The aim of our Intern Programme is to produce confident and competent teachers who will thrive when entering schools in their first full-time teaching roles. Sometimes, when positions become vacant, we can retain our Interns and promote them to full-time teaching roles.
Our Interns are fully immersed in school life at Uplands:
- Academic – join an academic department, observe lessons, take part in meetings, create content and complete teaching practical blocks.
- Pastoral – co-lead a tutor group (often with a Head of House) and take part in all Pastoral training.
- Boarding – perform boarding duties and join a boarding staff team.
- Co-Curricular – coach or lead an activity in one of our 3 areas: sport, culture or service.
All our interns need to be studying towards being a teacher. Either they are busy with their Undergraduate, PGCE, or BEd Honours/ Master’s. We are very proud of our Intern team and value their input across all areas of our school. Our current cohort is:
Back from left to right:
Lovers Chauke (BEd Senior and FET Phase, majors in Physics and Mathematics)
Graham Wiggill (BEd Senior and FET Phase, majors Mathematics and Life Orientation)
Martin Dlamini (BA, majors in English and Psychology)
Front from left to right:
Nongcebo Cele (BEd Honours in Inclusive Education)
Kathleen Diedericks (BEd Senior and FET Phase, majors Life Sciences and Mathematics)
Nozipho Mahlangu (PGCE, Senior Phase and FET, majors Business Studies and EMS)
Jessica Renssen has recently joined our full-time teaching staff in the English department, having come through our Intern programme. Her journey is noted below:
“When I left high school, I will confess I wasn’t sure where life would take me. Yes, I was moving to Gqeberha (previously known as Port Elizabeth) to attend Nelson Mandela University and get my BA in Media, Communications and Culture, but what would happen after that – who knew? I guessed I’d end up being in Advertising somewhere. Then COVID-19 hit and I moved home to study online through my varsity. To make some money, I started tutoring English, Art, Maths Literacy and History at Uplands. Teaching had never even been the faintest idea in my mind. But I kept going, and the kids and life around me started to creep into my heart, and the Uplands community reminded me of how invested it is in your life. It finally made sense – teaching was the thing that felt right. So, I applied to do my PGCE (Postgraduate Certificate of Education) and qualified to be an English teacher for high school grades in 2024, and soon after applied to be an Intern at the College in 2025. Things started to fall into place. The Intern programme gave me the diving board I needed to leap into teaching – being given the space to learn and grow was extremely helpful and insightful. I couldn’t have done it without all the staff around me, guiding me at every twist and turn. Now, armed with that guidance, I’ve become a fully-fledged teacher, with English classes from Grade 8 to 11.”