Woman Wauchope, Mavis (1899 - 1968)

Born
1899
Kensington Park, South Australia, Australia
Died
1968
Occupation
Lecturer and Teacher

Written by Deborah Towns, Swinburne University

Mavis Lorelei Wauchope was born in Kensington Park, South Australia in 1899. Her parents were John Frederick and Charlotte Amy Wauchope. She attended Marryatville Primary School and Adelaide Girls' High School and began her career as a junior teacher. At 23 she was a qualified teacher after studying at the Adelaide University Teacher Training College. She was appointed as a demonstration assistant at the Gilles Street Infant Practising School at a young age. While teaching she completed a Bachelor of Arts in 1923 and a Diploma of Education in 1929. Then she was promoted to Mistress of Infant Method at the Rose Park Practising Infant school.

In 1931 aged only thirty-two she was appointed senior lecturer at the Adelaide Teachers College (ATC) with the responsibility for training infant teachers. She was awarded a Master's degree in 1936. and in the following year attended the New Education Fellowship Conference in 1937 and was inspired by Dr Susan Isaac, Head of the Department of Child Development, Institute of Education, University of London. In 1938, Wauchope won a grant from the Carnegie Institute and studied early years' education at the University of London. Upon her return she established parent/teacher groups through the New Education Fellowship. She also worked closely with the Adelaide Kindergarten Teachers College (KTC) and lectured there. She was a member of the inaugural College Council. As head of the training school at the ATC in the 1950s, she developed strong links between the KTC and the ATC because she saw the importance of the continuity of education throughout the pre-school and primary school years. She was also active in the Australian Federation of University Women and represented the organisation at international conferences (Advertiser , 21 November 1952).

Acknowledged in 1985 by Dr Harry Penny, then principal of the ATC, for her pre-eminence in Australia in the field of learning and teaching, Mavis Wauchope died in 1968.

Archival Resources

National Library of Australia

  • Biographical cuttings on Mavis Lorelie Wauchope, educationalist, containing one or more cuttings from newspapers or journals, 1900 - 2000, 646325; National Library of Australia. Details

Published Resources

Book Sections

  • Rogers, Ruth, 'Mavis Wauchope 1899 - 1968', in Joan Waters (ed.), With Passion, Perseverance and Practicality: 100 Women Who Influenced Australian Children's Services, 1841-2001, OMEP Australia, Melbourne, Victoria, 2002, pp. 192 - 193. Details

Magazine Articles

Newspaper Articles

See also