Practising Positivity in the Classroom

Laura received her Bachelor of Education in 2006 and began teaching at a Special Developmental School in the northern suburbs. She went on to complete a Master’s of Education (Special education, Inclusion and Early Intervention) before becoming a Travelling Teacher for the Mansfield Autism Statewide Services. This role required Laura to travel to a school in regional Victoria, observe and work with a particular child and their school before going home with the student and experiencing the family life with the goal of developing and implementing necessary strategies as the family required.

Being part of tens of families’ daily experience of living with and attempting to develop a child who was on the autism spectrum proved invaluable and lead Laura to become Victoria’s first Visiting Teacher of Autism. This involved consulting teachers at mainstream schools in the Northern Metropolitan Region and working with them to build their capacity to successfully integrate and include students with an ASD. Through this work Laura was also able to develop her skills in managing challenging behaviours and made the link between the benefits that come from using certain strategies with students who are on the autism spectrum and those who are neuro-typical.

Through this work Laura was awarded the Victorian Teachers Excellence Award  — Additional Needs in 2011 and was one of 25 individuals invited to a private luncheon with Queen Elizabeth and Prince Phillip later that year.

In 2012, Laura began to work at Northern School for Autism as the Student Wellbeing and Transition Coordinator.

As a young worker in a community school Shannon developed a firm belief that keeping children involved and engaged in education is the single most important thing we can do for them. It affords a chance to belong, to develop resilience and self-mastery. In the years since, she has concluded that this is most true for the children who are most at risk of falling through the cracks.
More recently, Working for the DEECD in over 200 schools at a regional level has given Shannon the chance to further develop her practice, providing support and advice to schools and families advocating for everyone’s right to feel safe and learn at school. Shannon believes that one positive genuine relationship with an adult can change the trajectory of a child or young persons life. Taking the time to find out what a child is trying to tell us – through words, actions, behaviour and emotion – is moving and powerful for both the child and the adult. Positive communication and reinforcement consolidate and validate these important relationships.
She has a Masters in Youth Health and Education management as well as a Bachelor of Arts and Diploma of Youth Work. She currently works in a school in Melbourne’s north with children with mild intellectual disability.