News / Education
Brunswick South West teacher is top of the class
Art program is a big part of the school’s curriculum
Mark Phillips
IT is thanks to her inspirational year seven teacher in regional New South Wales more than 40 years ago that Felicity Kingsford set her sights on a career in the classroom.
It has been a career that this year reached an unexpected pinnacle when the specialist art teacher from Brunswick South West Primary School received one of the top individual awards for teaching in Victoria.
No-one was more surprised than Kingsford when her name was read out by Victorian Education Minister Ben Carroll in front of several hundred guests at the Regent Theatre in October as Outstanding Primary Teacher of 2024.
But according to those who know her, the prize was just reward for a dedicated teacher whose love of art has been passed on to hundreds of students at BSWPS.
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Kingsford, 56, has been the school’s full-time art teacher for almost decade.
Prior to that, she worked part-time in the school library and as a classroom teacher while her own two children, Hannah, now 21, and Liam, 19, were students there.
As art teacher, she is in charge of a biennial exhibition that showcases the work of every one of the school’s 450 students.
But it is also for her work in running a weekly lunchtime art therapy program for children with mental health issues that she received recognition at the Victorian Education Excellence Awards.
Kingsford said she was initially reluctant when a parent suggested at the start of this year that she would like to nominate her for the award.
But at the prodding of that parent, Thembi Mason, she put her name forward for the rigorous adjudication process.
Her nomination was backed by principal Emma Fuller and the school council, and bolstered by references from several parents, including the renowned children’s author Shaun Tan.
“It was quite rigorous,” Kingsford said.
“You had to really answer how you are meeting a whole lot of things like High Impact Teaching Strategy … how you’re using data and assessment to inform your teaching and feedback.
“So it looked like it was not my thing. I’ve been teaching for over 30 years and so it’s become intuitive.”
But Kingsford was persuaded by Mason to persist with the nomination and progressed through each stage of the assessment process through to the final shortlist of three.
Kingsford took her sister and Mason as her guests to the awards presentation on October 25 with low expectations.
Receiving the award was a bit of a blur and still feels surreal, she said.
“You see it in the press, a lot of teachers are feeling burnt out. And it was a really positive night, because you saw people in the education sector making a difference and sticking with it.”
Her award citation praised her “transformative approach to enhancing student learning and wellbeing is encouraging children’s creativity and reflective thinking while developing students’ understanding of different cultures and viewpoints”.
Along with a trophy, she has won a $20,000 grant for a professional development project, which she plans to use to explore concepts of art therapy for primary school aged children.
Kingsford has run weekly therapy programs for children every Monday in her art classroom. Up to 15 children from all grades attend the lunchtime program.
“We have a lot of anxiety and mental health issues right down into the primary age group. I’ve never seen it in my whole teaching [career] this level of anxiety and additional supports and needs.
“We have a sort of mental health continuum that we track kids that are really struggling and so I look at those children, I see if they have an interest in art … So it’s sort of pretty quiet space, and there’s friendships that have formed, which is really nice.”
Art is an integral part of the curriculum at Brunswick South West Primary. The school is one of a diminishing breed who have a dedicated full-time art teacher, as opposed to teaching art as part of the other classroom curriculum.
The school art show, held every second year, is a major event which Kingsford oversees with the help of a team of parents.
Each child prepares five pieces for the show, which runs for three days including a grand opening and a silent auction.
“The art show is huge and the kids really look forward to it,” Kingsford said.
“It’s a lovely, lovely celebration of the arts, really. It’s a massive amount of work, but the reward is seeing those children’s faces.”
Kingsford set her sights on a career as an art teacher when she was 12.
“In year seven in a little demonstration school in the ’70s in Goulburn, I had the most amazing classroom teacher who had a real interest in art, and it was she who inspired me and I knew back then I wanted to be a teacher,” she said.
Born in Kenya, she came to Australia when she was three, but it was back in Kenya where she began her teaching career.
She was attending her sister’s wedding there shortly after she had graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the University of Sydney when she was offered a job at a school near the capital Nairobi, and spent four years working there in the early-1990s.
Returning to Australia, she taught in primary schools in Sydney before moving to Melbourne in the 2000s. Her first involvement with Brunswick South West was as a parent before working part-time.
“I’d worked closely with the art teacher on the art shows, I’d been a helper for her. I knew she was coming to retirement age, and she said, ‘It’d be great if you wanted to go for this job’.
“And I was already employed in the school in the classroom, and the principal encouraged me to go for the job, to return to teaching.”
Jacqueline Lucas, the acting principal of Brunswick South West, said the award given to Kingsford served as an inspiration for the entire school community, showcasing what was possible with passion and dedication.
“Felicity’s recognition reflects her outstanding ability to connect with students, ignite their creativity, and bring out their best,” she said.
“Her dedication to her craft, innovative teaching practices, and deep commitment to student growth exemplify the qualities of an exceptional educator.
“This award acknowledges not only her technical expertise but also her ability to inspire and nurture young minds.”
Lucas said the art program at BSWPS was a cornerstone of a holistic approach to education.
“It encourages self-expression, creativity, and critical thinking, helping students develop skills that are invaluable across all areas of learning.
“The program also fosters inclusivity and allows students from diverse backgrounds to share their stories and perspectives.”
Kingsford is gratified to have the support to run a full art program at Brunswick South West.
She said the benefits of teaching art at primary school level cannot be overstated.
“It’s a really fantastic way for every child to express and have voice without it being an academic measure … what I really enjoy about primary age children is they haven’t become inhibited, they’re less self-critical at this age.”
Now that her own children have both finished school, Kingsford hopes to have more time to return to making art herself.
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