Interview with Daphne Gaddie

Discover how Daphne Gaddie, Head of the ELC, has had an integral impact here at Bialik.

WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO GET INVOLVED IN REGGIO EMILIA?

I’d really been questioning the work that we were doing in the kindergarten, … I remember having a student … I watched this particular child … I had all these activities on the table and he pretty much rushed around the room, put a squiggle on a piece of paper here, a splash of paint there and then he said, “I’ve done all your work Teacher Daphne, now I can do mine.” And then I watched him do a block construction for about an hour; such an intricate block construction and I thought to myself, “We are preparing all these activities for children who have no interest in them. There’s something that we’re doing that’s not right”. And it was about then when I was exploring education that I came across the Reggio Emilia approach. I went to a conference in 1994 called Realising the Potential of Children . It was a life-changing experience for me. From that moment on, we started to really study the pedagogy of Reggio Emilia at Bialik.

HOW WERE YOU INVOLVED IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE EARLY LEARNING CENTRE?

In 1996 the school told me that they were going to move the Shakespeare Grove Campus to Auburn Road. I said “We are exploring ideas from Reggio Emilia. It would be a wonderful opportunity if we sent our school architect to Reggio in Italy.”

The School Council agreed and sent Ron Unger (the school architect), his wife Sue, myself and Tosca Mooseek, the Head of Primary at the time. Principal Genia Janover told me, “If we send you, you’ve got to stay here for the next two years at least.” I’m now starting my 40th year at Bialik!

From that point on there were further trips overseas with my team. We travelled to Reggio, Italy and onto Stockholm, Sweden to study the approach. Reggio really influenced Ron’s whole way of designing for Education. The Early Learning Centre, which was a very innovative building at the time, was built around Reggio pedagogy.

You can’t build a building if you don’t understand the pedagogy that actually underpins it, which is why we’re so lucky with the Launch Lab. The school architect, Maurie Novak from Ron Unger Architects, and the Science Department have worked with Daniel Wilson the Director of Project Zero at the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

YOUR CHILDREN AND THEIR CHILDREN HAVE ATTENDED BIALIK. HOW MANY YEAR LEVELS HAVE YOU AND YOUR FAMILY TOUCHED?

This is the start of my 40th year here, so 1000s of students. And yes my children came here. It was a little tricky in the beginning. Depends on the child of course. And being someone part of the school … everybody’s telling you something about your child and you say, “Is this a Parent Teacher Interview or isn’t it?”

Being a grandparent is the best, but it can also be tricky. Even walking down from one side of the school to the other. I hear a, “Nana!” from across the way (not always my grandchildren) and a wave and a hug and you know, it’s just a lovely relationship.

DO YOU HAVE ANY SPECIAL MEMORIES THAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO SHARE WITH READERS OF SHELANU?

I think one of the most interesting things for me was when I first came to Shakespeare Grove. There weren’t a lot of South Africans coming out of the country at that time, so I was an immigrant but what I discovered was that most of the people working at Shakespeare Grove were immigrants from Russia, Hungary, Poland, Israel and other places. I think there were maybe two or three Australian-born people working in the same school. And that for me was so interesting. Just learning about each other’s culture was wonderful. Of course, the memories for me are the relationships I’ve made. Some really good strong relationships, good friends. What I love is that the teachers here are still friends outside school. They will meet for teas and go out for dinners and do things together. And it’s all from the friendships that started here. I think the relationships have been a very strong part of this beautiful place.

YOUR PROFESSIONAL CAREER AT BIALIK IS VERY ROBUST AND RESPECTED. I UNDERSTAND YOU WON A SIGNIFICANT AWARD LAST YEAR?

Well, it was a big surprise for me. It was a Sylvia Gelman Award for my work in Jewish education. And really I’ve always worked in Jewish education even in South Africa. It was a big surprise because it was lovely to be recognised.

WOULD YOU LIKE TO ADD A FINAL NOTE

It’s a lovely place to work. I’ve never ever felt that it wasn’t a place I wanted to be. And after nearly 40 years that’s saying something. Some of my teachers weren’t born yet. I think they do see me as a mother figure. And also the fact that when I see the children I taught in kinder coming back now with their own children. It’s so special and seeing the parents that were my contemporaries returning as grandparents to Bialik. It’s always so good to have a chat.

Daphne Gaddie at the first exhibition in the ELC following the move from Shakespeare Grove.

Daphne, Tosca, Ron and Sue in Reggio, Italy

Bialik College Junior Staff, 1987