Lyn Cleaver's teaching career has been vastly different to that of her grandfather-in-law Fred Cleaver - and for that she is grateful.
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The university-educated Gowrie Primary School teacher, who has spent 27 years in the profession, is happy to report that modern teaching requires enormous preparation, training and continued professional development.
When Fred Cleaver entered the tiny wooden classroom of Tharwa Primary in 1911, he was a fresh-faced 19-year-old who had received scant preparation for the task ahead. In the school history A Century of Learning, Mr Cleaver recalled: ''Schools at that period were dull, uninteresting, poorly ventilated structures and the training that I received as a teacher was almost negligible.''
He added: ''The three 'Rs' were about the ultimate expected to be taught, and the cane was utilised almost as much as a teaching aid as a disciplinary method.''
The history of teaching in the 16 tiny bush schools operating in the region when Canberra was proclaimed will be on display at the Hall School on the weekend. The exhibition is timed to coincide with centenary celebrations and United Nations World Teachers' Day.
Ms Cleaver said her desire to be a teacher grew as a child and she never regretted entering the profession ''which has allowed me to spend my days with children, seeing their passion for learning, creativity and energy. I always have something to smile about.''
She had become immune to some community perceptions it was a 9-to-3 job with months of holidays. ''I think the vast majority of people understand how demanding the job is and how much planning goes into our lessons,'' she said. ''I think most families really value the role teachers play and respect the work they do.''
Her father-in-law Jim Cleaver said his father had worked incredibly hard among the local community in and around Tharwa to convince parents of the benefits of getting a good education for their children.
''Back then, families often needed the children to stay home from school to help with the harvest or farm work, so Dad very gently and diplomatically made contact with a lot of the families in the region to turn them around to the importance of an education,'' she said.
He also recalled his father's energy and dedication to extra-curricular activities and sport. ''Dad put 100 per cent into his teaching career from the age of 19 to when he retired,'' he said.
Australian Education Union ACT secretary Glenn Fowler said World Teachers' Day was a chance to reflect on the contribution teachers made to their communities. ''Everyone has wonderful stories to tell about teachers in local schools, be it through their own experience or that of their children,'' he said.
''Teachers have an enormously positive impact on the lives of all Australians and it is important to recognise that each year.
''The timely connection to the Hall School's exhibition and activities in Canberra's centenary year reminds us that the profession of teaching has changed in many ways, but the core of it remains the same. Teachers are relationship builders who model a love of learning every day.''
The exhibition Present at Birth. Schools and teachers of the Capital Territory, 1913 will be launched on Friday by Education Minister Joy Burch.