Exhibition celebrates 50 years of Canberra public schools

The ACT government building in London Circuit is hosting the the exhibition celebrating the 50th anniversary of the local public school system, from 1973 to 2023.

The exhibition is open until November 17 on weekdays from 8.30am to 4.30pm at 220 London Circuit.

It's a whimsical walk down memory lane of what school used to be like for generations of Canberrans, a celebration of how it stands today and a glimpse into the future of education in the ACT.

On display is everything from 1970s school uniforms to old-school slide projectors and calculators to photographs and letters and documents to the colourful Cuisenaire counting rods.

The focus of the exhibition is from 1973 when moves were made at a federal level to create a unique public education for the ACT.

On September 11, 1973, then-prime minister Gough Whitlam announced a statutory body would be appointed to administer ACT public schools from the beginning of 1974.

Many schools that existed before that change are still open today, including Telopea Park School, which celebrated its 100th birthday this year, the oldest school still operating in the ACT.

There are now more than 50,000 students in public schools across the national capital.

The exhibition includes an interactive section where visitors can use a post-it note to write down the foods they remember from school ("Chiko rolls", "Samboy chips", "finger buns") and their favourite memories of school ("muck-up day", "Rock Eisteddfod", "making friends", "1 cent lollies at the tuckshop".)

Education Directorate deputy director-general Jane Simmons said some of the items on display had been retrieved from time capsules and from storage rooms at schools as well as from the National Museum.

One of the things that sparked memories for her was a great big cassette boom box, on display in all its 1980s glory.

"As an ex-music teacher, I certainly used one of those," she said.

"There's also some old calculators and I remember the whole narrative around, 'Should we use calculators, should we not use calculators'. Now we're dealing with things like AI. There's been a lot of change in technology."

READ MORE:

There are also personal stories that can be accessed via QR codes at the exhibition, including that of 90-year-old former principal John Hamilton and his daughter Judy, now a director for education.

Ms Simmons said as well as being entertaining, the exhibition was a chance to take stock.

"We're 50 years young but a lot has happened in 50 years," she said.

"So imagine how much is going to happen in the next 50 years and it's important for us to reflect on that."

We've made it a whole lot easier for you to have your say. Our new comment platform requires only one log-in to access articles and to join the discussion on The Canberra Times website. Find out how to register so you can enjoy civil, friendly and engaging discussions. See our moderation policy here.

Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can continue to access our trusted content: