After nearly a decade of teaching at SuniTAFE, Nicky Moore has been recognised for her dedication and passion by being named SuniTAFE Mildura campus Teacher of the Year.

The prestigious award was presented to Nicky at the SuniTAFE Graduation and Awards evening at the Mildura Arts Centre in May.

The Certificate IV in Training and Assessment (TAE40116) teacher was nominated for going above and beyond with her commitment to her students and her passion for being the best teacher she can be by continually updating her practices and tools.

“I like to study; I maintain and grow my knowledge by usually doing some form of course,” Nicky said.

“Currently I am studying the Associate Degree in Adult and Vocational Education and thoroughly enjoying it.

“I have really been able to put what I have learnt there into practice in the classroom which has been really helpful and interesting.”

Nicky first started out in the workforce as a horse-riding instructor in the UK before moving to Australia in 2000, where she worked in Cairns, the Gold Coast and Adelaide before settling in Mildura in 2013 to teach equine studies at SuniTAFE.

“Once I got my DIPVET (Diploma of Vocational Education and Training) I got asked to help teach TAE40116 and have been doing that since early 2015 part time before going full time in 2019,” Nicky said.

“TAE is the course you do if you want to teach your trade. It is nick-named the train your trainer course.

“Because of the nature of the TAE, I get people from all walks of life. So, it’s a really diverse classroom.

“It’s a really fun course to teach, we have great group discussions where we all learn from each other. I also get to play a mentorship role and lead by example in the class that I teach.”

While having a classroom of diverse students can create great group dynamics, Nicky said it can also be a challenge.

“We can have some people requiring more support than others,” she said.

“Managing the diversity of that group has been difficult at times but I have learnt through early intervention to provide support for those learners and I have a really high success rate of getting them all through.

“I open the class up early for extra tutoring for those struggling and students who need it are able to make use of additional academic support and that has been quite successful.”

Nicky admits that she loves her role at SuniTAFE so much that when she thinks of her future, there is nowhere else she would rather be.

“In the future I still hope to work at SuniTAFE and teaching,” she said.

“I don’t have any desires to be a manager and want to stick to teaching.

“The reason I am undertaking the Associate Degree in Adult and Vocational Education is because there is an opportunity for me to teach the Diploma in Vocational Education and Training (DIPVET). “Hopefully in the next five years I will be teaching the DIPVET and the TAE with my long-term goal is to remain teaching at SuniTAFE.”

Nicky hopes to continue to pass on her knowledge to future teachers within our community.

“The TAE is a valuable qualification. If you have the industry expertise and experience, we would love you to come and do your TAE and then you can share your skills and knowledge with others by becoming a teacher at SuniTAFE,” she said.

Those interested in enrolling in the TAE or finding out more information can do so by visiting www.sunitafe.edu.au/courses/youth-and-general-education/tae40116-certificate-iv-in-training-and-assessment.