David Lawn, quiet hero in the classroom
THERE are individuals in life who get on with their work without much fanfare.
One such person was the late David Lawn, born in Cradock in the Eastern Cape in 1959. At his funeral on Saturday, November 30 this year he was described as a top academic pupil at the primary and high schools he attended.
He studied for a BA at UWC in 1971. He also completed a BA (Hons) in Afrikaans at UWC. He taught for a number of years at Silverstream High School and was appointed head of department at Beauvallon High in Valhalla Park, where he eventually became principal, a post he held until his death.
My association with Lawn started in 2012 when Beauvallon High was targeted for closure by the Western Cape Education Department. The Concerned Education Forum (CEF) was formed to fight against the closure of schools in poor areas.
The WCED targeted 27 schools in the Western Cape. Through the efforts of the CEF and the SA Democratic Teachers’ Union, with the assistance of senior advocate Norman Arendse, 17 schools were saved from closure. Lawn was instrumental in keeping Beauvallon High open, much to the dismay of the education MEC.
When I was dismissed from my teaching post on September 11 2016 by the same MEC Debbie Schäfer, there were only three principals in the Western Cape who allowed me to teach on a voluntary basis – the well-known principal of Spine Road High, Riyaad Najaar, Charlene Faroo at Uitzig High (now closed by Schäfer), and Lawn at Beauvallon High.
I spent one year, 2018, at Beauvallon High, teaching 50 pupils in Grade 10 life sciences (they all passed at the end of the year).
When the chief director in the Parow area objected to me teaching at Beauvallon High, Lawn boldly ignored the WCED and allowed me to introduce life sciences to the school curriculum.
Lawn, in his quiet way, won the confidence of his pupils and began to build the school into a good educational organisation.
He had deep insight into the living conditions of his pupils and parents. He was the big parent away from home. I saw how he nurtured his pupils. Although I had been a principal for 32 years, I never taught at a school in the heart of a community facing such adversity.
The year I spent at Beauvallon High gave me a deeper insight into the problems facing pupils from communities in poor areas in South Africa.
David Lawn – you were a great mentor, teacher, colleague and friend. You are one of the heroes in our struggle in South Africa for a better future for all oppressed pupils. I salute you, sir. Beauvallon (Beautiful Valley) High exists today because of your beautiful soul. Brian Isaacs is the former principal of South Peninsula High School.