Chatting with David Jensz

David Jensz remembers fondly the days when he was the youngest teacher at Frankston High School in the 1960s. With a big smile David recalls Frankston High School as being a very wonderful place to teach chemistry, math and science.

“The children were great, I think for any teacher, your first few years are very important in learning your craft and what a good school is like. The children worked hard especially the ones in year 11 and 12 they got very good results,” he says.

Being the youngest teacher was difficult at times especially since there were only a handful of men under 40. Most of the male teachers had completed national service in the 1950s during the World War II. “I’m talking back to a time when staff were segregated, there was a male staff room and a female staff room. The men were allowed to go to the ladies staff room once a week for morning tea, apart from that no way. The ladies staff room had flowers on the desk and every Friday night Miss Richardson maintained that the ladies had to tidy their desk. The men’s staff room was messy the other thing was the men were of mature years and many of them had war- time experience,” he says.

Since David was a teenager he knew that teaching was his calling. “I think all teachers probably like their school years and they liked what they learnt at school. They did reasonably well at school and I found high school a place where I was at ease I enjoyed it. I spent 40 something years teaching in high schools” he says.

Reflecting on the major changes on teaching David says not many children leave before years 11 and 12 now. “We used to have small numbers in years 11 and 12. Those in years 11 and 12 tended to be those who wanted to be there and worked pretty hard. Other things that have changed, there are many more facilities, 50 years ago we had chalk and talk and not much else,” he says.