First Management Job

Mt Roskill Grammar School 

This was a different kettle of fish from Rangitoto.  That had been in a rapidly gentrifying area of the North Shore; it was a few years after the opening of the Bridge. 

Mt Roskill, where I started as HOD English after the May holidays in 1968, was in what was rapidly becoming an inner suburb, and had at that time a sizeable minority of Maori and Pacific students. Upper streams were largely Pakeha, slower streams had many more brown faces. The upper stream children had typically Pakeha middle class ideas; the lower stream pupils had stories of police harassment relayed from their older brothers and sisters from the streets of the city. 

I had become convinced from my years at Rangitoto that student co-operation, especially in the upper forms, was enhanced by giving them more choice. So we developed a programme in the sixth form that gave the students more choice. 

They had six periods of English each week. We allocated two periods to language: writing, comprehension and so on. Students spent these two periods each week with their homeroom English teacher. But for the other four, which were devoted to literature, they could choose their teacher. There were six teachers, and each half-term they each offered a study of one novel, poet or play. The students chose by writing their names on the appropriate list on the main noticeboard the week before. Once the system became established there was a rush to get on to the most popular lists, which were limited to 25 students. 

We encouraged the pupils to shop around, but once they had found a teacher they could work with to stick with that one. Using this system we found discipline problems were almost non-existent. Pupils knew they could change teachers at the end of the topic; both teachers and pupils found the system was beneficial. 

 

Auckland English Association

While at Mt Roskill I became involved with the English Association, which brought together secondary and tertiary teachers, journalists, writers, booksellers, and people interested in language and literature. We had monthly meetings with speakers; I remember Pat Booth (photo at left)of Arthur Allan Thomas case fame, and John A Lee (photo right). The committee instituted discussions aimed at revising the secondary schools English syllabus. We also encouraged the study of contemporary literature; Roger McGough instead of (or as well as) Browning or Cowper. 

One event to move this idea forward was a gathering of students to read contemporary poetry; we printed and distributed handbills in school playgrounds at lunchtime, which didn’t please some Principals. 

For two years I was the president of the English Association.

 

School Certificate 

Around the same time I became a member of the marking panel for School Certificate.  This was invaluable; I became familiar with the details of the marking schemes. After a few years’ practice of both setting and marking fifth form exams, I could have my class papers marked in about five hours on the evening of the exam, ready to notify the students the next morning. I believed very strongly in the importance of immediate feedback; delaying results any longer than absolutely necessary is of little value to students. 

In pursuit of more choice for students I began a move to offer fourth form pupils a choice of teacher for their fifth form year. Late in the fourth form year I visited all the English classes and told them I would be allocating pupils to fifth form teachers soon, and that if they had any teacher they specially liked, they could give me a slip of paper with the teacher’s name on and I would do my best (no promises) to allocate them to that teacher’s English class. Similarly, a slip of paper giving me the two names of pupil and teacher who they would rather avoid, would enable me to try to keep the two apart! 

Of course this was done after prior consultation with the teachers. Each year I did this, I received about five or six requests, mostly positive ones, and I had no difficulty matching the requested teachers up with their admirers. Of course the teachers were also given the same option. I never had to intervene in problems between teachers and their students in fifth form classes!