Transition into the Profession Conference

The School of Education aims to graduate teachers who are effective, engaging and ‘classroom ready’. A key strategy for achieving this aim is the annual Transition to the Profession Conference for pre-service teachers in their final year of study.

Approximately 170 pre-service teachers undertaking Early Years and Primary (EDFD462), Primary (EDFD452) and Secondary (EDFD472, EDFD663) courses attended the recent 2021 conference in Queensland.

The conference featured a 3-day agenda of workshops and presentations that gave the participants strategic insights into:

• recruitment
• professional teacher identity
• professional ethics
• codes of conduct
• registration processes in Queensland.

A keynote address by clinical psychologist Dr John Barletta on teacher wellbeing was a highlight of the first day.

“John Barletta’s presentation on teacher wellbeing was extremely comforting for me as I am someone who often over commits. With a growth mindset, I now honestly believe I have the ability to determine my own excellence and avoid the dreaded burnout in my first year of teaching,” commented Page Tolmaci, a pre-service teacher who attended the conference.

Participants also heard from key education stakeholders such as Education Queensland, Brisbane Catholic Education and Lutheran Education.

Pre-service teachers were challenged to consider the benefits of teaching in a regional area through engaging presentations and first-hand accounts from representatives of Cairns, Townsville, Rockhampton and Toowoomba Catholic dioceses.

A new feature of the 2021 conference was a set of Q&A forums involving principals/deputy principals and recently graduated teachers. These provided valuable insights into finding employment, the interview process, developing proficiencies, and what to expect as a new teacher in the first few days and weeks.

The 2021 Transition into the Profession Conference was a great success and provides the final year pre-service teachers with essential information, practices, processes, and structures to support them as they embark upon their future teaching careers.

Similar programs are run in each campus.

Clinical Psychologist Dr John Barletta