Principal, Department of Education and Communities, Merrylands High School
BEd, MEd (UNSW), NSWSPC, ACEL

Lila Mularczyk addressed graduates from Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences in the Great Hall, University of Technology, Sydney on Thursday 2 May 2013, 10.30am.

Our speaker today is Ms Lila Mularczyk.

Lila has held her current position as principal at Merrylands High School for 12 years and is the current President of the New South Wales Secondary Principals’ Council.

Lila has spent 12 years as a classroom and head teacher. During this time, she became a founding member of a regional professional curriculum association network that later developed into a state wide system.

Lila chaired the New South Wales Digital Education Revolution, an initiative that is the foremost one to one ratio (1:1) laptop program in the world. She has been recognised as one of the Sydney Morning Herald’s 100 most influential people.

Lila has been awarded a New South Wales Australian College of Educational Leader Fellowship and a Department of Education Merit Service Award to Public Education. She has a Bachelor of Education and Masters in Education from the University of New South Wales.

It gives me great pleasure to invite Ms Lila Mularczyk to deliver the occasional address.

Speech

Good Morning. I acknowledge the traditional owners of the land, both past and present.

May I begin by congratulating all of you, the graduands, on reaching this important, memorable and exciting milestone in your personal and professional lives. Today most certainly must be a day of celebration and acknowledgement of sustained commitment to your own studies, and the significant and not often illuminated, support and patience of your family and friends.

Your family, friends, colleagues, peers, professors and lecturers are tremendously proud of what you have achieved. The real gift and legacy of your achievement today is what you will further achieve for yourself and others. You will be contributing to the future of individuals, communities and in fact, many far reaching global concerns and societies.

Today you are a graduate of The University of Technology Sydney, significantly in the university’s 25 Anniversary year, in your chosen field of study, and presumably your chosen profession. The years you have spent here have afforded you an enriching education and growth, as the learner you are and the educator you will become. You have had unique opportunities to develop and review your beliefs and attitudes, extend your capacities technically, critically and creatively, and develop skills and proficiencies to forge a new perspective for yourself and those in your future professional care.

I am greatly honoured to address you as the graduates in education from the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. You are anticipating a career that I now reflect upon. During my acknowledgment of your achievement, I will draw upon some aspects of my career and hopefully provide some practical advice as you set about commencing your career in a most honourable and exciting profession.

I have formally been a participant, contributor and/or leader in education for 48 years. This includes my experience at school and through several tertiary education courses. I have been an educator for 31 years in schools and universities. I have completed post graduate courses and undertaken a variety of additional programs. Similarly, I have delivered professional learning programs and courses beginning in my first year of teaching through professional associations, at university, across school communities, at a state, national and frequently at an international level. Why do I tell you this? Because, our careers, yours and mine, are based on a need to constantly learn, which includes giving back to the profession. I assure you this will only enrich your career.

Briefly, I have constructed my career through opportunities as a classroom teacher, head teacher, curriculum areas, Deputy Principal, Principal, leader of regional and state professional associations, tertiary lecturer and board member in a number of educational groups over the decades to name a few. Currently, I enjoy and value the principalship of a wonderful school, Merrylands HighSchool, a school of 54 ethnic groups and substantial refugee population, some students have next to nil language proficiency in English when they enrol, high achievers and many students who are gifted and talented in one or more area. All my students want to and deserve to achieve. As a LBOTE student myself, from a low SES community and the daughter of a refugee, who incidentally spoke 7 languages and was a graduate of the University of Warsaw, I am acutely aware of educators predetermining limited choices for students. As educators, we must enrich each student’s learning and broaden their horizons.

I am President of the NSW Secondary Principals’ Council, and an active member of numerous local, state and national boards with a number of international professional responsibilities. One of my local roles is as a member of an advisory board at UTS for the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, another rewarding opportunity. Thank you Professor Van Leeuwen.

You will create such opportunities for yourself, but more importantly, you will be creating opportunities for students and young people in your care.

I understand that you are possibly listening to me and thinking how much the world, and indeed the world of teaching, has changed since I began 31 years ago. Especially in light of ICT changes, overhead projectors were new technology when I started, new social and educational reforms, and of course impacting social media – this is where I meander with little expertise and you excel already. But I do have the capacity to recognise the value of social media in teaching and learning. A capacity to embrace the new be it reforms, ICT or social constructs, is key to growing into the educator students deserve. Yet regardless of these lists, very little changes in teaching and learning. Please consider what I am about to offer that may assist framing an approach to your career:

Good teaching is good teaching, always has been and always will be, great teaching is great teaching and poor teaching is, well a travesty for students.

Teaching does not necessarily equate at any time to learning

Every interaction you have with a young person/student will be significant for that student. Ensure the interactions are positive and productive; after all you are the adult. You will only have one opportunity for a first interaction and lasting impact.

There is NEVER an excuse not to do the right thing in your profession.

Bad days are a reality, but bad days are far less frequent than good and fabulous days, and each day is a learning opportunity.

Be an advocate for your students’ learning and educational opportunities.

You are loco parentis at all times.

Be the teacher and educational leader you would want for your own children.

Never make assumptions about your students and their capacity to learn. This can be debilitating. Know your students’ strengths and needs and build on that.

Be an ambassador in your role, committed and loyal to your profession, your students, yourself and your school community. Choose to be an educator for the right moral, philosophical and intellectual reasons.

Be inspirational and aspirational in whatever roles you assume and finally and most importantly.

I have never known a student who didn’t want to do well or a family who didn’t want the best for their children. Sometimes, however, they just don’t know or understand what that might look like. That is our responsibility.

May I conclude with this? You are indeed fortunate to graduate from this great university which is renowned for the success of its graduates. I wish you every good fortune. Your qualifications will be recognised and valued throughout the world, another dimension to your pride.

As a principal for the last twelve years, I have concluded each major school community event with “I have the best job in the best place”. I most sincerely hope you experience the same joy, excitement, development and fulfilment that I have and continue to. I certainly cannot imagine doing anything else.

I wish you all the best because our young people deserve the best. Thank you for this invitation to address you. Perhaps we will meet professionally.

So I will end where I began, congratulations. Most genuinely congratulations. Have a great career, it is rewarding. Thank you.