Manisha Gazula started her teaching career in 2004 as a casual teacher in some of the tough and complex schools in NSW. When she first took on a role as a relieving principal, she took it upon herself to find a way to raise the learning outcomes of the most vulnerable students in NSW. Manisha has been on a journey of continuous improvement so she can be a well-informed leader with a clear vision and a path towards the vision.
Manisha has an incredible track record as school leader, where she has consistently improved school-wide results, even when working under challenging circumstances. When she arrived 8 years ago at Marsden Rd Public School, where one in 5 students is a refugee (mainly Afghan, Iraqi or Syrian), most students finished Year 6 with reading age of Year 4.
Through relentless focus, high expectations of teachers and students, a curriculum program with sequential learning plans by subject, explicit instruction pedagogy and standardised assessments, she has turned Marsden Road into a model school. For the past three years, on average 60% students made above average progress in reading. In numeracy 70% are achieving above average progress compared with students from similar backgrounds. In Writing, the school has achieved above state average in the last two years.
Marsden Road Public School attracts visits from school from various sectors and from all over Australia. Since 2018, over 200 schools have visited the school to observe the teaching practice. The school has also been a case study for educational researchers including Australian Education Research Organisation (AERO), Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER) and The Grattan Institute.
Manisha has presented at several forums and conferences since 2018.