As well as teaching the P-10 Design & Technologies curriculum, our members also teach VCE Product Design & Technology and VCE Systems Engineering to senior students. You can read the study designs here:

• VCE Product Design & Technology
• VCE Systems Engineering

Katherine Harris, Design and Technologies Teacher

What did you study?

Bachelor of Design (Hons) with a major in Industrial Design at RMIT University.

Why did you choose to study design?

I always felt like a jack of all trades and wanted to rebel against my familial career (they’re all engineers!) I loved the idea of being able to combine my interests in problem solving with my naturally creative inclinations. Industrial design seemed like the perfect synthesis of engineering and art.

What do you love about design?

When done well, design solves problems, beautifully. Design permeates all parts of our lives, and often it’s the design we don’t even notice that is the most successful. 

What industry experience do you have?

I worked at RMIT, teaching some classes, and did a stint in graphic design, but really struggled to find work in Industrial Design after I graduated. I am constantly frustrated by the lack of Australian manufacturing.

Why did you choose teaching?

I always wanted to be a teacher. What can I say, I really liked school! As a teenager I did imagine I would work as a really hip designer for a few years before going into teaching, but things just didn’t work out that way. I also think that I had a lot to offer, particularly as a young person with a practical and academic passion for Product Design. Students definitely recognise when teachers are passionate and competent in their subject areas and, in turn, become more passionate and interested in those areas too.

What do you like about teaching?

The students. I love seeing students achieve success, gain new skills and develop confidence both in a particular subject area and in and of their selves. Also, I think teenagers are probably the most hilarious people anyone could hope to work with and building mutually respectful relationships with them is genuinely rewarding.

What do you like about teaching Design and Technologies?

By nature, the study of Design and Technologies lends itself to matching up with best practice teaching principles, in particular Bloom’s Taxonomy. I like being able to assist students in becoming more autonomous learners and problem solvers and Design and Technologies is the ideal area to try to achieve these goals in.

What would you say to someone considering a career teaching Design and Technologies?

I don’t want to infringe on copyright, but Nike said it best…Just Do It!

Antony Benson, Design and Technologies Teacher

What did you study?

Bachelor of  Industrial design then a Graduate diploma of teaching.

Why did you choose to study design?

Was a natural fit for my interest in how things worked and how I could make them work better. It also allowed for a mix of creativity as well as technical expertise.

What do you love about design?

The positive impact it can have on people's lives either when a product "just works" and so life is made easier or when a product makes possible activities that were impossible for a person previously. An ability to engage the human being (body and soul) in the constructed world

What industry experience do you have?

I worked as an independent contractor as well as working for a design consultancy in Melbourne and IXL in Geelong. In a less direct way I also worked in the UK retrofitting an historic building for use as a hostel which also involved the design process and products.

Why did you choose teaching?

I realised that I what I liked best about design was resolving product flaws rather than designing products from scratch, I also discovered during my overseas travels that I really enjoyed teaching others skills that they could use.

What do you like about teaching?

Making a positive difference in a young person's life journey, being part of a school community- sets for school production, art show, school camps, witnessing  the lightbulb moment when a kid "gets it", getting emails from students six months after they have finished my class with a photo of the completed product!!

What do you like about teaching Design and Technologies?

Creativity on tap, developing/empowering new designers for our future, keeps you at the forefront of Technologies, the variety of design skills that I use daily. Saying yes to an idea  / concept that nobody has yet thought of, why not,  lets give it a go.

Teenagers don't see boundaries the way adults do, they are still willing to imagine a product without limiting themselves by real world constraints. This means I can be assisting with 20 design briefs that range from cutting edge Technologies to old world timberwork techniques to 3D printing model making. The variety is extraordinary and the challenge is for me to accept that I don't have all the answers but to facilitate the students use of the design process to find solutions. It empowers students to become masters of their products.

What would you say to someone considering a career teaching Design and Technologies?What would you say to someone considering a career teaching Design and Technologies?

Teaching is not the "easy" option, the fallback position. Teaching Product Design and Technologies will challenge you as a designer and as a person but the rewards that you will reap in watching a student achieve their goals, in helping a student resolve a problem you didn't even know the answer to are greater than anything you could hope for in a job.

Michael Slinger, STEM and Systems Engineering Teacher

What and where did you study?

