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An exceptionally high-achieving UWA graduate has been named Beginning Teacher of the Year at the WA Education Awards.  Rebecca Halse has a Bachelor of Arts and a Graduate Diploma of Education from UWA, and works as a Secondary Ancient and Modern History Teacher at Shenton College.

"The secondary school classroom is a dynamic place," says Rebecca.  "It is a protected and safe environment for the minds of our future to test ideas, challenge concepts and form opinions, confident in the knowledge that they are supported - that there is someone there to catch them if they fall.  These are the leaders of tomorrow and I feel incredibly fortunate to shape their journey in some small, positive way."

An ardent supporter of public education, Rebecca was thrilled to be offered a position teaching at Shenton College during her first teaching practicum there: "Honestly, the offer to teach at one of the state's top public schools was too good to pass up," said Rebecca.

The UWA Learning Links partnership school's excellence was on display across the Education Awards:  Shenton College itself was named WA Secondary School of the Year, its Principal Michael Morgan the Secondary Principal of the Year, and Josie Hodgetts of the College's Deaf Education Centre was named Support Staff Member of the Year.

Excellence is a quality with which Rebecca is well acquainted: during her time at the Faculty of Education Rebecca was awarded the C. Sanders Prize for most outstanding student and the UWA Graduates' Association Prize for achieving the best academic result in the Graduate Diploma in Education.  Rebecca is also in the Rhodes Program, an initiative led by Chief Scientist Professor Lyn Beazley and WA Governor Malcolm McCusker to support and encourage potential candidates for international programs such as the Rhodes Scholarship.

Rebecca encourages new teachers, about to take charge of their own classrooms at the start of the year, to enjoy every moment of their new challenge:  "You are about to go back to school - but not as you know it.  Every day in this new profession is a wonderful mix of challenges and rewards, with no one week, one day or one lesson the same as the last."

Her final piece of advice for new teachers is heartfelt and simple: "Love what you do.  If you have a passion for your subject and a passion for education then your students will thrive and there is no doubt you will excel in this profession."

If you think a career in teaching might be for you, visit the Faculty of Education courses - applications for 2014 are still open.

Media references

Rebecca Halse (Shenton College)
Dr Sanna Peden (Faculty of Education) (Mon to Wed only)  (+61 8)  6488 2382