Memories of Monoux in the mid 60s
By Chris Abbess, Mathematics teacher, 1963-1969
Teaching was not my original career choice. I had trained as an aeronautical engineer and was working for the Folland Aircraft firm at Hamble and prospects became very dim when cutbacks were announced by the Ministry of Defence in the early sixties. A switch to teaching seemed to be a viable alternative after postgraduate training at Southampton University.
VJ Stirrup was very keen to acquire extra mathematics staff, especially one who would help out with the requirement for scripture teaching, following the pattern of the Agreed Syllabus current at the time. My ambition was just to teach in the lower school and to leave the sixth form work to those with mathematics degrees. I found the first year quite challenging. For all the preparation given in the certificate course, the problem is turning the theory into practice. I was pleased when the year was over since I was able to gain the confidence that was necessary to "earn an honest income" to support the young family I had recently acquired. In retrospect Monoux was a happy place to be - interesting work with some hard effort and a good response from intelligent children who could be cheeky and naughty at times and a source of considerable amusement.
I was certainly teased about my practice of arrival by bicycle, the car had to be sold to pay off the solicitor's fees after buying a flat in London! I was also teased about my Hampshire accent, by the extra loud 'Amen' after saying grace in the school canteen at lunchtime. One new experience I hadn't bargained for was the request to umpire in a school cricket match. I was only asked once!
Teaching mathematics led me to learn a lot of things properly and I still have a file of notes that I made as I progressed through the teaching process. This was especially important when Mr Rayner persuaded me to take up sixth form Applied Mathematics - he said it would be just right for an engineer! Later on I was persuaded to take on Pure Mathematics because Tubby Taylor had too many students, some of which had transferred to Monoux from local Secondary Modern Schools for sixth form studies. I did not stop lower school work and I also continued with the scripture lessons. I suppose I didn't realise it at the time, but I was telling stories from the Bible that had not been heard before and perhaps I was oblivious of the passage of time or the level of light in the classroom. On one occasion, the deputy head, Mr Jenkins was doing his rounds and observed a class in deep gloom during a scripture lesson. He stopped, entered, switched on the light and uttered the Latin phrase 'Fiat lux' before proceeding on his way.
One thing I was involved with really took off and created a life of its own. I had been intrigued by the use of computers in aircraft design procedures in my former employment and I jumped at the chance to join in a week end computing course for teachers at ICL's offices at Putney. The outcome of my interest was the starting of an extra mural Computer Club - mainly aimed at older boys. There were classes in school and these were followed up by practice sessions at the town hall. Harry Oven who looked after the town hall computer agreed to let the boys from the club punch out their 'programs' and test them on the town hall computer. In fact I was not present at these sessions and the computer club boys grew so knowledgeable about the use of the computer that they were able to operate the computer by themselves. This was regarded, eventually, as a 'risk' and the sessions were brought to a close. This was not the end of the computer club however since we were 'compensated' by the provision of a small 'desk top' Olivetti programmable calculator with which the club members could learn how to program solutions to numerical problems.
Having settled in at Monoux as a fairly traditional grammar school maths teacher you could imagine my concern about the comprehensive education proposal. Not so much the principle involved, but I wondered how my teaching methods would have to change to cope with the changeover. I was particularly concerned by the need for three age bands and the changeover at age 14 from Junior High to Senior High schools. Surely this was the worst age for transfer, right in the middle of adolescence for most of the boys? The interim plan mixing selected boys with some unselected boys from the feeder schools also seemed problematic. I agreed to take on a class of mixed ability pupils from the feeder schools and after six months I decided that I should start looking elsewhere for future employment. I felt that I had been down graded to childminder and that my teaching skills were not being used to good effect. I managed to find a post at Enfield College of Technology to teach Computing and Systems Analysis starting from May 1969 - with arrangements to keep in contact with my current A level pupils approaching their examinations. Perhaps I overreacted to the situation, clearly after the changeover period the new system became established and ran smoothly, at least as far as three of my own children were concerned, though I noted that by the time my fourth child approached secondary age the break at fourteen had been put back to sixteen plus. If I have a gripe it would be that the needs of children are to be put before administrative convenience. Personally, I am in favour of 11 to 18 education in one environment, very strong links are made in these formative years that are important in the community context.
As for me, I remained based at Enfield until retirement. Enfield CoT became Middlesex Polytechnic and later Middlesex University. I retrained, part-time, as a Statistician and took a research interest in Road Transport. I can still be observed cycling through Walthamstow from time to time in connection with my duties as a Volunteer Sustrans Ranger on a small part of the National Cycle Network.
18th August 2004.