to the Education Council with their application for provisional registration.  For further information about provisional registration, police vets and about the Education Council, see http://www.educationcouncil.org.nz

Legal Requirement for teachers to be registered

A person cannot be employed as a teacher in New Zealand unless she or he has been granted either provisional or full registration.  This registration recognises that the individual has successfully completed a recognised course of pre-service teacher education.  This is a safeguard for children and of the qualification for which teachers have worked hard.

Beginning teacher salary

The salary for qualified, provisionally registered first year teachers as of July 2014 is $47 980* per annum for those with a BTchng degree, and $49 588* for those with a Graduate Diploma of Teaching or who have completed the BTchng Honours programme.*May 2017

Limited Authority to Teach (LAT)

In some very limited circumstances an unregistered person may be employed to teach in a short term or specific expert capacity (e.g. music, te reo Māori).  The employing school must apply to the Education Council, for a LAT for a particular individual.  The LAT is limited to the particular school and position, and is for a limited period of time.  The school must satisfy the Council that there is no registered teacher available to fill the position.  A teacher for whom a LAT has been granted is paid considerably less than the salary for qualified, provisionally registered teachers.

Teaching in Term 3 or 4 of 2019

Teaching in term 3 201 – mid-year completers

Mid-year completing students may teach from the beginning of term 3 2019(20 July ).  At this stage they will not have their official statements of completion from the University and therefore will not yet have applied for provisional registration with the NZ Teachers Council.  Schools that wish to employ student teachers as of 24 July must use the following procedure.  A student (as yet an unregistered person) may teach for up to 10 days without provisional registration.  Schools that require an extension of this (i.e. until the appointee has gained provisional registration) must contact the Teachers Council, and explain the situation (university completion documentation is not yet available) and seek an extension of the 10 day period.

Teaching in term 4 2019 – students who complete at the end of semester B

Students are required to attend till the end of semester B.  Students who do not attend risk failing their papers and therefore not completing their qualification.  The University will not grant special dispensation to enable students to teach before the end of Semester B.  Schools will need to employ other relievers to cover classes before the end of B semester. Students who teach from 16th October (after semester has finished) are not eligible for registration at this stage (until the Board of Examiners meets and they have their official university statement of completion), and cannot be paid the provisionally registered teacher salary rate.  They may only be paid registered teacher salary after December, when their provisional registration will take effect.

Schools that wish to employ student teachers as of 15th October must use the following procedure.  A student (as yet an unregistered person) may teach for up to 10 days without provisional registration.  Schools that require an extension of this (e.g. until the end of term 4) must fax the Teachers Council, and explain the situation (university completion documentation is not yet available) and seek an extension of the 10-day period.

Support for Beginning Teachers & The 0.2 Staffing Allowance

All beginning teachers are required, by the Education Council and Ministry of Education, to have a programme of advice and guidance during their first 2 years.  This includes support and mentoring by a tutor teacher.  Monthly written reports of the beginning teacher’s progress must be written, and these provide evidence, after the equivalent of 2 years of successful teaching, that the teacher may become fully registered.
Make sure you keep your own copies of these reports.  This is particularly important if you are likely to teach in more than one school during the 2 years provisional registration period.

A school that employs a first year teacher is entitled to an extra 0.2 staffing (equivalent of an extra teacher for 1 day per week if the first year is a full time teacher), and 0.1 in the second year.  This staffing allowance is to support the beginning teacher’s induction into the profession.  It is not to provide a day per week out of the classroom for the beginning teacher.  See the Education Council website for details of ways in which this staffing allowance may be used http://www.educationcouncil.govt.nz/.

In some districts of New Zealand there are  organisations who run programmes for beginning teachers and their tutor teachers.  Schools are not required to enrol their beginning teachers in these programmes, but many schools choose to.

Applying for a job

Job Advertisements

Schools are legally required to advertise nationally, any position that is for a year or longer.  This can be in any national publication  or The Education Gazette.  Most schools advertise in the Gazette because it is free to advertise, but may use their local newspaper as well if they are in a hurry to get their message out in print.

