“I was seven years farming full-time when I decided to go back and get my primary teaching qualification. It was a big decision at the time. We’re farming about 100 acres in Newcestown parish, near Bandon in Co Cork. Dad [Tim O’Callaghan] started the Mountfarna herd of pedigree Holstein Friesians in the early seventies and we’ve kept it going since.
I made my way up to Mary Immaculate college in Limerick and did my three years there. Up and down the road, farming at the same time. ?I qualified in 2006 and I’ve been teaching in Scoil Phádraig Naofa, the boy’s school in Bandon town since. The bus for our local national school in Newcestown passes the door at home every morning, so my son Jack goes there along with his younger sister Molly, and brother, Charlie.
At this stage, I’ve taught most classes apart from junior and senior infants. At the moment, I am teaching in a unit for children with autism. This is my second year with this class.
It is very, very different; a different pace. You are very much concentrating on social skills and day to day living, as well as the academic side of things. I find it very rewarding. Currently, we have a class of six pupils with two special needs assistants [SNAs].
To the farm
I tend to bring the farming aspect into our school. We have four classrooms for children with autism and last year we organised a 50-seater bus to bring us all out to the farm. It is a world apart for the majority of the pupils. The school is a DEIS school [a Department of Education programme to respond to educational disadvantage]. A lot of children would never have been on a farm or spent much time in the countryside.
Before coming out, they learned all about farming and rural life, so they had an idea of what to expect. Then, when they were out in the yard, we added more to it.
They fed the calves and saw bulls. We are running on a robotic system of milking so they got to see the cows going in to be milked. Jack has his hens and they got to see the hens and where the eggs come from.
A lot of children have their own dog at home, so even just being out on the farm they love it. Animals seem to help an awful lot in that regard. One of the kids said to my wife, Eilish, before they left, ‘This is the best day of my life.’
In school, I am Mr O’Callaghan, then when we were out in the yard, I was ?farmer John. For the pupils, it was a case of ‘how are you the same person?’ How can you be Mr O’Callaghan and a farmer too?
Remember when we were all going to school and we might meet the teacher outside of school? It was strange to see them out of context. When our pupils came to our place, they got to see this is where our teacher lives, this is where he works. It was a whole different world to them.
Matches or milking??
We’re a strong GAA, rural parish. They call us the little village. Up to recently, we’ve been playing senior in both hurling and football. We were the only dual senior club outside of the city. That changed slightly this year.
I played with Newcestown GAA for a long time. When I played, I was in midfield for football and centre-forward in hurling. I haven’t played in a long, long time. I ended up spending more time on an operating table than I did on the field. It’s time to give it up when you start arriving home after games on crutches and your father looking at you and asking, ‘Who is going to do the milking now?’
When my own kids started [playing], I said I would help out. At the moment, I am working with the under-11s; Jack’s team. It’s great because there are a few trainers so there is a bit of flexibility if one of us can’t make it some evening.
Between hurling, camogie, soccer, swimming, there is something on every evening. That’s why you’d need the robot.
You can be chasing your tail in this life and about five years ago I felt I wasn’t spending enough time with the children. They were very young and I was conscious that life goes by so quickly. So, I now job-share with a colleague in school. It works brilliantly.
We’re milking about 60 cows at any one time. We calve pretty much all year round; seven or eight calves every month. We used to show the cows and calves years ago. Maybe if the youngsters want to continue that, they can. They’ll have to start training their calves first!” CL
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