Liaison Teacher

The Liaison Teacher’s role is crucial in assisting students in their preparation for the School for Student Leadership (SSL) maximising the transfer of learning from the SSL to the home community. They have the responsibility of:

• Assisting students in their task of identifying and designing a Community Learning Project
• Preparing them to attend the SSL
• Supporting them during their time away
• Attending the Community Learning Project presentation at the SSL
• Assisting them in reintegration and the promotion and transfer of their experience.

It is expected that the Liaison staff be given a time allowance to fulfill these responsibilities.

The Community Learning Project (CLP) needs to be owned by students. Their projects should relate to something they can identify with and feel passionate about. Students should drive their project and be involved in setting it up with the assistance of their Liaison Teacher.

Students need to be given the opportunity to prepare for their CLP prior to attending the SSL. It is important that they gather resources (primary and secondary) which are crucial for them to undertake their projects once at the SSL.

Questionnaires and surveys etc required for gaining information for their projects should, where possible, be designed and carried out prior to attending the SSL. The collection of primary and secondary data from the SSL is much more difficult and can involve a long wait. This can create a real stumbling block for teams to continue working on their projects and cause them to lose a lot time.

Resources such as:

• Local phone books
• Maps
• Photos of areas related to their projects
• Local contact names, addresses, phone numbers.

The Liaison Teacher should create, if it does not exist, a means within the school and possibly the wide community for students to share their experiences and provide updates on their CLP work.

Parents should also be given the opportunity to prepare themselves for this experience and share their thoughts. This could involve having their own meeting, joining in with a student meeting, setting up a support group etc.

The Liaison Teacher should take on the responsibility of promoting the experience to other staff and exploring ways of involving the wider school community in the experience and ways in which students can be credited for their work in different subject areas.

The job of the Liaison Teacher during the student’s absence is to support them in their CLP, keep in touch with them about major school happenings, and be a point of contact at any time. They are also required to make at least one visit to their selected campus during the term.

This is the day the students present to real audience for the first time their project outcomes. Principals, School Council Presidents, and Liaison Teachers and their partners or delegates are invited to attend. Parents are not able to attend the presentations, except if they fall into the above categories.

This is a wonderful opportunity to see the result of the SSL experience, and to admire the capabilities of these young adults. We strongly urge the Liaison Teacher to pen this in their diaries and join us for this the day. We can provide information about accommodation. You are advised to book early. This is also a wonderful opportunity to meet colleagues from all over Victoria.

In the last week at the SSL students are given the opportunity to look at what actions they will take to continue to develop what they have learnt at the SSL.

This is an excellent starting point for liaison staff to assist students in transferring their learning. It will be valuable also to make time with each student to share their passport and look at where they want to take this. Students will also have been given different models and strategies for things such as goal setting, conflict resolution, stress management which liaison staff could encourage students to make use of and teach others.