A product of a Student Teacher Scheme of the late 40s and early 50s, Ron Lester’s experience describes the scheme itself. See “Song of The Also Rans” for details of other schemes. Ron enrolled for the teacher-preparation course when he completed the requirements of the Junior Examination at Childers Secondary Department. It was 1950 and he was paid an allowance of ?146 per annum. He studied texts on teaching methods, observed lessons of others and prepared and presented his own lessons during this first year. In his second year, he studied for half of each day and then shared a class with a regular teacher for the other half of the day. The classroom contact alternated, mornings one day, afternoons the next. In his third year, he assumed control of his own Grade 4 class of 48 pupils. He was inspected by the District Inspector and assessed as a worthy entrant to the Teachers College for his final year of training.He attended the Teachers College at Kelvin Grove in 1953 and was called upon to do some relieving work at Ascot State School during the year. His first appointment from College was to Wellers Hill where he spent 1954 before appointment to Childers where he taught the Scholarship class for three years [1955-57]. In mid-1957 he assumed Head-teachership of Berrembea a Class 5 school. He was promoted to Camooweal in 1960, to Torbanlea in 1962, Torquay 1966 and Norville in Bundaberg in 1971. Based here, he was made Acting Inspector for Rockhampton West in June 1974 until June 1975 when he was appointed to Park Avenue, Rockhampton and continued in the Acting D.I. role. This position was made permanent from the beginning of 1976 and Ron served in Rockhampton West, Bundaberg for 5 years and Maryborough for 1 year before moving to Ipswich as Staff Inspector for the Brisbane West Region.
While Ron was located in the Central Region, there were two well-known Lesters. Vince Lester was a popular member of parliament who became famous for walking backwards and the way that dunny doors ought to swing. There was also our Ron.
LESTER WE FORGET
[Tune: "Two Little Girls in Blue"]
Two likely lads called Lester -
Here’s luck to Vince and Ron…
Their assistance halves the distance
As you go up and on.
Oh, one is a B.Ed., boys,
And one’s an M.L.A. -
So make a brother of one or the other
And soon you will be on your way.
Overseeing leave claims was a serious part of his role at Ipswich. When Ray Kelley moved from Richlands East to Moorooka, he needed an extended period of sick leave for a surgical operation. It was not a good time for Ron, because the amalgamation of Morooka Infants with the mainstream school was under way, and parents were anxious. Ray and Ron were in contact and Ray learned a thing or two about the processes of granting leave. So, in typical Ogden Nash style he wrote.
TAKING LEAVE
Let me explain [says Ron] in manner rhymery
Why you should never become a Regional Inspector [Primary] -
Why, if like me you’re foolish enough to do it,
You’ll rue it.
It’s not that being penned in an office
[Air-conditioned] is catastrophous;
It is that trying to solve the jigsaw puzzle on your office table,
With several pieces missing, makes you unstable.
No man is irreplaceable;
But the amount of chasing up replacements you can do is
severely limited by the number of bodies currently chaseable.
No man is unsubstitutable for;
But Lester’s Law states that any given position has more substitutes
available for than substitutes suitable for.
No man is indispensable;
But why, when you have to dispose with the services of Smith,
You simultaneously have to dispense with the services of Jones,
Brown and Robinson, all of whom to that time were in disgustingly
rude health, is incomprehensible.
The milk of human kindness you once had plenty of;
The gush became a trickle when you found that, for the Thursday
absences there were three of, the Friday absences there were
twenty of.
You develop a mentally healthy scepticism
Which manifests itself in a physically unhealthy dyspepticism.
Who is the only Departmental employee never to get the flu?
You.
For others, every day’s an influenza day
[with the possible exception of every second Wenzaday].
How do you feel when half a staff gets URTI?
Shirty.
How do you feel when half a staff gets mumps?
Down in the dumps.
How do you feel when all around are viral ?
Ire-al!
The thought of one more can’t-face-pupils crackup
Gets your back up.
And wouldn’t it [you wail] be beautiful
If Sunday’s sunburn were not Monday’s absence-from-duty-ful?
You have to worry about things you never expected to have to
worry about:
They are the things other people are in an indecent hurry about.
You have to let some blasted Principal’s inopportune hernia
Concernia.
The ACCO sought with less than timely warning
Makes you feel sick, not only in the morning.
Some day, says Ron in Ogden-Nash- style rhymery,
I’ll cease to be Regional Inspector [Primary].
What a day that will be -
Giving new meaning to the letters “R.I.P.” -
When no longer all the woes that worry, the cares that canker,
the frets that fester
Pester
Lester.
Taking endless leave from the onerous job, Ron retired in January 1988. He and Marie moved to Woodgate in the following year and both have travelled widely since.
