Sir Harold Wyndham (27 June 1903 – 22 April 1988) was Director-General of Education in

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

between 1952 and 1968. He chaired the committee whose report (referred to as "The Wyndham Report") led to the Education Act 1961 which completely re-organised secondary education in NSW.

Early life and background

Wyndham was a great-grandson of Wadham Wyndham. His grandfather Alexander Wyndham (d.1915) arrived in Australia in the 1850s with a sizeable inheritance but within 20 years the fortune had been spent, lent or otherwise lost. Harold Stanley Wyndham was born in

Forbes, New South Wales Forbes is a town in the Central West, New South Wales, Central West region of New South Wales, Australia, located on the Newell Highway between Parkes, New South Wales, Parkes and West Wyalong, New South Wales, West Wyalong. At the , Forbes h ...

on 27 June 1903, first child to Agnes Effie (née Finigan) and Stanley Charles Wyndham. His mother Effie died in June 1908, a short time after the arrival of her third child, Norman. The children were cared for by their aunt Rachel, Effie's younger sister, whom Stanley later married. Rachel urged that the family be moved to

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

to ensure the children could receive a more rounded education. Rachel and Stanley had a son Robert. Harold's sister Kathleen founded

Wadham Preparatory School Wadham Preparatory School was an independent day, co-educational, preparatory school founded on Christian principles. The school was located at 9–11 Wallis Avenue Strathfield, New South Wales, Australia. History The school was establishe ...

and his brother Norman became a noted Sydney-based surgeon. Harold married Beatrice Margaret (Margaret) Grieve in 1936 and moved to the Sydney suburb of Roseville in 1937 where the couple raised three sons, Philip, John and David, all of whom attended the academically selective

North Sydney Boys High School North Sydney Boys High School (abbreviated as NSBHS) is a government-funded, single-sex, academically selective secondary day school for boys, located at Crows Nest, on the Lower North Shore of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. In 2022, Nor ...

. Wyndham died of a heart attack in Roseville on 22 April 1988, leaving his wife Margaret, three sons and five grandchildren.

Education

Wyndham attended

Fort Street High School Fort Street High School (FSHS) is a Education in Australia#Government schools, government-funded Mixed-sex school, co-educational Selective school (New South Wales), academically selective secondary school, secondary day school, located in Petersh ...

and graduated in Arts at the

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD), also known as Sydney University, or informally Sydney Uni, is a public research university located in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and is one of the country's si ...

in 1924. In 1925 he was awarded a Diploma in Education, winning the Peter Board Prize. He served for 8 years as a teacher in Primary schools and as a member of staff of

Sydney Teachers College The Sydney Teachers' College was a tertiary education institution that trained school teachers in Sydney, Australia, Sydney, Australia. It existed from 1906 until the end of 1981, when it became the Sydney Institute of Education, a part of the ne ...

. In 1928 he graduated Master of Arts (1st Class honours in History). In 1932 he won the NSW Teacher's Federation travelling scholarship and the Carnegie Travel Grant to the USA where he studied at

Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...

in California. He earned his Doctorate in Education in 1934. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

he served with the

Royal Australian Air Force "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = RAAF Anniversary Commemoration ...

as a Flight Lieutenant and was involved in the early stages of the

Commonwealth Reconstruction Training Scheme Commonwealth Reconstruction Training Scheme (CRTS) was an Australian government scheme started during World War II to offer vocational or academic training to both men and women who had served in the Australian Defence Force. Its purpose was to aid ...

and the re-establishment of disabled ex-servicemen.

