Sir James Ralph Darling, CMG, OBE (18 June 1899 – 1 November 1995) was the English-born Australian

headmaster A head master, head instructor, bureaucrat, headmistress, head, chancellor, principal or school director (sometimes another title is used) is the teacher, staff member of a school with the greatest responsibility for the management of the school ...

Geelong Grammar School , motto_translation = 1 Corinthians 1:30: "For us, Christ was made wisdom"(1 Corinthians 1:30: Christ, who has been made for us in wisdom) , city = Corio, Victoria , country = Australia , coordinates = , ty ...

(1930–1961), and

Chairman The chairperson, also chairman, chairwoman or chair, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the grou ...

of the

Australian Broadcasting Commission The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is the national broadcaster of Australia. It is principally funded by direct grants from the Australian Government and is administered by a government-appointed board. The ABC is a publicly-owned ...

(1961–1967).

Early life

Darling was born in

Tonbridge Tonbridge ( ) is a market town in Kent, England, on the River Medway, north of Royal Tunbridge Wells, south west of Maidstone and south east of London. In the administrative borough of Tonbridge and Malling, it had an estimated population ...

, England, the second child of an Englishman, Augustine Major Darling, and his Scottish wife, Jane Baird, née Nimmo. He was educated at the preparatory school in Tonbridge run by his father, then at

Repton School Repton School is a 13–18 Mixed-sex education, co-educational, Independent school (United Kingdom), independent, Day school, day and boarding school in the English Public school (United Kingdom), public school tradition, in Repton, Derbyshire, ...

, a boarding school in

Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands, England. It includes much of the Peak District National Park, the southern end of the Pennine range of hills and part of the National Forest. It borders Greater Manchester to the nor ...

. He served as a Second Lieutenant in the

Royal Field Artillery The Royal Field Artillery (RFA) of the British Army provided close artillery support for the infantry. It came into being when created as a distinct arm of the Royal Regiment of Artillery on 1 July 1899, serving alongside the other two arms of t ...

in France and occupied Germany in 1918 and 1919 before reading history at

Oriel College Oriel College () is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in Oxford, England. Located in Oriel Square, the college has the distinction of being the oldest royal foundation in Oxford (a title formerly claimed by University College, wh ...

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 ...

. He taught from 1921 to 1924 at Merchant Taylors' School in

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...

, before joining the staff of

Charterhouse Charterhouse may refer to: * Charterhouse (monastery), of the Carthusian religious order Charterhouse may also refer to: Places * The Charterhouse, Coventry, a former monastery * Charterhouse School, an English public school in Surrey London ...

Surrey Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...

Headmaster

He was appointed as Headmaster of Geelong Grammar School in 1930 and the student population of the school grew from 370 to 1139 at the time of his retirement. He was a founding member of the Headmasters' Conference of the Independent Schools of Australia and was its sixth

. During his time at Geelong, Darling set up the

Outward Bound Outward Bound (OB) is an international network of outdoor education organizations that was founded in the United Kingdom by Lawrence Holt and Kurt Hahn in 1941. Today there are organizations, called schools, in over 35 countries which are att ...

campus

Timbertop Timbertop is a full-time boarding, co-educational campus of Geelong Grammar School located near Mansfield, Victoria, Australia. Established in 1953, by then Headmaster James Darling, Timbertop is compulsory for all year-nine students attend ...

in the foothills of the Australian Alps between

Mansfield Mansfield is a market town and the administrative centre of Mansfield District in Nottinghamshire, England. It is the largest town in the wider Mansfield Urban Area (followed by Sutton-in-Ashfield). It gained the Royal Charter of a market tow ...

and Mt Buller where academic work was supplemented by a wide range of physical activity. Notable pupils included future prime minister

John Gorton Sir John Grey Gorton (9 September 1911 – 19 May 2002) was an Australian politician who served as the nineteenth Prime Minister of Australia, in office from 1968 to 1971. He led the Liberal Party during that time, having previously been a l ...

and

Charles, Prince of Wales Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. He was the longest-serving heir apparent and Prince of Wales and, at age 73, became the oldest person to ...

. Darling was a founder and first National President 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 ...

. Darling served from 1933 to 1971 on the Council of the

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in Victoria. Its main campus is located in Parkville, an inner suburb nor ...

and he was a member of the Universities Commission from 1941 to 1951. Darling believed that it was of primary importance in education to cultivate sensitivity in students, but that toughness was also required for effective leadership. He revolutionised

with his educational philosophy, overhauling the curriculum and focusing less on achievement and more on learning. He encouraged selflessness and hard work over competitiveness and idleness.

ABC Chairman

After his retirement as Headmaster he was for several years Chairman of the

(ABC). The decision by the Holt

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

government in 1967 not to re-appoint him was rumoured to be because of the perceived criticism of the government's policies by the ABC. This led to considerable controversy, involving

Mike Willesee Michael Robert Willesee, (29 June 1942 – 1 March 2019) was an Australian television journalist, interviewer and presenter. Willesee was the son of politician senator Don Willesee; Mike first came to prominence in 1967 as a reporter for the ...

, an ABC reporter, who was the son of

Don Willesee Donald Robert Willesee (14 April 19169 September 2003) was an Australian politician. He was a member of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) and served as a Senator for Western Australia from 1950 to 1975. He held ministerial office in the Whitlam ...

, a

Labor Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...

Senator.

Later years

In retirement Darling often wrote for newspapers, and published his own books. In 1988 he was named on a list of 200 great Australians (of whom only 22 were living, he being the only headmaster on the list). He died aged 96 in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

in 1995. In his obituary Darling was referred to as a prophet whose integrity, insight, intelligence and courage gave him great standing in the community.

Honours

* Officer,

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 ...

(1953) * Companion,

Order of St Michael and St George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George IV, George IV, Prince of Wales, while he was acting as prince regent for his father, George III, King George III. ...

(1958) *

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 ...

(1968) for services to education and broadcasting

Publications

* ''The Education of a Civilized Man: A Selection of Speeches and Sermons'' (Melb, 1962) * ''Timbertop: An Innovation in Australian Education'' (Melb, 1967) * ''Richly Rewarding'' (Melb, 1978) * ''Reflections for the Age'' (Melb, 1991)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Darling, James 1899 births 1995 deaths Chairpersons of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation Chairmen of the Headmasters' Conference of the Independent Schools of Australia Australian headmasters 20th-century Australian educators Australian television executives Alumni of Oriel College, Oxford Australian Knights Bachelor Australian Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George Australian Officers of the Order of the British Empire British emigrants to Australia People from Geelong