For Seniors Week 2026, we asked some of our over-70 volunteers to tell us about their experience with us. There is no age limit to ethics volunteering. At 88, Paul Sowter is in his eleventh year of volunteering with Primary Ethics.
Paul’s experience
When I retired from casual teaching at age 75, my son alerted me to the existence of Primary Ethics. I enquired, did the training and suddenly I was a teacher of ethics at Normanhurst West Public School, on Sydney’s far north shore.
As a former schoolteacher, I was impressed by the approach: everyone in a circle, kids do the talking but only if they want to. What a safe haven for the shy! The feedback in that most valuable end-of-year lesson revealed the benefits students draw from the experience, particularly in personal growth.
And I found this: whichever stage I taught over the next 10 years in various schools. Primary Ethics keeps me in touch with the rising generation – their innocence and awareness of so many things about the world is a delight to observe. The lesson material, especially for stage 3, can be challenging – you can see it in their faces. And they respond, slowly, feeling their way, listening intently to what their peers are saying, building on the previous contributions.
I have also seen the courses themselves develop over the years. And yes, old as I now am, I too have developed. I only wish I could have applied what I’ve learnt from teaching ethics in my former career.
As my hearing worsens with advancing age, soft voices can be a challenge. I am now employing an app on my iphone to improve my reception through airpods. The kids like being the monitor who delivers the iphone to the chosen speaker!
Over the years I have developed my IT skills with frequent assistance from the wonderful helpdesk. I delight in the material from Kindergarten to stage 3, often taking me off into further study
Whenever I meet someone for the first time I unashamedly steer the conversation towards Primary Ethics. No one has ever disapproved. All express an interest.
At the time of writing, March 2026, the topic my stage 1 class is exploring is pride. The photo of me above shows my pride in my endeavours.
The photo to the right is not my class. It is the instinctive formation of a troop of gorillas when they realise their leader is dead.