The Education Gazette

The Education Gazette (not The Gazette, this is a different Government publication) is held in libraries (SOE and public), all schools receive it.  It is published fortnightly and is also available on line. The Education Gazette is the official means of communication by the Government and its agencies with teachers, and all teachers are expected to have read each issue.  The Education Gazette is available on line http://www.edgazette.govt.nz.  You can set up automatic email notification each time job vacancies are submitted for publication.  Some schools’ advertisements will include a hyperlink to their own websites, where you can find out more information to help you decide whether to apply for the job or not.

Daily newspapers

Schools will advertise in daily or weekly newspapers, especially when they need to get a vacancy advertised quickly, e.g. during the school holidays for someone to start the next term.  Short term or one term relieving jobs are often advertised this way.  A school may appoint someone for a term, then advertise and appoint to a permanent position.  If you win the relieving job and do it well, and then apply for the permanent job, you may have an advantage over other applicants who are unknown to the school.

How to find out more about schools in New Zealand

This Ministry of Education site provides information about all the schools in New Zealandhttp://www.tki.org.nz/e/schools/.

The kinds of jobs you can apply for

Primary, area, secondary, mātauranga Māori, in state, integrated and private schools.

How do I know if the job is for a beginning teacher?

Some advertisements will state whether the job is only for a beginning teacher or if the job is not suitable for a beginning teacher (e.g. carries a leadership responsibility).  If this is not clear from the advertisement, telephone the school and ask to speak to the principal.  Ask if the school would consider an application from a beginning teacher (this will save you spending hours on your application only to have it rejected because you are a beginning teacher).  You may be asked what your strengths are, and if you sound interesting it may be suggested that you apply, even though the job was originally intended for an experienced teacher.

Strange words in advertisements

  • Scale A – the A stands for assistant teacher.  All teachers other than senior teachers, APs, DPs and principals are scale A teachers
  • MU – management unit (has some leadership responsibility, probably not for beginning teachers)
  • U1, U2 etc. – size of school, U1 is smallest
  • Full primary – year 0-8 school
  • Contributing school – year 0-6 school, contributes its pupils to an intermediate school
  • LTR – long-term reliever, usually a term or more
  • SAE – stamped addressed envelope (so they can send your CV back to you)
  • (I) – Integrated school e.g. Roman Catholic or other special character school that is part of the state system
  • Permanent – if you win the job and complete 2 years provisional registration and get your full registration, the job is yours for as long as you like (as long as you remain competent)
  • Fixed term – long term relieving for a specified period e.g. 1, 2, 3 or 4 terms, usually replacing someone who is on leave (parental, study leave)
  • Incumbent applying – someone is already doing the job, probably as a reliever (the incumbent) and will be applying for it.  Ring and ask if it is worth your while putting in an application.

Once you find a job you want to apply for

Write for the application form and job description (sometimes called a job package or application pack) or better still go in and see them – making an appointment with the principal may not be possible given the numbers applying but get yourself seen in the school, at least by the secretary.  Ask if they mind if you look around, take some notes, look at the charter.  Be well dressed and well spoken, park out of the school grounds.

Once you have the application package

Analyse the contents closely.  It’s like analysing an essay topic – if you miss out some elements you won’t ‘pass’ i.e. won’t get short listed for an interview.
All the words in the advertisement are there for a purpose.  Make headings relating to key words in the ad and job description that you will write to (unless there is an application form which sets out the headings under which you will write).  If the ad and job description include words like innovative, team player, motivated, enthusiastic, you need to write about how you are those things and give examples of things you have done or the way you operate that are evidence of this.  For instance ‘team player’ could be supported by examples from your experience like sports or debating team involvement, working in a team in a paid job, group assignment work at university.

You will need to decide if you will use a generic CV for all jobs you apply for, or rewrite your CV specifically for each job.  For beginning teachers who are applying for a large number of jobs it is OK to have a generic CV and write your application specifically to the ad and job description.  Many schools use application forms for positions where they know there will be lots of applicants, so that all applicants write to the same headings in the same order.  This makes it much easier for the appointments committee to compare applications and decide which people to short list for interview.  Some appointments committees will set up a matrix with the names of all applicants down the left hand side and the criteria for appointment across the top.  As each appointments committee member reads the applications, they give each applicant a mark out of 5 or 10 for each criterion, depending on the quality of the application.  Applicants who score the highest will then be short listed for interview.