Career & The "Wyndham Report"

In 1935 Dr Wyndham was appointed as the first research officer for the Department of Education. In 1946 he was appointed Staff Inspector, Secretary in 1948 and Deputy Director-General in 1951. In November 1952 he became Director-General of Education In 1954 he was appointed to chair a committee tasked to completely review the Secondary education system in New South Wales and make recommendations for improvements to be implemented.Curtis, Stephen (2007)"The Leaving Certificate in New South Wales from 1939 to 1962"UTS, Sydney The committee's report, popularly referred to as "The Wyndham Report", was presented to the Minister in October 1957. The report gave rise to the Public Education Act of 1961 and was brought into effect in 1962. Key amongst the changes was the objective of presenting all students with the opportunity to experience a wide range of subjects, including visual arts, industrial arts, music and drama, and a wide range of languages. The Five-year Secondary School system was abandoned in favour of adding another year to the course, with major statewide external examinations at the end of the tenth (

School Certificate The School Certificate was a qualification issued by the Board of Studies, New South Wales, typically at the end of Year 10. The successful completion of the School Certificate was a requirement for completion of the Higher School Certificate. T ...

) and the twelfth ( Higher School Certificate) years of schooling. When Dr Wyndham was appointed as Director-General of Education there were 455,000 students in the NSW Education system, of whom 100,000 were in Secondary schools; By 1968 there was over 244,000 students in secondary school of whom 64% could be expected to complete the Higher School Certificate.

Public life

Wyndham devoted much of his life to public service outside of his role in the Department of Education. In 1945 he led the Australian delegation at the conference which created

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

and was a member of the Australian delegation to UNESCO in 1958 and again in 1966. In 1959 he represented Australia at the Commonwealth Education Conference at

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

and again in

New Delhi New Delhi (, , ''Naī Dillī'') is the capital of India and a part of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, Parliament House ...

in 1962. He was a Fellow of the

Royal Institute of Public Administration The Royal Institute of Public Administration (RIPA) was a British professional public service institution and civil service training organisation that operated in the United Kingdom and overseas from its founding in 1922 to its closure in 1992.Shel ...

and a Fellow and President (1963–1965) of the

Australian College of Educators The Australian College of Educators (ACE) is an Australian national professional association for educators. Membership is open to all professional educators working in the early childhood, school, and tertiary education sectors, as well as to ed ...

. He was Chairman of the NSW State Library Board, NSW State Archives Authority, Secondary Schools Board, Board of Senior School Studies, Board of Teacher Education,

Sydney Symphony Orchestra The Sydney Symphony Orchestra (SSO) is an Australian symphony orchestra that was initially formed in 1908. Since its opening in 1973, the Sydney Opera House has been its home concert hall. Simone Young is the orchestra's chief conductor and firs ...

Advisory Committee and Intellectually Handicapped Standing Committee amongst others. He was a member of the Senate of the

, Council of the

University of New South Wales The University of New South Wales (UNSW), also known as UNSW Sydney, is a public research university based in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is one of the founding members of Group of Eight, a coalition of Australian research-intensive ...

, Council of the University of New England, Council of

Macquarie University Macquarie University ( ) is a public research university based in Sydney, Australia, in the suburb of Macquarie Park. Founded in 1964 by the New South Wales Government, it was the third university to be established in the metropolitan area of S ...

, Technical Education Advisory Council and the

Sydney Opera House Trust The Sydney Opera House Trust operates and maintains the Sydney Opera House in Sydney for the Government of New South Wales in Australia. Description The Trust operates as one of the State's premier cultural institutions within the Create NSW po ...

. In 1961 Wyndham was appointed a

Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

for services to education in NSW''Commander of the Order of the British Empire (Civil)
CBE, 10 June 1961, itsanhonour.gov.au
Citation: ''Director-General of Education in NSW''. and in 1969 appointed a

Knight Bachelor The title of Knight Bachelor is the basic rank granted to a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not inducted as a member of one of the organised orders of chivalry; it is a part of the British honours system. Knights Bachelor are the ...

.Knight Bachelor
Kt, 14 June 1969, itsanhonour.gov.au
Citation: ''Services to education''.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wyndham, Harold 1903 births 1988 deaths Australian Knights Bachelor Australian public servants

Harold Harold may refer to: People * Harold (given name), including a list of persons and fictional characters with the name * Harold (surname), surname in the English language * András Arató, known in meme culture as "Hide the Pain Harold" Arts a ...