Community & Business
29 July, 2022
The years added up for retiring maths teacher
Pittsworth State High School recently farewelled a maths and IT teacher who spent more than four decades in the classroom.
‘‘Maths is the only subject that counts,” says a grinning James Evans.
But it’s not only the occasional Dad joke that he will be remembered for in his retirement.
When he finished up at Pittsworth State High School at the end of last term, Mr Evans had clocked up 43 years in classrooms including the past two decades here.
After attaining a science degree and a Diploma of Education, he started as a 21-year-old teacher at Toowoomba State High School. The pay was $454 a fortnight in 1979.
“It doesn’t sound like much now but it was a lot in those days.”
After a short time at Toowoomba he spent three years at Wallumbilla then went on to teach at Bremer High School in Ipswich and Maryborough High School.
Through the years he grew to immensely enjoy his time in the classroom and interacting with students.
“I was lucky, I got to teach some great subjects that I was passionate about teaching,” he said.
Information Processing Technology was one such course, introducing students to technology and programming, including data basing and AI.
In 2001 he came to Pittsworth to teach, a move that brought he and wife Lyn back closer to their parents on neighbouring farms in the Lockyer Valley.
The couple have known each other nearly all their lives having grown up as neighbours.
“She was my sister’s best friend but we never took any notice of each other until we started working.”
The couple ran a homework club at Pittsworth State High for many years.
Mr Evans said one of the biggest changes he had seen in four decades was the amount of information children were required to take in.
“The courses are jam -packed, there’s just so much to learn,” he said.
In retirement Mr Evans is looking forward to travelling with his wife and enjoying more time their six grandchildren.
Mr Evans will also be offering private maths tutoring in his retirement and he can be contacted on 0409 113 687.