Read the school’s charter (schools will often include their mission statement in the job package).  Go into the ERO website and read the school’s latest ERO report – remember if the school hasn’t had a review for a while the information may be out of date.  Go into the school’s website if it has one, via the hyperlinks from the TKI schools websitehttp://www.tki.org.nz/e/schools/ or from the electronic Gazette ad.

Preparing your CV

CV stands for curriculum vitae, which is Latin.  Curriculum = course of, vitae = life.
Your CV is the course of your life, i.e. all the details of your life.

The CV has four purposes

  1. Self inventory – A record of your past achievements, qualifications and activities, with dates for when you did them.  An aid for filling out forms (not just for jobs, could be for NZEI study leave scholarships, research fellowships).  Keep a folder or box file with your CV materials in it, & a sheet that you update every time you do something new; add copies of anything you write, new certificates etc.  Keep the info on disk and add to it regularly, keep your diaries for about the past 5 years too.
  2. Before the interview – A document you use to market yourself to prospective employers.  It should persuade them that you are worth interviewing (i.e. it shouldn’t overwhelm them with information that is not relevant to the job for which you are applying).
  3. At the interview – A basis for the interviewers’ questions, and to remind you of what you put in it.  Take a copy with you in case you’re asked something about it and can’t remember, in the tension of the situation, what you wrote.
  4. After the interview – A reminder for the interviewer/appointments committee/BoT of who you were, for comparison with other applicants A good CV must be:
    • Well presented – Although many people use them, plastic clear file pockets are not necessary – a cardboard or plastic cover with a clip or removable binder is fine.  Use good quality paper and supply originals from the computer printer, or at least clean the glass on the photocopier.
    • Clear in layout – Spread it out well with space between each item.  A new page for each section is often appropriate.  If you have several short sections, include two or three on a page.
    • Structured using subheadings
    • Clean and tidy in appearance – Word processed (so that you can change it if necessary, and as you gain more experience).  No whiting out.
    • Correct in spelling and grammar.
    • Brief – Concise without omitting relevant detail (school BoT members don’t have time to read pages and pages when they may have anything up to 50 applicants).– It is what tempts people to offer you an interview, not what gets you the job.
    • Accurate – Don’t stretch the truth – omit things that don’t contribute specifics about you.
    • Relevant – Include things that relate to the job you are applying for.
    • Positive – If you don’t sound like you believe you are the best person for the job, the BoT won’t either.  Emphasise your good points.

A CV should be accompanied by a covering letter (see separate notes later on).  The letter may be quite detailed if there is no separate job application form to fill out.  If there is no separate job application form your letter will refer to the CV and the job description and make links.  If there is a separate job application form, the covering letter will be a brief formal letter to the chairperson of the BoT or principal, whomever is stated in the job advertisement.  Include a stamped, self-addressed envelope for return of your CV if you want it back.

How to set out your Curriculum Vitae

This is only ONE idea for the order of your sub-headings – but all these elements should be included.

Personal details (Use each of these as a side or sub-heading)

  • Photo (optional)
  • Name
  • Address (home and work if applicable)
  • Telephone Number (home and work if applicable)
  • Email address
  • Date of birth
  • Country of birth
  • Citizenship
  • Cultural/ethnic identity (including tribal affiliations)
  • Marital status (optional)
  • Dependents (optional)
  • General health (optional)
  • Academic and personal qualifications (include letters in speech and drama, music exams and any other qualifications directly related to teaching).  List in reverse chronological order with dates.  In this section you could refer to your academic transcript of university papers & grades, which should be included as an appendix at the back of the CV.  You may like to highlight the fact that your have A grades for all your literacy papers, or that you have taken te reo Māori papers during all 3 years of your BTchng, or that you have taken ICT papers while at university.

