Old Boys recall outstanding teachers

Old Boy NEWS

Old Boys recall outstanding teachers

Edgar Moodey

This year the Selwyn House Prefects carried out a poll of Old Boys to see which teachers throughout the history of the school rated as the best of the best. Here are some responses:

“I’ll always be thankful for Tom Nicoll. Mr. Nicoll instilled both a love of history (he taught me World History in Grade 11) but also a love of learning. He respected his students and demanded the same level of respect—something that I’ll always remember and be grateful for.”

Matthew Busbridge ’99

Considering I left Selwyn House in 1949 not too many of the teachers I had would be alive to be appreciated, but I liked Bob Speirs in English, Cyril Jackson in Latin, Patrick Anderson and Anne Gyger in French.

Anson R. McKim ’49

Many great educators at Selwyn House spring to mind, including Warren

Reid, Colin Boyle, Roger Nincheri, Brad Moffat, Phil Litvack, Bruce

Glasspoole, and Virginia Ferguson. All of them were genuinely engaged in educating their students, and also in fostering their students’ personal growth. These teachers all had the fundamental confidence that their students had the ability to excel and succeed, and fostered growth and development with knowledge and encouragement.

There was one educator without equal: Byron Harker. Dr. Harker was very bright and ambitious (he achieved his Ph.D while teaching at Selwyn House) but put all his energies into educating his students. Every semester had a clear set of goals and milestones, and every class had a crisp lesson plan. Moreover, the lesson plans included a mix of learning, wonder, emotion, competition, and fun. It was everything that education should be.

As a consequence of his exceptional skills as an educator, Dr. Harker expected a very high standard of performance and brought accountability to everyone in the classroom. It was clear that attention, engagement, and progress was expected. Adulation and praise was rare, but resonated when it was meted out.

Though I pursued a career in the sciences, I think of Dr. Harker and his lessons often—and know that he would cringe as I look up definitions and usage on the Internet!

Richard Denis ’85

I am thankful for Marty “The Boiler” Boyle. Mr. Boyle puts so much heart into his work you can feel it beat. Few are better at getting along with students— and always ready with a joke, his quick tongue is usually way ahead of the boys.

The golf trips he started organizing when I was at SHS I absolutely loved. They were a really nice way to spend time with other students and teachers in a relaxed, fun setting away from home.

I most appreciate that Marty has kept interested in my life. He followed my bike ride across Canada in 2008, emailing me with his support. He followed along my travels in Asia in 2010-11, telling me how much he enjoyed the blog and the photos. Any time I visit the school I make sure to visit The Boiler and have a laugh with him and catch up on each others’ lives. He’s a special person to me, and I am grateful that he has been—and still is!—a part of my life.

So here’s to The Boiler—thank you for your teaching and your friendship. I am thankful.

Dr. Byron Harker

Keith Martin 2002

I would definitely say the teacher who had the biggest impact on me as a fledgling teenager was Matthew McCarney. I am thankful to have had him because he found innovative ways of teaching that were also incredibly fun. What is way more important is that he taught us to be men, he let us know when we were acting like brats and he played a huge role in defining who we would become as humans in those defining middle school years. I have no doubt I would be a lesser person without his influence.

Nico Vit 2012

Mr. Litvack – High school math, caring compassionate and an all-around great guy.

Mr. Nicoll – History, also an extremely wise and dedicated teacher.

Ms. Biggs – Needs No Explanation!

Daniel Budd 2003

Old Boy NEWS

Outstanding teachers

Katherine Biggs

The legendary Mr. Edgar Moodey. He taught us to focus on our school work and commanded respect. He also had an amazing dry wit—he should have joined the Monty Python group.

Blair Baldwin ’72

At Selwyn House, I had so many good teachers:

1. Patricia Marsh – Grade 1 to 4. She made me love learning. She had a good sense of humor. 2. Mrs. Adair – Grade 1 arithmetic. She taught us Roman numerals, which I still use. 3. Madame Walker – Grade 1 and 3 French. Very good teacher. Rigorous. 4. Mrs. McLean – Grade 1 to 3. She made me love math. 5. Mrs. Clarke – Grade 3 history and grade 4 English. Very nice and patient person. 6. David Cude – Grade 5 math. He let me race ahead of the class in math. 7. Phil Litvack – Grade 8 math. He encouraged us and challenged us with problems. 8. William Kershaw – Grade 8 and 9 chemistry. Very good teacher with a sense of humour. Made chemistry fun. 9. Brad Moffat – Grade 9 physics. Good teacher. Made learning levers and electricity fun. 10. Dr. Harker: – Grade 5 and 8 English. Very good teacher. Very solid technically. Demanded excellence. The ability to describe what I do to nonspecialists, in a non-technical language is an ‘art-form’ I work at every day. 11 Barry Williams – Geography and demography Grade 5 to 9. Very good teacher. Well prepared. Interesting articles posted on his office wall. Good classes to develop good study habits, which I continue to apply today.

I cannot say that any one of the above 10 teachers is, or was the “best.” Best is a relative term that is often specific to the individual and their perceptions. Without a good foundation in Grade 1 with Mrs. Marsh and Mrs. Adair, I would have been less well prepared

for math with Mr. Litvack, or later in college and university level finance and math classes. I love learning and read widely every day. Selwyn House made me a lifelong learner, seeking continuous improvement. Each one of these excellent teachers played a large role in making me the person I am today. I am very grateful to my parents for sending me to Selwyn House and for being touched by these excellent teachers.

“Selwyn House made me a lifelong learner, seeking continuous improvement. Each one of these excellent teachers played a large role in making me the person I am today. .”

Andrew Webster ’82

Phil Litvack

Ian Burgess: learning how to communicate, and covering the classics in one fell swoop.

Stephen O. D. Scott ’77

I liked all my teachers at Selwyn House. What I do remember was Col. Bryan’s geometry classes. Many of his examples were taken from real life during his time in India and North Africa with the British Army! Mr. Moodey was a real character and great math teacher. Dr. Andai made history come alive in his lectures.

Jeremy Clark ’68

The teacher who influenced me the most was Mr. Edgar Moodey. He taught us to be structured, disciplined, and logical in our thinking. I appreciated all his interactions with our class.

Edward Pitula ’68

Great teachers, great times and overall an unforgettable experience.

Muhammed Rashid 2015

More at www.selwyn.ca/old boys and friends