As she stepped inside Kingswood High School in western Sydney, university student Cathleen Huiskamp was nervous.
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Huiskamp → step → Sydney
She was part of a new government initiative that sends early-career educators to high-needs schools in western Sydney to demystify the stigma around public education.
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that → send → education
In one hour, Huiskamp’s perspective was transformed.
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perspective → transform → hour
She joined a modern history class in which students were told to take out a piece of paper and silently write down everything they remembered from the previous lesson.
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they → join → lesson
The class erupted into chatter.
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class → erupt → chatter
A student called out: “Miss, I took my vitamins, I ate my breakfast and I drank my water!”
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I → call → water
The teacher did not miss a beat, “Excellent ... now let’s have a go at putting knowledge onto paper.”
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’s → miss → paper
Watching on, Huiskamp had a realisation.
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Huiskamp → watch → realisation
It’s kids looking for connection ... and the only way they know how is by being a bit naughty or being a bit disruptive,” she said.
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she → ’ → connection
For Huiskamp, the program cemented her love for teaching.
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program → cement → teaching
At one point in her placement, a student asked her what she thought of him and his classmates.
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she → ask → him
She admitted she’d expected them to heckle her and be uninterested in learning, but they had listened closely and asked thoughtful, respectful questions.
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they → admit → questions
She told them they were great.
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they → tell → them
We’ve always been told that because we’re western Sydney kids, we’re bad’,” she recalled.
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she → tell → ?
“I was like, ‘You know what? This is where I can have a meaningful career and have an impact on students beyond academics,’” Huiskamp said.
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Huiskamp → know → academics
Kingswood High principal Adam Forbes said such initial apprehension is common.
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apprehension → say → ?
“They expect classes to be a bit rowdy,” he said.
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he → expect → ?
“They think they will be thrown into the deep end.
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they → think → end
They don’t realise there is an entire faculty that is going to support them.
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that → realise → them
“The important things are getting people through the gates to see the reality.
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people → get → reality
Once they do that, they definitely walk away with a different view.
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they → do → view
In complex schools, a teacher’s role tends far beyond the curriculum, explained maths teacher Natalie Benson.
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Benson → tend → curriculum
She carries a small notebook with her, filled with observations tracking her students’ injuries, sick days, attitude, equipment and home life.
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She → carry → injuries
There are people here who, for a number of reasons, don’t value education – maybe they have other things going on.
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things → be → education
It’s our job to work with that,” Benson said.
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Benson → ’ → that
“You have to show you care, we have to adapt our lessons to be worthy of them.
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we → have → them
You can’t just give them something and expect it to work.
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it → give → something
Meet them where they are at.”
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they → meet → where
Over a week, 50 university students attended schools with teacher shortages and complex needs in south-west, north-west and western Sydney.
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students → attend → Sydney
Participant Saajidah Reijerink said the placement helped her to shed preconceptions about teaching in so-called “deficit” areas.
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her → say → areas
“Kids who don’t receive love at home will come to school to receive it … creating an environment in which kids feel supported and accepted, will then support them to do better academically, and to thrive here,” she said.
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she → receive → them
At the end of the modern history lesson, the same student shouts out again.
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student → shout → lesson
“I’ve started eating my vegies, and I have taken my vitamins.
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I → start → vitamins
I am gonna be here every day now so I can absorb more content.
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I → go → content
The teacher gives a wry smile and tells the class there will be an extra homework question because of the student’s interruption.
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teacher → give → interruption
The class groans.
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class → groan → ?
Huiskamp sees the disruption as more significant than any curriculum point.
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Huiskamp → see → point
“Having a kid announce in public that they want to go to school, and it’s actually because they feel comfortable in that class, is massive.
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they → have → class
The growth isn’t in intelligence or academics; it’s in the person,” she said.
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she → ’ → person
The Aporia