Referees and references

However many are asked for – names, addresses and phone numbers where they may be contacted (ask them first, each time you apply for a job, if they are willing to be a referee).  Name your relationship to them e.g. Ms Janet Smith, Assistant Principal Cityside School, 43 Main Street, Schoolville (associate teacher for final teaching practicum, 2008).  Referees’ names may also be included in the letter of application – do this if you are using different referees for different jobs.
One or two general references that attest to your character are OK (e.g. from your employer in your part-time job), but the important thing is to have referees – people who can be phoned in confidence by the appointments committee – to attest to your qualities as a teacher.  The appointments committee will ask referees for statements about things such as what you are like in the classroom, including about your classroom management; whether you are a team person; how willing you are to learn and undertake ongoing professional development.  If there is a ‘niggle’/concern after the interview they may go back to the referees to check.
Practicum associate teachers are the most valuable people to be referees.

 

Work experience

In reverse chronological order, dated.  Can be divided into teaching related and other (include voluntary work e.g. as a voluntary teacher aide, school holiday programmes, driving for ‘Meals on Wheels’, Playcentre).  For mature age students it is important that you include detail about all your previous work experience when you are applying for your first teaching position.  When you are applying for later positions you can truncate this information but still include all your employment history and highlight those aspects of the jobs you have had that have relevance to teaching e.g. planning and goal setting, writing reports, dealing with the public, managing a budget, public speaking, working to deadlines, taking leadership.

Personal statement (sometimes called personal philosophy)

Up to a page, your chance to personalise your CV so that your beliefs, values, teaching style, preferred ways of doing things come through.  Include half a dozen or so things you believe in strongly about teaching that you want this employer to know about you.  It should make the reader see you as a person, not just another applicant, and should make them want to read on.
The personal statement is very important – an appointments committee looks for someone who will fit in with the rest of the staff and the ethos of the school.  Your personal history/a paragraph about yourself and where you were brought up may be included if this feels right for you.  An indication that you are prepared to teach at any level/be flexible may be significant.

Curriculum and school related interests and strengths/previous teaching experience, skills and abilities

Tailor these to the job advertisement and description – use key words from these as headings.  If there is an application form to fill out, much of the detail will go there, but key features could still be included in the CV.  Or you may choose to leave the job description related factors for the application form and include under this heading in your CV any real strengths you have that are not required by the job description but could still give you an edge over other applicants with similar qualifications and strengths.  Things like bicultural and gender awareness would go here – with evidence of what you have done, ICT skills, conversational speaker of another language, time management skills…
Up to 2 sides of A4 paper that state why you are the most suitable applicant for the job (based on the advertisement and/or job description and person specification).  Include your Final Practicum Reports from the University here.

Publications

Things you have written that have been published (poetry, short stories, articles).

Other interests and involvement

Cultural and sporting activities; committees e.g. secretary of Hamilton Stamp Collectors Club.  Include involvement in student union/politics, student representative committees at university etc., anything that shows you are willing to be involved in things other than your immediate job and family.

Appendices

Academic transcript of university papers and grades (principals do look at grades).  Photocopy of your teacher registration card or of your application for provisional registration with the Teachers Council, if you have not yet received your card.  Any other RELEVANT documents that don’t fit in the CV proper.  You do not need to include copies of certificates etc.  Refer to these in the qualifications section and take them along in the copy of your CV that you take to the interview.

You can include your practicum reports or parts thereof in your application. A school wishing to employ you will probably want to see these anyway.

The Covering Letter

Your CV and application form must be accompanied by a letter of application.  If the school has not provided an application form, much of your application to the job description may be included in the letter of application (especially if you have put together a CV that you want to use, without alteration, for a number of jobs).

Here is a suggested format.  NB This is how a formal/business letter should be set out.  It must be signed by you in ink, not just word processed and printed.

47 Main Street
COUNTRYTOWN
4 October 2013

Ms Ani Brown Chairperson (or principal, whomever it says applications should be made to)
Downtown School Board of Trustees
P.O. Box 236
BIGCITY

Dear Ms Brown
Please find enclosed my curriculum vitae and application form for the vacancy Beginning Teacher, Y1-3, advertised in ‘The Education Gazette’, 1 October 2006.  
Details of application if it is going in here instead of in your CV or on an application form.  Can include a summary statement here such “My particular strengths that suit me to the position are…”
I can be contacted by telephone at (07) 1234567 during the evenings or at my part-time place of employment, Smith’s Supermarket, (07) 9876543 Monday to Friday from 4.00-6.00 p.m.(Check with your boss first).  Two referees who may be contacted for further information are: (Names, addresses, contact phone numbers and relationship to you e.g. associate teacher for second practicum).

