Christopher Brangwin AM - Biography

Christopher Brangwin AM., joined SCECGS Redlands in 1984, appointed after a wide-ranging search to be Deputy Headmaster. Christopher served with distinction and effect in pedagogy and school management, including administering the International Baccalaureate Diploma into Redlands in the late 1980s.

Christopher developed the IB in the school, assisting colleagues to explain the IB Diploma as a welcome alternative to the HSC. In this work he continued until he left to take up a permanent post with the International Baccalaureate Organisation (IBO) centred on Australasia. Among the many lasting results of his work there was the agreement and subsequent introduction of an “ATAR Equivalence” scale to assist in clarifying the results a student might achieve in the annual IB Diploma, as compared with the annual Higher School Certificate or similar State-based final awards.

From Christopher’s recollections (below) the sensibilities he brought to his work as Deputy Headmaster will become at once apparent; the respect with which he was widely regarded in the Redlands community grew from his consequent professionalism and warm style.

PJ Cornish

September 2020.

I was appointed to SCECGS Redlands as Deputy Headmaster, to take effect from the 1st January 1984.

It was a career step that I was very pleased to accept and one that offered many challenges, particularly, as Redlands was, at that time, undergoing a transition from threatened insolvency and entering into a path to becoming a thriving co-educational school. These were exciting and pressing times, with the requirement to strive for excellence in every facet of the school’s management and to support the Headmaster.

My university and teacher training was through The Teachers’ Guild of NSW, The University of London (Dip Geog.), University of British Columbia (BEd, MA) and

the University of Sydney (Grad courses for interest in Town Planning).

I joined Redlands from a career of teaching in independent schools in Australia, Canada and New Zealand; specifically: The De La Salle College, Revesby; The Scots College, Sydney; St Georges School, Vancouver; Geelong Grammar School, Timbertop Mansfield; Christ’s College, Christchurch. During my second appointment to Scots College, immediately prior to taking my Redlands appointment, I was Housemaster of Fairfax House, Head of Geography and Rowing Master. Additionally, I had long been a member of the Royal Australian Navy Reserve, initially as a sailor, rising to the rank of Lieutenant Commander. Thus I had two arms to my career.

My time at Scots had run its course and I was ready to move on and thus I was delighted to be appointed to Redlands as DHM.

I saw my primary role as DHM to support the Headmaster, to push forward the big issues that complemented the school’s aims and to lead the Common Room. As well as these major aims, my role was attending to the detail of the school’s day-to-day structure: getting students to class, chasing up staff to be on time, orderly behaviour at period change over, breaks, lunch etc., supervising cleaners, classroom furniture, putting safety measures in place and so the list goes on. Overriding these mundane but important, matters was the desire to engender student and staff cooperation and to be pleasant and approachable. Redlands was not a dictatorial school, but one that expected children and staff to respect one another in a non-threatening environment. The tasks were not always easy, but that is what I set out to do.

I also established a network of student and staff to keep me informed of what was happening in the school. This ensured that usually I was on hand at the right place at the right time. For example, a small soiree run by the musical department demanded that I should be present every bit as much as a huge theatre production. This was a difficult ideal to achieve all the time, but I certainly tried. I needed to be about and to deal with matters as they arose. Gail Stewart, the senior mistress, and I worked at this and between us we were successful.

The pastoral side of the school was very important and this pre-eminence of student and staff care was driven from the top. The staff promotion positions at Redlands held an equal level of importance or rank or salary scale; thus a head of an academic department and the head of a year group enjoyed equal level of seniority. I was proud to be a part of this policy, as it had significant overtones identifying very clearly the importance of both promotion responsibility as well as the opening up of a wide range of positions for staff to aspire to. This model is widely accepted in today’s schools, but it was not so in in the 1980’s.

The Headmaster wanted Redlands to be a school that was ‘international’ in outlook. He took great store in educational excellence, demonstrated overseas as well as within Australia. This manifested itself in many different ways, including an international curriculum, student and teacher exchanges, visits to and by overseas schools, sporting events, cultural tours, musical festivals, staff academic workshops and many more.

I well remember Peter Cornish saying to me in his study, " I want to know how good we are, Chris. How does Redlands measure academically in Europe and Asia in the sciences, mathematics, music?" The only way to answer this was to join an arena that measured students across the world academically in a common curriculum. The International Baccalaureate programmes (IBO) and the University of Cambridge International Examinations (CIE) were the only real arbiters of this.

