Secondary school teacher

What does a secondary school teacher do?

As a secondary school teacher (also known as a high school teacher) you will teach subjects in your chosen area of interest and expertise. For example, you may specialise in teaching English, maths, drama, music, science, history, and/or physical education.

So what is secondary school and what exactly is involved in secondary teaching? As a secondary teacher your classrooms could be filled with students aged between 12 and 18; in Australia, this includes grades seven to 12.  You will develop lesson plans, set exams and assignments, mark assessment, complete student report cards, conduct parent-teacher interviews, plus facilitate any extracurricular activities.  

Is a career as a secondary school teacher right for me?

If you’re passionate about education and have good communication skills, you might enjoy working as a high school teacher. Other skills and attributes beneficial for this role include: 

• excellent organisational skills  
• an interest in working with teenagers  
• patience  
• empathy  
• resilience 
• good behaviour management skills.  

How to become a secondary school teacher

Every journey to study is individual and there are several paths to becoming a secondary teacher. At UniSQ, we offer the following degrees in the area of secondary education: