CORRESPONDENCE.

Hawera Star, Volume XLVIII, 4 November 1924, Page 4

CORRESPONDENCE.

SMOKING AMONG CHILDREN. (To the Editor.) Sir,—:l notice in Thursday’s issue of your paper a reference to the attempt of a certain teacher in a coastal town to suppress smoking amongst the pupila in his school. Now, "sir, your correspondent, whoever, he may be, seems to think that this teacher has taken a very wrong stand in this matter, and in his indignation at what took place he has endeavoured to convey a very wrong impression to your readers. He states that 50 per cent of: the pupils, including many of the gentler sex, admitted having committed the crime. I do not know from whom he obtained his figures, but the real facts of the case are that about 20 per cent of the pupils, including four girls, were offenders. : He also stated that each culprit received six good round strokes with the strap. Again his figures are at fault, as the punishment varied according to tho size of the children, the big children receiving six strokes and the small children one stroke. The girls did not receive corporal punishment at all, but were severely lectured by the head teacher. Your correspondent admits that the children committed a crime, and still further on he refers to it as an offence and yet he goes on to condeinn the teacher for his action. Again, your correspondent seems to think that the teacher’s control over a child ends when the. child leaves the playground; Let him place himself in the teacher’s position, and consider what kind of a school he would have if ha were .not allowed to correct children for their wrong doings out of school, and then perhaps he would look at it m a different f light. Personally, I consider that the head teacher is to be highly commended for his action in endeavouring to eradicate this evil from among the children, and I consider that every right-thinking parent will agree with me in this. Hoping this puts matters in a different tight for your many readers.—l am, etc.V INTERESTED.