 After graduating high school in Brisbane, I completed a 4 year Bachelor of Industrial Design at Queensland University of Technology. Within the course there were elective options, so I took one on electronic engineering and another in Photomedia. For my initial teacher training, I studied a 1 year Graduate Diploma of Education at Griffith University, specialising in Design and Technology and Graphics. After teaching for a few years in various states, I moved to Melbourne and later completed a part time Master of Education (Digital Learning) at Monash University while teaching full time.

 Why did you choose to study design?

 I thought it would be ideal for a designer to be familiar with the vocabulary and concepts of engineering so they could readily collaborate within design project teams. Later when I worked on design projects, I found it very useful to be able to articulate why a specific design details were necessary and suggest alternative approaches to engineers.

 What do you love about engineering?

 I love that engineering is the skillset and dispositions to bring an idea that you have in the real world. I can take whatever problem or idea I have and make it happen. So powerful!

 What industry experience do you have?

After completing my Bachelor of Industrial Design, I worked as an Industrial Designer for an irrigation supplies manufacturer based in Brisbane. I was part of the team that designed and brought to fruition all of the new products, the packaging for the products, as well as any instruction manuals or related fact sheets. I also was responsible for capturing and editing all of the photos for the product catalogues.

After that, I ran my own packaging design business where I would design innovative packaging solutions for a variety of businesses and help them to ensure they presented their product in the most attractive way for their customers.

 Why did you choose teaching?

 Whilst I was running my packaging design business, I applied for a side gig tutoring design subjects at university. From speaking with others in the Design and Technology Education team, I learnt there was high demand for teachers in this area. I already enjoyed tutoring university classes so I thought that teaching in schools would be rewarding as well. I completed my Graduate Diploma in Education and took on a 1 year contract in Western Australia – this was a good period of time to see if I truly liked it, while having the freedom to leave at the end of the year if I didn’t. At the end of the contract, I knew that a career in education was for me.

 What do you like about teaching?

 I like being able to develop productive relationships with the students in my classes. Not only am I educating them about engineering and design, but I am also educating them on how to be resilient, how to find answers to their own questions, and how to be an engaged member of wider society. To know that through my actions I am helping my students to become even better versions themselves is an incredibly rewarding responsibility.

 What do you like about teaching Systems Engineering?

 The study provides opportunities for students to demonstrate their knowledge and skills in a way not offered by the majority of other studies. Over the course of the SAT in particular, it is highly rewarding to develop trusting working relationships with students whilst supporting them to challenge themselves and develop their skills. To have students see the fruits of their efforts after months of work and realise they achieved something they might not have thought possible is commonplace as a result of the study.

 What would you say to someone considering a career teaching Design and Technologies or Systems Engineering?

 It’s a highly rewarding career. Particularly in these subject areas, there is the ability to clearly see the impact that you are having on your students’ learning over a longer-term. It is not always an easy career as there will be inevitable challenges in your teaching practice. However, you have huge opportunities to reflect on your own practice and apply a design-thinking approach to seek out fresh ideas and approaches to fuel self-improvement. Not only do you help your students to be better versions of themselves, but they help you to become a better version of yourself.

Peter Murphy, Design and Technologies Teacher

What did you study?

Integrated Product Design at Glasgow Caledonian University

Why did you choose to study design?

From a young age I have been drawing and making things, from Lego through to tree houses. I loved Design and Technologies at school and so studying an Industrial Design related course was an obvious path for me.

What do you love about design?

I love solving problems and identifying opportunities. I also love it when the functionality of the solution helps to form a beautiful product.

What industry experience do you have?

Several years designing retail outlets in UK and some self employed consultancy work in website development and graphics.

Why did you choose teaching?

I have a passion for design and Technologies and I wanted to work in a creative environment were I could help others discover a passion for the subject.

What do you like about teaching?

I love working with young people - they have no limits and I like being able to help them realise their concepts, they are also just good fun to be around. It's also the closest experience I have had to my university experience!

What do you like about teaching Design and Technologies?

It's a rapidly evolving area and one that schools are realising is very important. I also feel I am learning more about design as a teacher than I did working in industry.

What would you say to someone considering a career teaching Design and Technologies?

Do it! If you feel you have the energy and commitment to inspire and help young people in this exiting area then don't hesitate. You can still pursue your own dreams whilst earning a good salary in very rewarding profession. Design and Technologies teachers are in great demand and Industrial Design graduates make great, innovative teachers!