It was in this environment that I felt confident to propose that Redlands explore the International Baccalaureate (IB) Programmes, with a view to offering the IB Diploma. There had been a number of opportunities to learn about this world-class diploma, respected as it is by universities throughout the world. I well remember the Head offering me the opportunity to present the proposal to the SCECGS Redlands Board and ultimately receiving their approval to pursue registration as an IB accredited school.

This registration was an important statement to parents, students and the educational community at large that Redlands was offering this prestigious diploma programme. The fact that so many Redlands students have completed the diploma and gone on to university here in Australia and overseas is testimony to the value of this initiative. The underlying element of the Diploma is that it offers a superior preparation for university studies, emphasising empirical thinking, challenging programmes and fostering intercultural understanding and respect.

Undoubtedly, the Diploma went on to give us a measure of our students’ achievements and to open international opportunities for university enrolment. It also made a clear statement that Redlands was a school that could offer internationally mobile families a programme that was well respected and understood internationally.

Remember too, that Redlands was one of the very early schools to gain IB registration in NSW. There are today 4533 IB schools (SCECGS Redlands Registered Number 505) throughout the world.

One very important aspect of offering the IB diploma was that members of staff were, by necessity, obliged to attend IB Teacher Workshops, held internationally and within Australia each year. Redlands took on this financial burden and this had positive results both to staff morale and to their overall teaching qualifications. (Note: Barry Dahms, Gillian Shanny and many more were involved). It sent out a clear message that being part of the IBO had benefits to staff as well as students.

In taking on the IB Diploma, every Diploma student is required to study his or her own language (Language A) and a second Language (Language B). This requirement always demands a growth in an IB school’s languages department. Redlands would always endeavour to go the extra mile and provide a teacher for a student in a language not normally offered. e.g. Norwegian, Swedish, Thai, Farsi etc. I took some pride in this, as it attracted students to Redlands as well as to the IB programme.

As we became an established IB school we were instrumental, with other schools, in establishing a scale of equivalence between IB Diploma scores and the Australian Tertiary Admissions Rank (ATAR), or the equivalent rank in each State of Australia.

It was important that a professional body be formed, made up of Australasian International Baccalaureate Schools. As Redlands IB coordinator, I was a founding member of The Australasian Association of International Baccalaureate Schools (AAIBS) and, in fact, Redlands hosted the AAIBS 1993 conference. All well within our aim of being international in our outlook and educational stance.

In 1993 it was apparent that the IBO would need a Regional Representative to coordinate the many schools already registered and those that were seeking registration. There was also, at that time, a steady level of press reporting on IBO matters in Australian and New Zealand and this needed to be managed. Thus I sought approval to take on this role, additional to my DHM duties. This was granted and remained in place until the workload of IB matters alone demanded more time than I could responsibly provide, and so set the eventual pathway for me to become a full time IBO employee and leave Redlands.

The International initiatives we undertook at Redlands were not confined to the IBO.

Examples of my involvement were:

-Marketing overseas to accept foreign students into Redlands.

- Attending AUSTRADE marketing shows in Asia (Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Taiwan, Thailand).

- Representing Redlands at International School Accreditations administered by the European Council of International Schools (ECIS- later to be renamed CIS).

- Approaching overseas schools to exchange students and staff. (St Georges School Vancouver, Thewphaingarm, Bangkok, Branksome Hall, Toronto),

- Accepting overseas GAP students from Lancing College, West Sussex, England.

-Registration of Redlands as an accredited Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) examining school, thus providing students the opportunity to apply to American universities.

- Winning ‘The Prince of Wales Award’ provided me with the opportunity of working in England and Wales for a month on the two aspects of my career, as Deputy Headmaster of Redlands School and as a Lieutenant RANR. The first was to study the International Baccalaureate programme and administration at The United World College of the Atlantic, St Donat's Castle, Llantwit Major Vale Of Glamorgan, Wales; the second to study Royal Navy training methods for Reserve Officers at the Royal Navy School of Education Training and Technology (RNSETT), HMS NELSON Portsmouth, Hampshire.

-Studying at the RAN Staff College, HMAS PENGUIN at Balmoral, NSW. This international staff course was most valuable as it provided and exercised skills that are highly appropriate and useful in civilian and service life.

Finally, I feel it essential to mention the various programmes and events that I was able to either start or to contributed to during my time at Redlands.

I was pleased to be involved with the school executive in many important matters. This executive team was made up of senior members of staff who represented all aspects of the school’s charter, including academic, pastoral care, sporting and activities as well as maintenance. Here I was able to appreciate the numerous inputs to the administration of Redlands.

