English teacher Miss Katherine Bull joined Meriden Anglican School for Girls at the start of 2022. Now in her fourth year at the school, she is Acting Year 8 Coordinator for 2025.
WhichSchool?: What are the top three highlights you’ve experienced as a teacher at the school?
- Going on Year 9 service camps; I’ve had the privilege of travelling with Meriden to Fiji and Cape York, where I shared in transformative experiences with staff and students learning about different cultures, communities and environments. Both times it was inspiring to see Meriden girls commit to learning about different ways of life, social justice and serving others beyond our own local community. There were many moments where girls were pushed beyond their comfort zones, myself included, and overcoming these challenges together strengthens relationships, enhancing a sense of connection when back in the Meriden school grounds and classrooms.
- Meriden’s biannual student literary publication Equilibrium is a highlight, showcasing poetry, prose, non-fiction and visual storytelling of the highest calibre. Students meet twice a year in the Reading Room to collect their copy of the magazine, and listen to students read extracts from their work. Copies of Equilibrium fly off the shelves like hotcakes – they’re in high demand! The cover artwork competition is always of a high quality – the creativity and skill that goes into the submissions is impressive.
- The music! The Music Department is phenomenal and whenever the students perform at special events or assemblies, the music is outstanding. The students bring audiences to their feet with joy and evoke powerful emotional responses – it’s very special to witness. Going on Music Camp with the students is a privilege.
WS: What makes the school different from other schools?
Ms Bull: The sense of community and school spirit – Meriden girls care deeply about each other and their school. Senior students work tirelessly to implement initiatives and activities that foster a sense of wellbeing for all, and there’s a real sense of each girl being known by their peers beyond their year groups. This sense of community makes itself known because at the end of the school day, Meriden students stick around! They meet up in the Hudson Library and Research Centre or the Bell Garden to debrief and collaborate, or connect with their sporting, musical or creative clubs and continue to learn beyond their academic lessons. There’s a buzz in the school that makes Meriden a very special place to be in.
WS: Why is the school a great place to teach?
Ms Bull: There is a real love of learning, and that goes beyond students into the staff rooms. Teachers continuously develop their knowledge and pedagogy to provide the best lessons for each of their classes and are passionate about their subject areas. The pursuit of excellence from the teachers generates excitement in the students, and each week at assembly there are announcements regarding the next big project, or competition going on which no doubt swarms of students become involved in. Hearing about the various ways the girls are contributing to improving the world and those around them is uplifting.
WS: What are some of the challenges faced by teachers in the primary/secondary sector?
Ms Bull: A key challenge is dealing with the influence and all-encompassing nature of the online world, social media and faceless communication students have beyond the school grounds. Working with students to develop their critical thinking capabilities to discern information they come across, and to recognise the impact of their presence in this space is a hefty task. Social interactions, with peers and with strangers, extending beyond the school day and into the home lives of students is a real challenge for teachers to navigate. The complexity of helping students to problem solve in their peer relationships is amplified when there is little supervision of language used, and difficulties compound through the unchecked sharing and storing of information. Helping students in recognising the impact of their words and actions and the sense of permanence is so important, but difficult to impart.
WS: Tell us about your approach or philosophy to teaching?
Ms Bull: As an English teacher I wholeheartedly believe in the profound impact that texts have on young people in allowing them to better explore and understand their own experiences of the world by learning from the experiences of others. Finding ways in which students can interrogate and evaluate their own position on the world through the lens of others is a core part of my approach. If students feel a sense of recognition and relevancy in what they are learning, then the learning is much richer and has a deeper impact. This is where students take ownership and make connections between themselves, others and the wider world.
WS: Did you have a teacher that inspired you? Tell us about them, and how they inspired you.
Ms Bull: My senior school English teacher, Ms Hewett from St Hilda’s in Perth, was a huge inspiration to me. Her depth of literary knowledge and her passion in teaching young women to explore the world through language made a lasting impact on me. Her calm demeanour was deeply appreciated amongst the stressors and worries of high school and growing up; being in her classroom was both invigorating and restorative. Ms Hewett fostered in me both a love of reading, writing and creativity as well as a desire to teach and be part of a learning community as an adult.
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