Yours faithfully
Your signature (in ink)
Your name

Interviews

If you get called for interview, do more homework about the school if you can – ring up friends who live in the area or who might know something about it.  Go and look around at the weekend – talk to children & parents in the grounds.

Rehearse

Practise the key questions you are likely to be asked, with a group of friends – practice really does work – having thought about what you might say is good, writing it down is better, practising saying it out loud to yourself is better still, but being asked the questions by a group of people is the best – especially if they throw in some other relevant questions you haven’t thought about.  Ask your friends to include someone in your mock interview panel whom you don’t know, to make it more realistic.

Some typical interview questions

These are real questions and comments, provided by principals of schools, that they have used when interviewing for beginning teacher positions in their schools.  An appointments committee is looking for someone who is more than a teacher.  These things are important: personality, evidence that the person has a life outside work, sense of self/presence, good grammar and diction.  For many schools the key teaching-related aspects they are looking for are someone who knows how to set up a literacy and maths programme and who can manage children’s behaviour.

Interview questions

  • What is your preferred teaching level? Why?
  • Why do you want this job?
  • How would you implement learner-centred education in your classroom?
  • Regarding classroom management: How would you develop and maintain good working relationships with the children?
  • Tell us about an incident of off-task behaviour that you have successfully managed.
  • How familiar are you with the maths/science/English curriculum statement?
  • What experience have you had in implementing it?
  • Tell us about your greatest success.
  • How might you maintain working relationships with staff who hold opinions that differ from your own?
  • What special interest can you contribute to the children/staff beyond the classroom?
  • What is your experience with children who are new speakers of English?
  • What are your ideas about parental involvement in your classroom?
  • You say in your personal statement that you have a learner centred teaching philosophy – how would you start it in your room from the first day of teaching?
  • What do you understand to be the role of the teacher in this?
  • How would you go about setting up a reading/maths programme for this class level?
  • In what other curriculum areas do you have particular interests and knowledge?
  • How would you plan and teach a unit in that area?
  • What do you know about the curriculum statement for that area?
  • How do you rate yourself as a teacher?
  • On what basis do you say that?
  • In what area would you appreciate help most in your first year of teaching ?
  • What skills do you have in sport or music or te reo Māori me ona tikanga?

You really do need to be able to genuinely answer each of these questions.  If you give an answer that sounds glib, or copied from somewhere else, you are likely to be asked a follow up question for clarification.  If your answer isn’t really your own answer, you are likely to be ‘caught out’ by a follow up question.

Asking your own questions

At the end of the interview the panel leader will say something like “We’ve asked you a lot of questions – are there any things you’d like to ask us?” Be ready with one or two questions of your own to ask the panel – even if they’re ones to which you know the answer already.  Some possible questions are:

  • In what ways might I expect to receive professional development help if I were to be appointed?
  • How does the school plan to use the 0.2 staffing component which a beginning teacher brings to the school?
  • What is the school’s policy on parental involvement in classrooms?

Taking a support person to your interview

Take a support person if this feels right for you – make sure they have something relevant to say when they’re asked if they have anything they want to contribute about you.  Let the person who phones you about the interview time know that you have a support person coming with you.  They will usually ask you if you will be bringing someone.  You need to have made your decision about a support person/people before the phone call.

Tricky questions from the panel

Be ready for awkward questions like “We see you have three young children, how will you manage them and a teaching job?”.  They’re not supposed to ask questions like this but some BoT members may.  Don’t say “Under the Human Rights Commission Act you are not allowed to ask questions like that”.  Be prepared with an answer such as “I would not have applied for the job if I didn’t have those matters organised” or “I have managed childcare very well during my 3 years as a student teacher and am confident I can do the same as a teacher”.

