Excelsia Bachelor of Music graduate Brett Macinnes is inspiring and empowering the next generation of musicians. He works as a Years 1-6 performing arts teacher and Years 7-8 music teacher and his job is all about looking at globalisation and sustainability through the perspective of music.
Macinnes did not really know what he wanted to be when he grew up. The musical path was one that found him, not the other way around. The desire to teach began to niggle at him until he could not ignore the niche in teaching he believed he could fill. ‘I had started learning piano around the age of 8 and while it interested me, I didn’t connect with it and as an 8-year-old I never practised it, so I stopped having lessons,’ he explains.
‘In high school I took up guitar lessons after some encouragement from a friend. After practicing for 2 years, I started playing at a church youth group. It was at this youth group that I discovered the ability of inspiring others as a leader and the joy in seeing people you helped, achieve more out of life. This, and my impactful teachers, lead me to pursue teaching as a career choice.’
Teachers help students develop, learn, and have a positive influence on young lives. Music and creative arts teaching offers a diverse career where the possibilities are endless. If you have a love for music and want to help others develop a passion for it too, then teaching could be the right fit for you. For Macinnes, pursuing a career in education is as simple as giving it your all. ‘My best advice to any music students who want to study teaching is to focus on the areas you would help most in a school,’ he says.
‘I was passionate about learning more about live sound as my school didn’t have the equipment or knowledge of how to use it. I felt this was important for music in the future. My second piece of advice is to enjoy all that your bachelor degree has to offer. While you can try to become a jack-of-all-trades, at the end of the day your degree will help you most when you look back at it knowing you gave it your all.’
Macinnes’ journey to teaching has not been without its challenges. Despite these obstacles, he has continued to follow his dreams of becoming a teacher. After studying a Bachelor of Music at Excelsia, Macinnes then completed a Master of Teaching degree. Passion, persistence, and dedication eventually allowed the musician to land a unique role as a music teacher at an Islamic school in New South Wales.
‘At first, I was a little hesitant being a Christian going to a job interview at an Islamic school. It was a culture shock,’ he explains.
‘The school followed the international teaching system, as well as the New South Wales system, so connecting the two was hard. But with this I have also been blessed with a highly supportive team of teachers who respect my faith as much as I respect their faith, been given a rare chance where I can write my own program, and the opportunity to teach both music and drama is a huge blessing from God.’
A child’s experiences in his or her early years form the building blocks of that child’s foundation. Considering that, on average, children spend about 1,200 hours in school each year, the people with whom a child interacts during this time frame will have a profound impact on their development. Macinnes feels compelled to lend a helping hand through his work and make a difference in society. ‘My workplace teaches and guides young minds and provides opportunity to grow in a range of areas,’ he says.
‘We teach life lessons, catering to their education overall from a young age until they are ready to take on the world. In my job I now get to teach Year 1 all the way to Year 8. That is 7 years of their lives that I can make a positive impact and lead by example. I hope that the students reflect on these kinds of lessons when they look at the impact they can make in the world.’
