St Mary’s Cohuna has farewelled Grade 2 teacher, Anne Grogan.
The end of the school year marked the start of retirement for the passionate teacher, whose career has spanned four decades.
She’s been at the school for more than 25 years, with the Pyramid Hill born teacher having also taught long-term at St Patrick’s Primary School in her home town.
Mrs Grogan explained teaching was a natural fit for her, given her passion for assisting children and the fact the profession runs in her family.
“I just wanted to work with kids,” she said.
“I enjoyed looking after younger cousins.
“My grandmother was a teacher up in the Mallee and my mum was a teacher, so it’s something that was always in the back of my mind.”
Mrs Grogan attended boarding school in Bendigo, and went on to study at Teachers’ College.
“I started off at Kerang Central,” she said of her first teaching role.
Unsurprisingly, she has seen many changes throughout her career.
“Children are a lot freer to express themselves,” she said of today’s students, compared to those she taught in her earlier years.
She noted today’s cohort were generally more confident, adding that was a positive.
“Teaching is just as intense, but not as formal,” Mrs Grogan said.
Technology is one area that has changed dramatically since the days of chalk boards.
“Technology is instant and I think they’re used to that.
“They come to school with an expectation technology is going to be there and it’s going to be working and that we’re going to know about it.”
She said literacy was another area which had evolved over the years.
“When I started teaching, children had one or two readers for the whole year and that’s what you taught your reading from,” Mrs Grogan said.
“Now there’s access to thousands of books. They can get books on the internet. That’s been a massive thing for kids. They’re so much more open to literacy.”
Another major transformation was the fact most parents were now working.
“When I started teaching, it was unusual for mums to work,” she said.
“It was quite unusual when I went back to fulltime work. I think now most parents are very busy and so the kids seem to grow up faster.”
Having spent more than 45 years in the classroom, Mrs Grogan is looking forward to seeing more of her grandchildren, while finetuning her watercolour painting skills.
The member of Golden Rivers Art Group will now have time to attend more frequently.
However, it is clear retirement will be a big adjustment for Mrs Grogan.
“I am going to miss the company of the children and being part of their lives.”