Who is likely to be interviewing you and length of interview

For some jobs the panel will be the principal and AP or DP in charge of the particular area of the school.  This can vary – it may be the whole BoT – for some BoT members, interviews are a new experience and they all want to be involved.  It could be the whole whanau if it is a bilingual or KKM job (although this is usually only for senior positions).  It is common for there to be 3 people on the interview for a beginning teacher position – principal, AP/DP and 1 BoT member.
The interview can last up to an hour, but will usually be 30-45 minutes.  When you are phoned about the interview, you are entitled to ask who & how many will be on the panel – whoever phones will usually tell you any way.

When you arrive for the interview

Make sure you allow plenty of time to get to the interview venue – it might be the school, but some schools prefer to interview away from the school site.  You will need to find parking and will probably need to go to the toilet!
You may have to wait while the panel finishes its discussion about the previous interviewee.  You will be met by one of the panel members and taken into the interview room.  When you are introduced to the panel members, shake each one by the hand, look at their faces, and when you are told, “This is Margaret Brown, our assistant principal”, say “Hello Margaret” to try and fix the name in your mind – if you’re lucky the panel members will be wearing name tags, but don’t count on it.  If interviewing is a new experience for the BoT members on the panel, they are likely to be nervous too.

The panel will have worked out a list of questions and have divided them up amongst themselves.  You may be asked a question about something that you’ve already talked about when you were answering another question – but a BoT member may not recognise this and may still want to ask their question.  Answer by saying “As I said when I responded to Ana’s question…”.

Don’t be afraid to ask a panel member to repeat their question if you do not understand, if it is a question with several parts to it, or if you didn’t hear properly.  At the end of the interview thank the panel for their time.  If they haven’t already said so, ask when you might expect to hear whether you have won the job or not.

Winning a job and applying for and winning another

If you are offered the position, you should be given some time to consider your decision and a date by which the school needs to receive your written acceptance of the position.  Some schools put pressure on people to accept then and there on the phone.  A verbal agreement to accept the offer is a contract, and teachers are usually required to give three month’s notice of resignation.  If you are not sure, or are waiting to hear the result of another position you have applied for, say “May I have over the weekend / until Tuesday to think it over?”.  You may then need to contact the other school to ask (very politely) when you might expect to hear a result from them.

Time Frame for the Process

Applications are usually due 3-4 weeks from the advertisement appearing.  It can take up to 2 weeks from the closing date for the short-listing process to be completed and interviewees to be notified.  Interviews may take up to another 7 days; between 3-7 people are usually interviewed.  Remember the BoT people involved are all volunteers who handle appointments matters after their working day is over.
The whole process from start to finish can take up to 7 weeks, although this may be shorter if a vacancy occurs close to the end of the school term/year.

How to find out more about CVs and Job Applications

Materials containing ideas about teaching CVs and job applications are available from all School Support Services resource centres – see website listed earlier for contact details.  Materials are also available on the www, in the Education Library at the University and public libraries (check the relevance of the advice for teaching positions in information about general CVs).  If using an electronic library catalogue or the www the term résumé may yield more information than CV or curriculum vitae.

Likelihood of getting a job

There are no readily available statistics on how many newly graduating teachers actually get jobs in teaching.  The Ministry of Education has details of how many beginning teachers are employed in NZ schools (for schools that claim the 0.2 staffing allowance) and the Teachers Council has statistics on how many have been granted provisional registration (but not all of them end up teaching straight away or in long term positions).  Even when we ask graduating students to let us know when the get jobs, there’s no way we can know how many of our graduates who want to go teaching actually get teaching jobs – not everyone gets in touch.

Remember that you are very well qualified, you will have a degree/diploma from one of the most reputable teacher education institutions in the country.  Some schools only appoint beginning teachers from the University of Waikato.

Schools want beginning teachers but they can’t take all of you – they need to make sure that they have a balance of experience and skills, on their staff.  It would be irresponsible to employ a majority of beginning teachers on a staff because the school would not have enough experienced teachers to be tutor teachers.  Some areas of the country have too many teachers and others have too few.  If you are able to move you may be more likely to get a job.  It can be very hard to get a job in Tauranga and quite hard in Hamilton unless it’s a job tagged specifically for beginning teachers.

