RETIREMENT OF MR A. R. BLANK

Press, Volume LXXXV, Issue 25797, 7 May 1949, Page 2

RETIREMENT OF MR A. R. BLANK

HEADMASTER FOR 28 YEARS FUNCTION AT FENDALTON SCHOOL “We have come to do honour to a great man. The Fendalton School is more than a school; it is an institution: and Mr Blank is much more than a schoolmaster, he is also a genius.” said the Leader of the Opposition (Mr S. G. Holland) speaking at a function held at the Fendalton School yesterday to mark the retirement of Mr A. R. Blank, who has been headmaster of the school for 28 years. There was a very large gathering of parents and former pupils. Mr Blank’s great quality was his determinationj'he did not know when to say no. He got what he wanted. His record showed that he had done great service, not only to the school but also his country and the British Empire, said Mr Holland. Mr Blank had left his mark not only on the school but also on the district. said Mr J. T. Watts, M.P. He was farred as an educationist throughout New Zealand for his sometimes advanced views on education. “Three years ago the Prime Minister (Mr Fraser) told me that he had a great admiration for Mr Blank and his pioneering work at the Fendalton School and that Mr Blank was well known in other countries for his work.” he said.

A spirit had been created at the Fendalton Scbc.ol which was rarely to be found outside a private school, said the chairman of the school committee (Mr N. Bowman). He paid a tribute to the assistance given Mr Blank by Mrs Blank. “What you see here to-day is a testimony to their abilities.” he said, remarking that Mr Blank had been the pioneer of the open-air school in New Zealand. Mrs Blank’s mother was present at the function.

Mr Blank’s Reply He had always done his best to make conditions pleasant for children said Mr Blank. He had always considered that environment was important and if ihe environment at a school u ? h3n healthy minds and healthy bodies would follow. Health and happiness were essential in children if they were to acquire knowledge.

Few men had had their services recognised as he had had, he said “I do not think that enough attention has been paid to drill in schools.” said Mr Blank, referring to a display of marching given by the pupils before the ceremony began. He hoped that this would be speedily recognised and remedied. “There was much more drill in our yqung days, and as time goes on they revert to some of the practices which obtained in our school days. “Life is being made too easy for our young children these days. There may be hard times ahead of us. and it would be a bad thing if we ruined these children by making life too easy for them. Adversity maketh the nation. That is a very wise observation. “When the school loses some of its pupils, as it must, then I hope that the temporary classrooms will be removed, and all the children put into the open-air classrooms again. Sooner or later the school will be decapitated, and I would ask Mr Holland’s help for the school. Intermediate schools lack the spirit of the schools where the pupils remain for more than two years. Two years is not enough at one school. It would be a better advance if this school had classes up to the fourth form, instead of taking the form one and two pupils away.” He advocated the removal of the primer classes rather than the decapitation of the school.

Mr Blank was preserved with a chiminq clock, a traveling bag, and a cheque by the rarents and pupi’s, and, at an earlier function, with a golf bag by 'the teaching staff.