Revised Feature Story

Binnie Duval’s Teaching Career

Ever since retired teacher Binnie Duval was a young child, she had always dreamed of being an educator or teacher. After she graduated from the all-girls Catholic school Our Lady of the Elms, this dream became a reality. In 1963 she married Don Duval and they were ready to start their lives together.

Don was in the military when they married and they lived on a military base in Fort Benning, Georgia. There was an opening for a third grade teacher at an elementary school on the base, so Binnie gladly took the job.

Binnie describes one of her more memorable days teaching at Fort Benning.

“I grew up in a small, ‘all-white,’ town in Massachusetts,” Binnie said. “I was never exposed to racial diversity before.”

So when a little black boy was placed in her class, she was determined to treat him with respect, despite being in a country where people of color had to fight for simple civil rights, the 60’s.

The boy had had rough experiences in school previous to third grade. During a parent-teacher conference, his parents made it clear that they were grateful to Binnie for treating their son with the same respect as the other students.

“I was happy that he had a good year,” Binnie said.

On the base, it was common knowledge to know what the kids’ parents’ ranks were. “This sometimes led to discrimination, and children being raised differently,” Binnie said.

One boy in her class’s father was an undertaker for fallen soldiers. Binnie knew this, and as the child struggled in class, she was reminded of the fact that since his father didn’t have a high rank, or really one at all. The boy’s father probably didn’t have high expectations for his son, or ever help him out with schoolwork.

Knowing this, Binnie made sure that her students were all getting the help they needed, and if that meant some students needed more help than others, then so be it. Learning from these experiences, Binnie gained knowledge about people from different backgrounds, and how different their lives are led.

After Don was discharged from Fort Benning, the family made a move to the sunny state of California. Binnie didn’t go looking for a job, instead she began to devote her time to raising her children.

As her children grew older and her constant presence at home was not necessary anymore, she found a preschool substitute teacher job, which eventually turned into a permanent position, and continued with it for three years.

Then the Duval’s picked up and moved again, this time to western New York. She then saw an opening in the paper for a Montessori teacher, and she was soon hired. Binnie taught there for the next nine years. She really enjoyed teaching.

“It was so nice. It was gratifying,” Binnie said.

In the 80’s, misbehaving children were dealt with in different ways than today. A common punishment back then was the use of a paddle, or a ruler. Something that would be considered psychical abuse today. Binnie’s views on corporal punishment like this haven’t changed since her teaching days.

“I would never lay a hand on a student,” Binnie said.

She never enforced or supported these types of discipline. Because of the age of her students, she seldom dealt with misbehaving children, but when it happened, a warning or scolding usually did the trick. Never violence.

Children back then also respected authority much more than today’s kids. This is simply caused by the change in the times and culture. Troublemaking was not common back then.

“Parents were also very helpful and involved,” Binnie said.

If Binnie wasn’t a teacher, there were other interesting career options she wanted to maybe work as. These included an interior designer.

“I always loved to decorate,” Binnie said. She also had an interest towards meteorology. “Mother Nature fascinated me.”

Binnie made some great friendships throughout her teaching career. Most she unfortunately lost touch with, due to lack of technology when they were close. But she is in touch with one woman from her Montessori days.

“We talk on the phone occasionally, sometimes meet up for lunch,” Binnie said.

Binnie actually enjoyed teaching Montessori the most.

“It was a different method than most public schools,” Binnie said. “It’s a great method of learning.”  

The patterning method taught there taught kids how to study and gave them confidence doing things at their own speed.

Finding jobs was never a problem for Binnie. She never had difficulty applying and actually got every job she interviewed for. After retirement, Binnie began to do floral arrangements for weddings. She still does this today.

She had had opportunities to substitute in schools after she retired, where she wouldn’t have to have a full-time job at her age. But in order to do this, she would have to go back to school. Laws and requirements had changed throughout the years.

“I didn’t want to go back to school,” Binnie said.

She kept busy with her children until they graduated. Binnie’s an animal lover, so she soon found herself with several pets to take care of and love. They kept her busy, and prevented her retirement life from becoming dull.

In 2015, her husband Don was diagnosed with Alzheimer's, a form of dementia. This was devastating for the whole family as they watched him slip away and become a whole new person. Binnie took this especially hard, being his partner for decades.

As he deteriorated, forgetting who even his children and wife were, Binnie made the heartbreaking decision to transfer Don to live in an assisted living center.

This reminded her of the children she taught, and how different their lives were. She watched her life shift from normal to something completely new, and suddenly understood those children.

Binnie never knew that something as simple as teaching third grade students on a military base could teach her such important life lessons. It gave her a completely new look on life by observing how others lived outside of her small Massachusetts hometown.

In June of 2016, Don Duval passed away.

Coping with the loss of her husband, her children were around much more often, helping her with her pets, keeping her house and yard clean, and cooking.

Binnie is grateful for them. It’s almost like they’re paying her back for all the hard work she put into keeping them happy and healthy throughout their lives.

Inspired by her mother, daughter Michele Bivona is now a preschool teacher.

“My mom definitely inspired me to teach, just like her mom inspired her,” Bivona said.

She’s considered a role model to many who know her.

“She always had time to help us despite her busy job, and the always ran smoothly,” Bivona said. “That’s when I realized I wanted to be a teacher just like her.”