If you don’t get a job straight away do not despair, try day by day relieving, part time teaching (this can turn into full time in the same school later in the year as roll numbers grow).  Put a summary of your CV together and target some schools where you’d like to work.  Someone may resign at short notice during the summer holidays because his or her partner is transferred to another part of NZ.  The principal will urgently need a reliever for the first term until they can make time to advertise for a permanent teacher.  If she or he has your CV and can contact you over the summer, you may be offered the job for a term and may then stand a good chance of winning the permanent job when it is advertised.  Keep an eye on the daily newspapers over the summer for emergency vacancies like these.

What Principals say about Beginning Teachers

  • “A beginning teacher is someone with up to date qualifications, enthusiasm, and a willingness to work hard. They are also willing to take risks and try things, which is really important for a school.  And they bring in a 0.2 teaching allowance so that we can give them time off to reflect, develop and get involved in school in other ways”.
  • “I enjoy the energy that new teachers bring into the school.  I delight in seeing their new strategies, because it’s never too late to learn new ideas for yourself.  I often find our young teachers are teaching old dogs new tricks”.
  • “The appeal of beginning teachers is that they are up-to-date with the curriculum and educational thinking and have vitality and enthusiasm.”

You’re not expected to be an expert straight away

You’re not expected to be an expert in your first 2 years – that is why we have the 2 years of provisional registration.  You’re expected to ask questions as a beginning teacher, and experienced teachers love to help new teachers.  No question is a ‘dumb question’ when you’re in your first 2 years.  If you’re still asking some of those questions in your third or fourth year of teaching then people may wonder.

Survival Stage in the First Year of Teaching

It seems to take about 2 terms of teaching before you get beyond the survival stage.  This is normal and is recognised in the literature on beginning teaching.  Beginning teachers go through what is termed ‘reality shock’.  This is the phase where you think “I didn’t learn anything about this at university”.  You did actually learn about it, but you forget during this survival phase.  Don’t throw anything away – keep all your university notes until at least your third year of teaching.  Further information about beginning teaching is in the beginning teaching chapter (chapter 14) of your text ‘The professional practice of teaching (McGee and Fraser Eds.)’

What you can do between now and the end of the year

During your final practicum, find out about what principals are looking for when they are appointing a beginning teacher.  Your prac handbook advises you to do this.  Talk to other staff, particularly if there is a teacher in the early years of their career on the staff and find out what their CV looks like, what their interview was like, and how they got started in their first job.  Start working on a first draft of your CV and show it to the principal and ask advice about what else they would recommend you include – but remember different schools prefer different things, as you will see if you read articles about beginning teaching and CV writing.  Don’t forget to be thinking of your career path and planning when you will be ready to apply for senior teacher, AP, DP and principal positions.  Ask the people on the staff at your practicum school about career opportunities and career planning.

Transferrable Skills

People with teaching qualifications don’t always choose to work as primary teachers in New Zealand.  You have skills that are highly sought after.  The following list contains the 10 hottest transferable skills for employment.  Although this list is dated 1979, the same skills were identified in research reported in 2001.  You have all these skills.

  • Budget Management
  • Supervising of children, of parent helpers, of teacher aides, library helpers during your practicum work…
  • Public Relations writing, greeting visitors, speaking at meetings, arranging guest speakers, selling advertising space, getting freebies and sponsorship for your school from local businesses…
  • Coping with Deadline Pressure university assignments, unit planning, report writing,…
  • Negotiating/Arbitrating playground scraps, class rules negotiated with children, sharing resources with other teachers…
  • Speaking university course work seminars, staff meetings, parent meetings, NZEI meetings…
  • Writing assignments, newsletters – class and school, staff meeting minutes, poetry, short stories…
  • Organising/Managing/Coordinating your university study, your part time job, your practicum class, staff meetings, parent meetings, catering for the school gala, gala committee, inter school sports, school camp…
  • Interviewing parents, children, student colleagues fort assignments…

Teaching/Instructing

Headings taken from: Figler, Howard (1979).  The Complete Job Search Handbook: Presenting the Skills You Need to Get Any Job and Have a Good Time Doing It.  New York: Holt, Rinehart & Wilson.  We don’t really want to export all our brightest and best – we want to keep you in NZ, teaching, for the benefit of NZ children, but your qualification will equip you to do many other things as well.

Helpful websites