Sunshine Coast business Teachers Australia’s Shane Fixter revolutionises classrooms with virtual reality

From the traditional classroom or a space shuttle on top of Mars, a Sunshine Coast teacher is transforming how we teach our children with this new business idea.

Craig OKane, Leanne Kemp and Shane Fixter at SparkPlug Impact economy Round 3. Picture: Teachers Australia

Passionate school teacher Shane Fixter is transforming the standard classroom, and it’s paying dividends for disengaged school students Australia-wide.

Mr Fixter was working in community support for kids in care back in 2014 when he first had the idea to create his company, Teachers Australia.

“I wanted to help kids who weren’t attending school get back into it, but knew the traditional model wasn’t working for them,” Mr Fixter said.

What followed is a virtual platform of registered teachers delivering an education alternative to hundreds of students in an innovative online format.

Mr Fixter has even recently incorporated virtual reality into the Teachers Australia offering.

“With virtual reality, you can learn wherever you want,” he said.

“Which might mean a virtual copy of the tradition classroom or a space shuttle on top of Mars.”

He said the platform was transforming the learning outcomes of students who, for whatever reason, weren’t attending mainstream schooling or needed extra tutoring to support their mainstream schooling journey.

“We are bringing fully-aligned Australian curriculum learning to kids who want to learn from the comfort of their own home and we are providing an opportunity for qualified teachers to step outside of the box too,” he said.

“Here in Queensland, there are 100,000 teachers registered and one third are not employed.

“Teachers Australia gives these teachers an option outside of the traditional classroom and there’s a huge demand for that now.”

Teachers Australia virtual reality. Picture: Teachers Australia

Via an app and website, Teachers Australia allows teachers and students to register for free, with students paying for lessons through STRIPE and the funds released to teachers once the lesson is completed.

Parents, grandparents and friends can also gift education hours to students to support them on their education journey.

And being a part of the Sunshine Coast entrepreneurial community has helped Mr Fixter to build his business from the ground up.

“I was a part of the Innovation Centre at the University of the Sunshine Coast which connected me with a team of successful entrepreneurs and mentors who share my passion and direction,” he said.

“The Coast has been the perfect launch pad for Teachers Australia and we’re excited to continue to grow our business here.”