G. F. J. Dart
Encyclopedia
Gerald Francis John "Jack" Dart OBE
(1905 – ?) was a teacher, educational philosopher and playwright who was Headmaster of Ballarat Grammar School
in Victoria
, Australia
from 1942 until 1970. He was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire
(OBE) in 1971 for services to education and was a founding Member of the Australian College of Educators
(MACE).
and educated in Nelson, New Zealand
at Nelson College
. He completed Master of Arts
degrees in both English and Latin at the University of New Zealand
in Christchurch (now the University of Canterbury
). While he was at university he wrote and produced the Canterbury University College Reviews.
Dart began teaching at Cathedral Grammar School, Christchurch (1929–1934). While visiting England from 1936, he met Elizabeth Williams whom he married in 1939. After teaching at Anglewood School, Bowral (1938–1940), Dart went to Ballarat Grammar as Senior Master in 1941. He was Acting Headmaster in 1942 and appointed permanently in 1943.
through speeches and various writings. His views meant that some practices, common in other schools, were not to be found at Ballarat Grammar.
In 1944, for example, Dart oversaw the abolishment of the house system
, which he believed was divisive, creating artificial factions within a school. Houses were not reinstated at the school until after Dart’s retirement, when one of the new boarders’ houses was named Dart House.
Dart also opposed formal team debating, although he encouraged public speaking and discussion. In 1949, the year debating was discontinued at Grammar, he wrote, “We do not consider it desirable to encourage boys to argue for causes in which they do not believe.”
During the 1960s it was the school’s policy to cap numbers at 450. Dart supported this in a 1964 address to Old Boys by outlining the advantages of smaller over larger institutions.
The school’s cadet
unit was disbanded during Dart’s headmastership, but it is not clear whether this was for philosophical or practical reasons.
boys’ school of up to two hundred or so students, at least half of them boarders from country towns and farms, especially in the Mallee
, Wimmera
and Western District regions of Victoria.
Dart was an active gardener who valued manual work. He encouraged students in outdoors projects and in small farming enterprises which developed the school’s self-sufficiency
, for example by producing vegetables and eggs for the school kitchen. The school ran a piggery and at one stage kept two draught horses. In the early 1960s, some senior boys designed and built a students’ common room that later became the school’s library for a time, and from the mid-1960s students and teachers laid many square metres of brick paving around the school.
and Christopher Fry
. He also wrote several plays, including My Last Duchess, based on Robert Browning
, performed at Her Majesty's Theatre, Ballarat (1952); The Tower of Babel, produced for the Ballarat Begonia Festival (1959); and a parody of Summer of the Seventeenth Doll
entitled The Summer of the 777th Billy-can, also performed at Her Majesty’s (1960).
at Tallebudgerra on the Gold Coast
hinterland.
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
(1905 – ?) was a teacher, educational philosopher and playwright who was Headmaster of Ballarat Grammar School
Ballarat Grammar School
Ballarat and Queens Anglican Grammar School is an independent, Anglican Church school located at Wendouree , Victoria, 123 km west of Melbourne.-History:...
in Victoria
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
from 1942 until 1970. He was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
(OBE) in 1971 for services to education and was a founding Member of the Australian College of Educators
Australian College of Educators
The Australian College of Educators is the principal organisation representing the field of teaching and education in Australia, and acts as the independent interest body for Australian teachers...
(MACE).
Background
G.F.J. Dart was born in Westport, New ZealandWestport, New Zealand
-Economy:Economic activity is based around fishing, coal mining and dairy farming. Historically, gold mining was a major industry, and coal mining was much more extensive than today . However, the region still is home to New Zealand's largest opencast mining operation in Stockton...
and educated in Nelson, New Zealand
Nelson, New Zealand
Nelson is a city on the eastern shores of Tasman Bay, and is the economic and cultural centre of the Nelson-Tasman region. Established in 1841, it is the second oldest settled city in New Zealand and the oldest in the South Island....
at Nelson College
Nelson College
Nelson College is a boys-only state secondary school in Nelson, New Zealand. It teaches from years 9 to 13. In addition, it runs a private Preparatory School for year 7 and 8 boys...
. He completed Master of Arts
Master of Arts (postgraduate)
A Master of Arts from the Latin Magister Artium, is a type of Master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The M.A. is usually contrasted with the M.S. or M.Sc. degrees...
degrees in both English and Latin at the University of New Zealand
University of New Zealand
The University of New Zealand was the New Zealand university from 1870 to 1961. It was the sole New Zealand university, having a federal structure embracing several constituent colleges at various locations around New Zealand...
in Christchurch (now the University of Canterbury
University of Canterbury
The University of Canterbury , New Zealand's second-oldest university, operates its main campus in the suburb of Ilam in the city of Christchurch, New Zealand...
). While he was at university he wrote and produced the Canterbury University College Reviews.
