Three seniors are student teaching in Australia

While U.S. kids are now on their summer vacations, their Australian counterparts are in the middle of winter and that means school. In some classrooms, their lessons are being taught by student teachers who hail from universities in other countries, including three from SUNY Fredonia.

Melania Heffernan of East Rochester, Colston Hillman of Cuba, N.Y., and Jenna Robison of Pittsford, N.Y. are among 33 students currently student-teaching in the temperate, coastal region Northeast of Brisbane, known for its world-class surfing beaches, national parks and a sub-tropical climate.

An agreement between the State University of New York and the University of the Sunshine Coast, which meets the New York State and SUNY requirements for teacher certification, has put the program into the SUNY Fredonia catalog of study abroad opportunities. "It's a unique program and it's actually a world exemplar in terms of international student-teacher programs,” said Colin Balfour, a consultant with the University of the Sunshine Coast who travelled through Queensland with the students.

Making a 13-week summer commitment, the American college students are immersing themselves in an Australian perspective on education, while at the same time forming comparisons that they hope will make them better teachers in the U.S. Currently, they are teaching at their assigned schools, and they’ll be finished in mid-September when the term ends and the Australian children start a two-week vacation.

Their work began in June when they took an intensive course on the Australian educational system, and started internships and observations at area schools. After that, they went on a two-week tour of Queensland led by Balfour. “The idea was for them to meet as many Australians as possible, and give them real insight into the Australian way of life.” The students visited the Outback, cattle stations in remote areas, and rural schools where distance education is a must.

Heffernan, Hillman, and Robison are due to graduate in December, when they will be certified to teach grades one through six. Each of them will have credentials to teach children with disabilities also. Heffernan will also be certified to teach English in middle school and Robison to teach Social Studies in middle school. Hillman has a concentration in science.

The University of the Sunshine Coast is only 12 years old, and was created by a special legislative act in order to meet the needs of the growing population in the coastal region of southeast Queensland.

For information on the student-teaching program for Fredonia students in Australia, contact Fredonia’s International Education Director, Mary Sasso.