"LEARN-TO SWIM” WEEK

Timaru Herald, Volume CXLV, Issue 21216, 10 December 1938, Page 8

"LEARN-TO SWIM” WEEK

Complete National Programme Special Instructor for Timaru More complete organisation than had ever been possible before will mark the national “learn-to-swim” week at the end of February according to Mr P. F. Coira, president of the New Zealand Surf Life Saving Association and chairman of the national committee In charge of the arrangements for the week. Mr Coira is visiting Timaru in the course of a tour of centres to encourage local effort by voluntary instructors and to explain the arrangements to local committees. From the response received in Timaru and Ashburton it would appear that there would not be a shortage of instructors, although there could not be too many, remarked Mr Coira to a representative of “The Timaru Herald.”

The organisation of the scheme on a wider scaie was made possible by the Government grant of £3OOO and the calling of a meeting at Wellington by the Minister of Internal Affairs, said Mr Coira. It was at that conference that professional swimming coaches had evolved a method of instruction that should be simple and most effective, and should result in the learners becoming proficient swimmers in the course of the week. Those coaches would tour New Zealand in January when, at each centre, one of them would explain the method to the voluntary district instructors so that they would be fully acquainted with It by the time the week commenced, at the end of February. The man who would visit Timaru, was Mr Peter Mathieson, former back-stroke champion of the Dominion, who would arrive here at the beginning of January. The committee set up at Wellington to control the week was making every effort to obtain full support throughout the Dominion. Response by Instructors So far as numbers of voluntary instructors were concerned, the alm was to obtain 1000 in New Zealand, said Mi- Coira. For Timaru the quota was 30, and it appeared that between 70 and 80 would be available, a fine response that should ensure the success of the week. While naturally the greater number of learners would be children at school, he wished to emphasise that any person of any age could benefit from the tuition, provided they could not already swim. For adults special hours could be arranged by the local committees. That one was never too old to learn was illustrated by the fact that at Wellington last year a woman of 65 had been taught during the week and there had already been many inquiries from adults this year. Government Interest Awakened Last year was the first occasion on which a national “learn-to-swim” week had been held and organised on a Dominion-wide basis, said Mr Coira. While a considerable amount of success had been achieved on that occasion they knew from reports and from suggestions made by the various districts that all they wanted to do was not possible owing to the lack of finance. From statistics presented at the meeting at Wellington in October, it was found that deaths by drowning exceeded in number road fatalities, and they had convinced the Government that something should be done, with the result that the Minister of Internal Affairs had convened a meeting of the Royal Life Saving Society and the Surf Life Saving Association. At that meeting the scheme of training was evolved by the instructors and the Government had allocated £3OOO to the “learn-to-swim” week. That gave the authorities the finance necessary to carry out their plans in full, as had first been visualised. He thought there should be enough for a most extensive campaign, the main aim of the committee sei up being that no place in New Zealand, however isolated, should fail to benefit from the week unless there were no available facilities and it was even hoped to overcome the lack of facilities in some instances.

Mr Coira said that this year they would concentrate on pupils fiom Standard 4 upwards but would insist they must be children who could not swim. In future years the idea was to teach Standard 4 pupils only so that any child who had passed through that standard would automatically be able to swim. In addition it was hoped that every child taught would be able to swim 25 yards before the end of the week. That might appear a difficult task, but under the Instruction method adopted it would not be a great hardship. Last year there had been no national method, each district having used a method of its own. Under those conditions some remarkable results were achieved. This year, with the whole week better organised, and the scheme of instruction that had been produced by experts, even greater success should be gained.