REOPENING OF SCHOOLS

Press, Volume LXXXIV, Issue 25420, 17 February 1948, Page 6

REOPENING OF SCHOOLS

GOVERNMENT ACTION SOUGHT

TIMARU BOARD’S DECISION The board of governors of the Timaru high schools last evening decided to make representations to the Prime Minister (Mr P. Fraser), seeking the reopening of secondary schools 'for all pupils. It seemed that there would be another seven weeks of correspondence lessons a<iead. said Mr M. A. Bull (rector of the Timaru Boys’ High School). On the basis of information given by primary school inspectors, and the Medical Officer of Health, there would be no reopening of schools until after Easter. Medical opinion held that these restrictions' were unnecessary in the South Island, said Mr Bull, “so I am feeling rather sore about it.”

Asked how the correspondence lessons were proceeding, Mr Bull said “the amount of marking was almost frightening.” The amount of writing an industrious scholar could do in a week was very great. This category was working creditably. Another class were finding the correspondence lessons difficult, and would be disheartened after nine weeks. A third group were still in employment and were taking the lessons casually; others were not working at all. The result of getting all these in a single unit, after nine weeks, would be chaos. If classes could be started for senior pupils who had passed school certificate, or who had had one year in the fifth form, it would be most valuable from an educational point of view, he said, urging that representations should be made again. * Mr P. B. Foote considered that more harm was being done by keeping schools closed than by opening them. This opinion was supported by doctors and many parents, it was said. There was no epideinic in the South Island, said Mr Bull, who said there were always sporadic cases at this time of the year.