Dart began teaching at Cathedral Grammar School, Christchurch (1929–1934). While visiting England from 1936, he met Elizabeth Williams whom he married in 1939. After teaching at Anglewood School, Bowral (1938–1940), Dart went to Ballarat Grammar as Senior Master in 1941. He was Acting Headmaster in 1942 and appointed permanently in 1943.
Views on education
G.F.J. Dart held individualist views on education which he expressed in plain EnglishPlain English
Plain English is a generic term for communication styles that emphasise clarity, brevity and the avoidance of technical language – particularly in relation to official government communication, including laws.The intention is to write in a manner that is easily understood by the target...
through speeches and various writings. His views meant that some practices, common in other schools, were not to be found at Ballarat Grammar.
In 1944, for example, Dart oversaw the abolishment of the house system
House system
The house system is a traditional feature of British schools, and schools in the Commonwealth. Historically, it was associated with established public schools, where a 'house' refers to a boarding house or dormitory of a boarding school...
, which he believed was divisive, creating artificial factions within a school. Houses were not reinstated at the school until after Dart’s retirement, when one of the new boarders’ houses was named Dart House.
Dart also opposed formal team debating, although he encouraged public speaking and discussion. In 1949, the year debating was discontinued at Grammar, he wrote, “We do not consider it desirable to encourage boys to argue for causes in which they do not believe.”
During the 1960s it was the school’s policy to cap numbers at 450. Dart supported this in a 1964 address to Old Boys by outlining the advantages of smaller over larger institutions.
The school’s cadet
Cadet
A cadet is a trainee to become an officer in the military, often a person who is a junior trainee. The term comes from the term "cadet" for younger sons of a noble family.- Military context :...
unit was disbanded during Dart’s headmastership, but it is not clear whether this was for philosophical or practical reasons.
Manual work and self-sufficiency
At the time of Dart’s headmastership, Ballarat Grammar was a small Church of EnglandChurch of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
boys’ school of up to two hundred or so students, at least half of them boarders from country towns and farms, especially in the Mallee
The Mallee
The Mallee is the most northwesterly district in the state of Victoria, and also encompasses the agricultural district of South Australia. Definitions vary, however all are based on the Victorian distribution of mallee eucalypts...
, Wimmera
Wimmera
The Wimmera is a region in the west of the Australian state of Victoria.It covers the dryland farming area south of the range of Mallee scrub, east of the South Australia border and north of the Great Dividing Range...
and Western District regions of Victoria.
Dart was an active gardener who valued manual work. He encouraged students in outdoors projects and in small farming enterprises which developed the school’s self-sufficiency
Self-sufficiency
Self-sufficiency refers to the state of not requiring any outside aid, support, or interaction, for survival; it is therefore a type of personal or collective autonomy...
, for example by producing vegetables and eggs for the school kitchen. The school ran a piggery and at one stage kept two draught horses. In the early 1960s, some senior boys designed and built a students’ common room that later became the school’s library for a time, and from the mid-1960s students and teachers laid many square metres of brick paving around the school.
Plays and playwriting
G.F.J. Dart produced the school’s annual plays, choosing works by such writers as Shakespeare, George Bernard ShawGeorge Bernard Shaw
George Bernard Shaw was an Irish playwright and a co-founder of the London School of Economics. Although his first profitable writing was music and literary criticism, in which capacity he wrote many highly articulate pieces of journalism, his main talent was for drama, and he wrote more than 60...
and Christopher Fry
Christopher Fry
Christopher Fry was an English playwright. He is best known for his verse dramas, notably The Lady's Not for Burning, which made him a major force in theatre in the 1940s and 1950s.-Early life:...
. He also wrote several plays, including My Last Duchess, based on Robert Browning
Robert Browning
Robert Browning was an English poet and playwright whose mastery of dramatic verse, especially dramatic monologues, made him one of the foremost Victorian poets.-Early years:...
, performed at Her Majesty's Theatre, Ballarat (1952); The Tower of Babel, produced for the Ballarat Begonia Festival (1959); and a parody of Summer of the Seventeenth Doll
Summer of the Seventeenth Doll
Summer of the Seventeenth Doll is a pioneering Australian play written by Ray Lawler and first performed at the Union Theatre in Melbourne, Australia, on 28 November 1955...
entitled The Summer of the 777th Billy-can, also performed at Her Majesty’s (1960).
Retirement
After G.F.J. Dart retired at the end of 1970, he and Mrs Dart lived in QueenslandQueensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
at Tallebudgerra on the Gold Coast
Gold Coast, Queensland
Gold Coast is a coastal city of Australia located in South East Queensland, 94km south of the state capital Brisbane. With a population approximately 540,000 in 2010, it is the second most populous city in the state, the sixth most populous city in the country, and also the most populous...
hinterland.