Playground duty / Ned Manning

Ned Manning is a teacher, writer, actor and script consultant and a very likeable chap.

Ned writes about his experiences as a teacher in New South Wales schools. His face on the cover was familiar to me from his acting career so I wanted to read what he has to say about the teaching profession that my daughter-in-law is part of.

My curiousity about staff rooms, playgrounds, class rooms and all the extra duties teachers volunteer for was met in a very entertaining way. His optimism and enthusiasm for seeing young people excel seemed familiar from what I have observed within my family so the students in New South Wales schools can be very lucky. Facing up to a classroom of teenagers says "nightmare" to me ; it is enlightening to see other perspectives.

After Gunnedah and Tenterfield he tried a progressive "School without walls" but quickly moved on. As readers we meet students and fellow teachers good and bad. Other experiences led to Eora High in Redfern where he was a minority white male for years until TAFE took it over. 

Ned finally finds "teaching heaven" at the Newtown High School of the Performing Arts and he shares some interesting experiences, including an excursion to China with students from this school.