RELIEVING THE NEEDY

Timaru Herald, Volume CXXXVII, Issue 19805, 22 May 1934, Page 11

RELIEVING THE NEEDY

PART THE CHILDREN COULD PLAY EDUCATION BOARD CRITICISED On Friday the Canterbury Education Board disapproved of a request by the Canterbury Progress League to make a special appeal to school-child-ren in the Christchurch metropolitan area on behalf of the Mayor’s Relief of Distress Fund, and refused permission to send a circular letter to school committees and head masters. Today, bitter disappointment at the attitude of the bpard was expressed by Mr G. F. Allen, appointed by the Appeal Committee to approach the board with a view to enlisting the practical sympathy of the children. Mr Allen, who is a former head master of the Sumner District High School, and has had over 40 years’ experience of teaching, said that he was absolutely unable to understand the refusal of the board. With Mr W. J. Boyce, he had drawn up the letter which was discussed, and which the Progress League, as organiser of the Mayor’s Appeal, had wished to have sent forward to the schools, with the full sanction of the board behind :t, for the purpose of seeking voluntary gifts from the children. “Personally,” said Mr Allen to a reporter this morning, “I’m amazed at the reply of the board. It has been one of the fundamental principles of the education of the child to teach it to think of other people and to assist where it can do so. “During the war period,” he went on, “this was done frequently, and it was the opinion of all head masters that the children were proud to assist the soldiers.” The situation to-day, he continued, was much the same as it had been in the war period, and it was a matter of necessity to procure the assistance of all classes. “I feel that the board has misunderstood the position altogether, - ’ said Mr Allen, “and the suggestion that the league is trying to put propaganda through the schools is entirely wrong.” He also discounted the idea the board seemed to have arrived at, that the league was only exploiting the children. “The idea behind the letter,” he said, “was to afford the children the opportunity of feeling the pleasure of assisting in relieving the position of distress. “It is recognised that the sums of money might not be great,” he said, “but it was felt that,the children should not be deprived of the opportunity uf contributing. It should be pointed out that those who could not assist would be carefully safeguarded from feeling that they were being placed in an invidious position through their inability to give. “As a former head master I feel confident that this scheme would be accepted in the spirit in which it was conceived by practically all the head masters in the district. It is most disappointing that the board should feel so in the matter, which has the Mayor at its head.” The position now is that while there is no regulation of the board which can prevent the league from sending a circular letter to head masters and chairmen of committees, Mr Allen thinks that the league will be reluctant to pursue this course when it has failed to secure the endorsement of the board, and the effect which its sanction would have lent. Mr Allen will now have to report back to his committee, and any future action in this matter will be in its hands.