By Megan Haggan

CYBER-bullying, competition and peer pressure are increasingly significant problems for children, according to David Garratt, deputy chair of the Association of Independent Schools, who is retiring as principal of Daramalan College at the end of this year.
Mr Garratt has been at Daramalan since 1974, and has been teaching since 1965. He is one of five independent school heads in the ACT who are either retiring or moving to new roles at the end of 2008.
“Some of the challenges these days are more difficult to manage,” he told “CityNews”.
“We’re noticing a new generation of kids coming into lower high school suffering from levels of anxiety that have increased dramatically.
“They are under a lot of pressure from a combination of factors: perhaps both parents are working long hours to make ends meet, and a lot of the kids are in competition with each other more consciously than they ever were.
“That competition is in terms of having all the ‘right’ gear to how many friends they have on their Facebook site.
“The potential for bullying has increased in cyberspace, in chat rooms and on mobile phones. There are issues we’re dealing with now that we weren’t dealing with even five years ago.”
There had been significant positive changes as well, he said.
“One of the biggest changes has been to class sizes. My first class, in 1965, had 68 children. I’ve created a situation at Daramalan where the average class size in core subjects at high school is 25,” he said.
“We’ve also got a system now at Daramalan where the students can choose what they want to do and don’t have to pay any more for it – so if they’re less academic and good with their hands, they can study woodwork or fashion without paying any more.”
Christine Harrison is retiring as the principal of Canberra Montessori School, but will continue to serve as chair of the Association of Independent Schools into 2009.
“I’m feeling ambivalent – I’m looking forward to retirement, but I will miss the children,” she said.
Ms Harrison said that she had also seen big changes over her career, particularly the move to the purpose-built school at Weston Creek four years ago.
“Montessori has just taken off since then,” she says.
“Teaching has become a more difficult profession. There are higher expectations of teachers now.”
Dr Chris Hayes, Dr David Mulford and Ruth Underwood are also leaving Canberra’s independent schools.
Dr Hayes, headmaster at St Edmund’s College since 2005, is moving to Melbourne’s Xavier College in 2009 as principal.
Dr Mulford will leave his role of principal at Radford College and take on the role of headmaster at Sydney’s Newington College.
Ruth Underwood, who has headed the Orana School for eight years, will take on a senior role with the Independent Schools Council of Australia.