Staff Profile

Ms Fiona Matthews

I started teaching in a remote school in the Mallee called Rainbow.  I spent the first four years of my teaching there and would probably still be there if it wasn’t for the chronic lack of jobs for anyone except teachers, policemen, bank managers or nurses that is country life. 

My husband (then boyfriend) couldn’t get a job up there, so instead he did his HSC as an adult there (and yes, I did teach him).

I arrived at Scoresby High School in 1985: from a school of 193 to a school over 1000.  It was terrifying, and for the first year I was constantly looking for another job.  (As you notice, I never found one).

I’ve been here ever since then, except for four years ‘off’ for family leave in the 90’s, and three years as a Teaching and Learning Coach in the Knox Secondary Learning Community and spent another two years in schools in that role including here at Scoresby .  I also spent a year in the Dandenong Ranges Schools network as a Learning Coach where I was placed between two primary schools, The Basin and Selby. The amount of learning I gained in that year about how children learn was phenomenal, and I think my teaching since then has benefited. 

I was also extremely fortunate to be employed by the VCAA in 2017 and 2018 as a Specialist Teacher in Health and Physical Education Focusing on Personal and Social Development.  During this time, I was required to travel around the state working with Leaders and Teachers to develop their schools plan to implement the Respectful Relationships initiative within the curriculum. 

My journeys took me from Wodonga to Colac to Bairnsdale to Bendigo and many places between.  Those years were wonderful, giving me a huge insight into how many schools work, how decisions are made but more importantly how hard teachers work and how passionate they are. 

I have taught in every learning area except LOTE.  Art, Music, PE, English, Humanities, Science (my favourite, in fact I’m trained in it), Commerce even one semester in Maths.  I’ve had many leadership roles along the way, Scoresby Secondary College has taught me lots.

Out of school my hobbies include sewing, knitting, and all that crafty stuff, but I’m also a keen gardener and very much a keen horse rider. Now my kids are all grown up, I’ve had the time and opportunity to get back on a horse and have lessons weekly (when there’s no COVID) and even compete occasionally.