Indigenous Education students experience practicum placements in both federally funded schools and public schools.
We found that it was very valuable to make sure students had practicum experiences in both school systems as part of their degree. Sometimes students are reluctant to go to a system they have no experience with. All students in this program, both First Nations and non-First Nations students have at least one practicum at a First Nation administered (federally funded) school and another at a public (provincially funded) school. There are five practicum placements plus the internship in the program. We found that students were much more likely to seek employment in a school system with which they were less familiar after their practicum experiences. The schools appreciated having these students in their classrooms because the education students were good role models to all of the students in the schools. It gave the schools an opportunity to get to know potential future hires and build a relationship with them a couple of years before they would be looking for employment.