News & Events

Teaching graduate inspiring her students

A desire to encourage children to be the best they can be drove Amanda Wilkie towards a career in teaching.

When she finished school in 2005 Amanda thought about becoming a teacher but decided to do a TAFE course first. Three years later she enrolled at the University of Newcastle to study a primary teaching degree.

"Both my parents didn't finish year 12 at school but that didn't stop me from wanting to achieve things. I wanted to be a teacher so I could be a role model and show children that you can overcome obstacles and be who you want to be," she said.

Amanda graduated in 2012 and now works at inner city Darwin school Larrakeyah Primary, teaching a year 3-4 composite class.

"Every day I use something that I learnt during my degree and I'm finding that it's all starting to fall into place now that I'm actually working in the classroom. I'm enjoying putting into practice everything that I was taught", Amanda said.

"I love connecting with my students and watching them get excited about learning something new and seeing the light bulb go on in their heads when they finally get something they've just learnt."

"I would recommend the University of Newcastle to anyone, it definitely equipped me with the skills I needed to be a good teacher."

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