I’ve mixed feelings about retirement – teaching has been a big part of my life

I’ve mixed feelings about retirement – teaching has been a big part of my life

5 July 2017

A RETIRING rural principal is looking forward to returning to his farming roots when he retires this summer.

After 26 years at St Mary’s Primary School, Dunsford, Mr John Magee will turn his attention from schoolchildren to horses.

Looking forward to concentrating on a pastime of horse breeding, John’s life has come full circle since he grew up on a farm beside the primary school where he built his teaching career.

In an unlikely twist of fate, the school was built on a parcel of land donated to the church by his father, Robert John Magee, following an appeal to local farmers.

Recalling a natural reluctance among farmers to give up their land, he said his father was eventually persuaded by the fact that a school would be built for the community.

“Farmers are pretty protective of land, but you have to be forward thinking and make sure the younger children are provided for,” he said.

“I remember him saying that we have to think of the local children.

“He would have been really proud of the fact I ended up principal here.”

Although he has worked at Dunsford for 26 years, John’s association with the school began in 1961 when he was enrolled at the townland’s original national school.

As a teenager he went to teacher training college in Belfast, teaching in Belfast, Comber and Lisburn before returning to Dunsford as principal in 1991.

At that time the school was facing possible closure because of a low enrolment of just 22 pupils and two teachers.

However, he was undeterred by the uncertainty and the primary flourished under his leadership and is now oversubscribed with 88 children.

Despite the potential difficulties of living and working in the same community, John started out as he meant to go on, establishing professional relationships within school grounds and enjoying more informal friendships outside of school.

“It was relatively easy for me as all the school business was done in school,” he said.

“Encouraging people to call me Mr Magee inside school and keeping familiarity for outside the school gates helped maintain a role of responsibility.

“I brought that culture to the school where teachers and classrooms assistants had to be addressed by their title. It laid a foundation for respect for all elders and it worked well.”

John believes his time at Dunsford was also easier due to the families connected with the school.

“The kids are exceptional, they stand out for all the right reasons,” he said.

“There is an innocence about country children, the parents have been very supportive and made the job much easier.

“I have mixed feelings about retirement. I can’t say I am not looking forward to it, but it will be a break from the school and teaching profession that have been part of my life for so long.”