Mr Steven Spottiswood joined our School in 2008 in what was supposed to be a temporary, short-term move, but 13 years later, he is still enjoying being part of our School community. Mr Spottiswood discusses how he discovered his passion for teaching and his experiences prior to joining our School.

The very first class I taught was Year 1 English at the Beijing Experimental Primary School which was part of the Beijing Normal University. This was way back in 1998 and I was a student at Beijing Normal University. I loved it but at that time I was not too sure about pursuing teaching as a career.

After returning to Australia, I decided to extend my studies beyond my Bachelor of Arts (Asian Studies) degree at UWA and completed a Master of International Studies at Curtin University. This led to entry into a graduate program at the Department of the Premier and Cabinet.

There was a five-month break between gaining entry into the Program and it actually starting, so I headed back to China where I taught English full-time to high school graduates. Again, I loved teaching but returned to begin the graduate program with the government.

By the end of my first year, my mind was made up – I knew that teaching was for me. I taught teach English to adults in Perth for a couple of years before completing a Diploma in Education and making the move into Secondary School education.

In 2008 I moved to Bunbury with my wife and six-week-old daughter and started working at Bunbury Cathedral Grammar School. The plan was to stay for two years and move on, but we never did! Working with passionate educators and our ceaselessly curious, kind and committed students turned out to be my dream job!