Scotch College

Meet some of the new Senior School staff

Words: Ms Keiron Jones

Alison Thomson (Art)

I completed a postgraduate diploma of education specialising in visual arts at the University of Melbourne in 2006. Over the past two years I have worked as a casual relief teacher at Scotch and as a humanities teacher at St Leonard’s Cornish Campus. I am currently undertaking a master’s degree by research in fine art at Monash University, focusing on how the ‘self’ is constituted and represented. My first four weeks at Scotch have been very rewarding. I think I am learning as much from the Year 8s as they are from me. Their spirited responses to art and the people around them are both challenging and inspiring.

Doreen Zhang (Languages other than English)

I taught at government schools for three years before I went to teach at Caulfield Grammar School in 1994, where I taught from Prep to Year 9 till 2006. I also taught VCE level Chinese at the Victorian School of Languages in the late nineties. I am very impressed with the modern facilities at the Language and Culture Centre. Scotch staff are very friendly and students are well mannered and keen to learn. I enjoy attending the school assembly, which gives me a good sense of Scotch community. In short, my initial weeks at Scotch have been very pleasant and have gone smoothly.

Michael Waugh (Drama/English)

Prior to working at Scotch I worked for seven years at Williamstown High School, where I had a number of leadership roles, including School Production Leader, Head of the Arts and Year 10 Coordinator. I was also a leading teacher at the school, where I worked on helping to restructure the organisation and curriculum of the senior school in the move to a Year 10-12 campus.

I spent last year working at Eltham College’s Year 9 city campus: this was an alternative learning environment aimed at engaging and promoting self-direction in Year 9 students. The program used open plan learning environments, an integrated curriculum, enquiry-based learning principles and team-teaching strategies.

My real expertise is in performance studies in the senior years of schooling. For several years now I have had the privilege of working as a VCE assessor for the Drama and Theatre Studies written and performance exams.

My initial impressions of Scotch have been very warm: apart from the temperature being in the 40s every day during my first week, everyone was incredibly friendly and welcoming. The facilities are incredible: I can’t believe that I work in such a wonderful space. I’m really excited to be directing the Year 7 and 8 play this year (Peter Pan), and equally excited to be working with the experienced drama staff. Moreover, I’m really enjoying my work with the very impressive young men in my classes: hard working, creative, respectful and compassionate. GS