Interview with Mark Lenga

Read how teaching has changed over the past 40 years.

How did your journey in education begin?

When I finished my degree, I had a choice of either going on to become an audiologist which was from my science background or doing a Diploma of Education. However, as I was heavily involved in Habonim-Dror and went on Shnat, I was hoping to follow my passion of being a youth leader and that led me into teaching. I started teaching in the Catholic system in Preston, and did that for a number of years. After that I had stints at Lauriston and St Michael’s and finally 33 years ago I ended up at Bialik teaching Biology when the school had its very first Year 12s.

Can you share some of the more memorable moments over your 34 years?

My two boys came to Bialik and started at Shakespeare Grove. One day the Principal at the time (Genia Janover) visited the Kindergarten and asked “Do you know who I am?” My eldest son Andrew responded “You work for my dad!” That was quite funny. Camps were fun, I also went on the first Chavayah program with Vicki Israelsohn and Gary Velleman. It was really amazing. Designing the first Science Laboratories was also a great experience, as we were creating a new learning space within the school.

What was it like balancing being a parent and a teacher?

I taught my sons Biology, as I was the only Biology teacher at the time. Parent Teacher night was very interesting. Quite often it was over the kitchen table at home.

In Biology classes, my boys would refer to me as “Dad”. The rest of the class would either refer to me as Mark or Mr. Lenga. However, some of the other students would also call me Dad. That was quite memorable. It was a balancing act, I knew I had to be ethically correct and do the right thing by everyone. No one ever complained that I was teaching my own kids, but honestly, I was probably harder on them than other students.

Are there memories that were strange or awkward that you would like to share?

There were some funny moments. We received reports for my kids with my name on them instead of my kids’ names. I’d go to the teacher and say “I think you’ve got it wrong”.

Do you have a teaching philosophy and has it changed throughout your career?

Oh, it’s definitely changed. Teaching is a hell of a lot different from when I first started, especially with the technology and the teaching approach.When I started teaching, we made notes for students using a gestetner. It’s a machine sort of like carbon paper where you put paper into a machine and use methylated spirits to make copies of the page. Teachers would do that every morning. There was no Xerox. It was like working in the Stone Age. Also, we haven’t used chalk in schools for 15 - 20 years. It’s gone, now it’s all whiteboard, smart boards and things like that. So the way you teach has changed completely.

I was a complete novice as far as computers were concerned. When I first started I had no idea how to create an Excel spreadsheet. Student reports were written by hand and used to take forever. If you made one little mistake, you had to start all over again. No white-out was allowed! It was the pain of every teacher’s life back then. Teaching has changed dramatically and we had to change with it.It’s been interesting how the school’s grown and the philosophy has evolved.

It’s been a really wonderful place to teach and to grow. When I do leave, it will be sorely missed.