Life before Girton
After a successful career in the field of Electrotechnology and Engineering I found that I had a passion for teaching. My first teaching job was at Bendigo TAFE where I worked for 9 years teaching Electronics. After this time I was looking for a new challenge and found it when I joined Girton in 2007.
What I Love about Teaching
What I love most about teaching is being able to help students’ progress throughout their schooling and develop into young men and women ready to take on the world and the challenges that it holds. I get a great deal of pleasure in taking my current students to visit past students in their final year of Engineering at University and seeing what they have designed for their major project.
The best thing about teaching at Girton is that the students genuinely want to learn and take full advantage of the opportunities that are presented to them.
What do you like best about the subject/s you teach?
Students who have an interest in the physical world should study Physics and Engineering. The practical applications of some fairly heavy theoretical concepts help students to develop a detailed understanding of real world situations that are applicable outside of the classroom. I particularly enjoy the cross-over of knowledge that occurs with students who study both Physics and Engineering.
My favourite classroom activity
My favourite classroom activity is the Unit Four Engineering project. This is the result of several years of study in Engineering and Science that culminates in the students designing, prototyping, building and testing an electro-mechanical system. The project takes the students six months to plan and a further three months to build and really tests their project management skills. Students come up with a fascinating variety of projects ranging from bionic limbs to electric skateboards.
What difference can good teaching make?
Successful students in my classes are those who are self-motivated, willing to learn and are able to put in the hard work required to succeed. I hope that students benefit from my knowledge and years of experience in Engineering and can go on to achieve their own personal successes in the field.
Other Hats
I am involved in the SEMA Co-curriculum. This involves students competing on an international stage against students from the top universities in Asia. It is amazing to see High School students rising to the challenge and they never cease to impress me with what they can achieve. A top 5 finish in 2019 is where the bar has been set for this year’s students and I am confident the record will be broken in Kuala Lumpur.
