By Ewen McRae
Lakeview Senior College has known for some time it had a special teacher in Melanie Brooks, and now the whole state knows.
Ms Brooks was last week named the Teacher of the Year at the VCAL Teacher Achievement Awards, while the VCAL program that she runs at the Caroline Springs school was also named as the best in the state.
The Victorian Certificate of Applied Learning (VCAL) is a ‘hands-on’ option for students in Years 11 and 12.
Ms Brooks said it was a shock to win, but nice to get the recognition from her peers.
“It was very exciting, and nice to be recognised for all the hard work that goes on here,” Ms Brooks said.
“I’ve been involved with VCAL for 16 years, so it’s probably recognition for the work over a long period and lovely to get that and share it with my friends and family.
“It’s also great for the kids to know that our program is state level kind of stuff, and that what we’re doing here at the college is seen to be worthy and a best practice model.”
For Ms Brooks, her work prior to arriving at Lakeview is what gave her the passion to create such a well respected VCAL program.
“Before I worked in teaching I worked a lot in student wellbeing, and some drug and alcohol work, and I felt like I was working with young people after the fact,” she said.
“A lot of them had disengaged with education because there wasn’t an alternative for them. And VCAL is such a great option for kids who don’t see themselves as university candidates.
“It’s such a great way to stay involved with education for kids, because they build networks, get hands-on working experience, but also get a qualification they can use once they finish school.”
The VCAL program at Lakeview has undergone a number of changes since Ms Brooks arrived in 2017 and immediately saw some opportunities to revamp the way things were done.
Last year saw students build and operate a coffee cart at the school, which they still run, giving students first-hand experience with running a business.
“When I got here we shook everything out of the box and made some improvements which have really helped liven up the program,” Ms Brooks said.
