Sivly Ung
Sivly Ung was ready to get back into the workforce after raising her children.
After 20 years of working in the IT industry, she was made redundant during COVID lockdown. . For six months, she applied for positions in IT, but eventually decided to change direction. She took some time to think about where and how she would like to make a difference. Her personal experience with children with additional needs led her to enrol in the Certificate III in Early Childcare Education at Chisholm Institute of TAFE.
Having her own children, Sivly was interested in understanding the growth and development of children in an educational context.
It had been some time since she had studied but this didn’t stop her enrolling. She never actually saw herself as a ‘mature age student’ but just someone keen to contribute her life experience to a new profession. Eager and ready to learn, she created a solid study routine for herself, carving out time to read, after her family had settled down for the evening.
Sivly had some personal challenges to contend with. Her husband had died of cancer, and as a single mum, she needed to put her family first. Her multitasking skills came to great use as she navigated assignments, the IT system, the student portal and reading tasks.
With a wealth of knowledge on additional-needs children, Sivly was open and happy to share her advice and support, particularly with other students while she was on placement. By providing strategies and options for communicating with children who needed extra support, she became a valuable team member on placement and in the Chisholm classroom.
She easily made others feel comfortable, providing a sense of security which in turn positively impacted her classmates, colleagues and students. Through her passion and understanding of a young child’s well-being, she can now engage any child positively.
Thanks to her studies at Chisholm, Sivly has become a passionate advocate for children with high needs and is aiming for a career that will enable her to empower young people to thrive in their learning environment.
She was nominated for the Trainee of the Year Award at the 2024 Chisholm Education Awards. Her journey highlights that age and circumstance don’t need to stop you fulfilling your dreams; you can keep on positively contributing to new careers with different ideas and strategies throughout your life.