Assisting in the electorate office of Greg Warren MP has been a happy and valuable experience for Charlotte, a Year 12 student at Mater Dei School, who has gained new skills and confidence by taking part in the school’s Workplace Learning Program.
By Debra Vermeer
Charlotte is just one of the students in Years 10, 11 and 12 at Mater Dei School who are completing workplace learning opportunities as part of the life skills component of their senior studies.
Coordinator of the Workplace Learning Program, Catherine Smith, said the chance to work in the community, learning new skills and spending time in a workplace setting was invaluable for the senior students.
“The program begins in Year 10 when the students go out once a week to do Meals on Wheels with a staff member,” she said. “It’s an introduction to what it’s like to go out and do a job, meet people and perform duties.”
Image supplied by Mater Dei School.
When the students reach Years 11 and 12, they go to various businesses one day a week and do work placements.
“Each student would do two different work placements each year,” Catherine said.
“We pair them up with work placements in the community and if they have work goals and particular interests, we try to fit those in too.”
Catherine said the response of local businesses in the community had been extremely positive.
“We have a range of different hosts who support this. The community has really gotten behind it, and pretty much all our hosts say they get just as much out of it as the student,” she said.
Students have done their work placement in a range of industries, including the motor industry, beauty, administration, hospitality and retailers, including Woolworths.
Woolworths has also partnered with Mater Dei to have a mini-supermarket on the school campus for students to work in and gain experience on-site.
“The work placement program gives students an insight into what it’s like to be a worker, to be part of a team, to get those workplace skills and be part of a learning environment,” Catherine said. “We’ve seen that it certainly boosts their confidence and independence.”
The students are also involved in preparation before they step into the work environment.
“We do the paperwork together and discuss appropriate clothing or footwear. We also talk about communicating in the workplace and workplace health and safety,” Catherine said.
Charlotte said she loved being in the office of Greg Warren, the Member for Campbelltown, where she works with Greg’s personal assistant Vicki Meadows for one morning a week.
“I feel happy when I go to work. I like going there and it’s so much fun,” Charlotte said. “I try really hard, and I always ask for help. Vicki is really nice. I ask her how her day is going.
Image supplied by Mater Dei School.
“I type on the computer, do photocopying, sort the mail and get to learn new things.”
Charlotte has also spent time researching some aspects of parliament and government, as well as learning how to communicate in the workplace and also in the wider community.
The placement has been so successful that Vicki asked if Charlotte could return after her placement ended because she believed Charlotte could continue to build her confidence and skills even further.
“So that was a wonderful outcome for Charlotte,” Catherine said. “Our business hosts have been really wonderful in the way they nurture the students and show them such kindness as well as building week to week on improving their skills.”
In a Facebook post, Mr Warren told his friends and followers that Charlotte was “helping out in my office for a while and has been an absolute pleasure to have around”.
“Thanks again for all your help Charlotte!” he said.
While the program doesn’t aim to result in students gaining employment at their host business, but rather building skills and work-readiness, Catherine said there had been cases when a job offer was made.
“One of the students did a work placement in a café for a couple of days a week and they are still working there,” she said. “Another student did a work placement with Camden Hire and is still there more than 20 years later, so that’s been a really great success.
“But mostly it’s about building confidence. We’ve had parents who say they can’t believe some of the skills their son or daughter has learnt on the job and what a difference it has made to their sense of independence. That’s exactly what the program hopes to achieve.”
Mater Dei, situated in Camden on Sydney’s southern outskirts, is one of ten schools that comprise Good Samaritan Education.
Mater Dei consists of the Mater Dei School, a K-12 school for students with intellectual disability; NextPath Continuous Learning, a post-school program for young adults which empowers and supports them to achieve personal and career goals; NextPath Assessment & Therapy, which provides allied health services, including occupational therapy, speech therapy and physiotherapy; and Mater Dei Early Childhood Education which offers pre-school for children with and without any level of additional needs, as well as playgroups and early intervention programs.