Similarly, the committee work I was able to contribute to in deciding on Staff awards. This was a celebration of Staff innovation and excellence in their work, providing the recipient with a valuable addition to their CV.

I admired work done by the school sergeant to encourage technically obese boys and girls to undertake a fitness programme. I tried to foster this by my support, and make it possible to have students show up and maintain their involvement.

The Year 10 Project was a wonderful innovation and learning experience developed by Roger Seaborne. This programme required staff to act as mentors and I was pleased to act in that capacity on a number of occasions.

I formed the Redlands Flying Club for students, who were interested in aviation and flying instruction, at The Royal Aero Club at Bankstown Airport. Some were able to achieve the Provisional Private Flying Licence and one, Katie Greenup, was able to qualify with a commercial licence.

The winter sports programme at Redlands leads the nation. Under the direction of Bruce Campbell, competitive skiing and snowboarding have reached elite levels for some students and opened this sport to many at a very high standard. I was pleased to help out in this very fine enterprise, and to offer the yearly ski and snowboard trip to Mt Hutt in the South Island of New Zealand. I understand that so many years after my time, this trip still continues each September. It was particularly important to offer the opportunity to one or two students each year who were unable to afford the costs involved.

There were many instances of sound humanitarian judgement in my time at Redlands. One particularly stands out in my mind.

We often would say that we expected students to be risk takers and not to be afraid to make a mistake or to shy away from correcting errors of judgement, also to come forward and seek out opportunities. These were indeed important objectives, and one day they were really tested.

The Headmaster was abroad. So, when I was told that there was a rather strange girl at the reception desk and that she was inquiring about enrolment, fortunately, the receptionist, Miss Joy, sent the girl to see me. Let’s call this girl ‘C’.

‘C’ told me she had been watching the school for almost two days and she wondered if it would be possible to study at Redlands and complete the NSW School Certificate. The poor girl looked rough and unkempt, she was scared and tentative, but there was certainly a genuine desire on her part to better herself and she was not sure how she would manage this. She was lost and she knew she was on a pathway that would lead her to a place that she never imagined she would get to. As the interview progressed ‘C’ told be that she was from country NSW and that, since being in Sydney, she had lived rough for a time, prostituted herself to provide a place to live and dearly wanted to get out of that environment. I told her to come and see me the next day.

Subsequently I spoke to Peter Cornish about this at length and Gail Stewart was drawn into the discussion as senior mistress. Peter was guarded and thought. At last he said: “If we are what we say we are, we must respond and assist”. My thought at that moment was one of immense admiration for the Headmaster and for everything that Redlands stood for.

After more interviews ‘C’ was informed that a place was open for her, no fees would be charged and a uniform and books would be provided, as long as she behaved appropriately and that she did nothing whatsoever to bring the school into bad report. There would be no exception to this. ‘C’ was removed from a sordid abode in Darlinghurst by the school sergeant and put into a safe house near the school.

Well…. ‘C’ came to Redlands, passed the School Certificate with particularly high marks in commerce and, the last I heard, had started in catering management. The occasion when she walked across the stage at assembly to receive her NSW School Certificate and the Headmaster’s congratulations was my most emotional moment at Redlands.

My ten years at Redlands were both active and cerebral. There was urgency about the task of moving Redlands forward and establishing the school as a leading player. Such ideals meant that leadership had to be demanding and innovative and above all create an environment where teaching and learning were central to the ethos of the school.

I am proud to have been part of a team that was able to deliver Redlands to a position of being a well-respected and established coeducational school. I am also extremely grateful for the many opportunities that I was offered in my time as Deputy Headmaster, including the additional career pathways that the Headmaster allowed me to follow, in the knowledge that these would to be of value to the school as well as to me.

My career after Redlands was as the Regional Representative for the IBO for Australasia. This was an extraordinary position requiring a great deal of travel and dealing with all aspects of the IBO, which, at that time was on the cusp of seeing significant growth in Australasia. Following IBO requirements I retired from this position in 2011.

I then joined University of Cambridge International Examinations as their Representative for Australia which was a position I held for three years.

During some of this time I was also heavily involved with the Royal Australian Navy and served out my time until retirement on the Directing Staff of the RAN Staff College.

I retired to “Billagunyah” our property in Upper Kangaroo Valley, where Jenelle and I lived for 15 years, and in 2019 moved to Bowral.

Christopher Brangwin AM RFD

August 2020.