A YEAR OF PROGRESS

Wairarapa Daily Times, 10 December 1937, Page 4

A YEAR OF PROGRESS

SOLWAY COLLEGE. REVIEW OF ACTIVITIES. A RECORD ROLL NUMBER. Mrs M. B. Thompson (principal) in her annual report for 1937 in connection with Solway College states inter alia:—• “In reviewing the work and life of the year it seems impossible adequately to thank all who have co-operated with us in our work and our play—the Board of Governors who have so readily acceded to the constant demands of a growing school, the mistresses all .of whom have given ungrudging and spontaneous service and have so often known the sweet compulsion of the second mile. The cordial relations between teachers and girls have been a factor in the happiness of our residential life, bright with the memories of Teachers’ Concert, Children’s Party, Guy Fawkes’ Fireworks and many other occasions in which Teacher and Taught have laughed and played together. The Prefects have been most helpful. In this school self-discipline has been cultivated and that means that responsibility has been put on the young shoulders of the Prefects. They have risen to it. And thanks are due to the girls themselves who by their courtesy and responsiveness have created suclx a happy atmosphere for their teachers. Perhaps our thanks should go further back to the parents in the homes from which we have drawn our girls. The prize-donors every year give tangible expression of their interest in the work of the school. Several handsome trophies have again been presented from Old Girls and friends: Patricia Nowell (diving), Helen Turnbull (riding), Mrs S. Thornton (golf), Form VI, 1937 (choir), Mrs S. L. Free (Form V Academic). The front drive has been planted with cherry trees, the gift of an anonymous donor, and the back drive with pin-oaks, the gift of the Old Girls ? Association. The latest gift of the- Wellington Rotary Club will be used for beautifying the outside of our new baths, the diving board ‘for which was their gift last year. And Mr Malcolm McGregor has added another to his many gifts in two handsome stag heads for our dining-room. The Knox Church Ladies’ Guild again courteously gave their help to the prefects in the annual Garden Party. Then we express thanks to the ladies and gentlemen who have acted as judges in the award of the trophies: Mr G. W. Morice, M.Sc., for the essay competition; Mr H. B. Thomson, M.A., for the speech; Miss Bennett for riding; Miss Donald for life-saving. To all these friends we tender our sincere thanks.

“We close the year with a record roll number and our best health record, the latter consummation largely due to the vigilant care given by Miss Young to the physical well-being of the girls, and to Miss Thomson’s work in physical culture and games. Through the years we have proved the wisdom of the openair conditions in which our girls live, and there is no doubt that in these school years a foundation of physical fitness is being well laid. Another advantage this year of restricting our pupils to boarders has been that in spite of the later opening we have completed our full school year. The school day was increased by half an hour for the first term and we have had only the one break—the month of July. It seemed inadvisable to disband the school at the end of the first term when the fear of the epidemic was still upon the land.

“Commercial Work. —Three additional typewriters, one privately owned, have made for proficiency in type-writ-ing. As I h#ve> so often stressed in the annual report, we teach only the elements of Shorthand and Book-keep-ing. H. G. Wells speaks of that “relentlessly inelastic packing-case —the .school time-table” and if girls who are taking the Commercial subjects, the time-table is not exactly inelastic in a school such as this so many demands are made on their time that they certainly cannot become proficient in office work. After twenty-two years’ experience one can offer an opinion. Again and again I have found that the girls who have done well in secretarial and commercial positions have been those who have a good general secondary education here, mostly up to University Entrance standard, and afterwards have attended a purely Commercial school. They are usually capable of taking a position within the; year, even though they have done no Commercial work at school. The late C. E. Montage, depre-

eating the too-early specialisation in Commercial work, supposed that “the employer has found that even simply for business purposes the educated youth has more mental order, curiosity, animation, openness to ideas than the, young dragon at double entry and the like.” I qm sure that our girls are being taught the elements of commercial subjects and are acquiring thereby neatness and precision, but I am also sure that in the limited time they cannot be equipped for positions. “Dressmaking and Sewing.—The display this week showed that Miss Latham is turning out apt needlewomen and the mannequin parade she organised on Sports’ Day showed that her pupils are not only learning how to make beautiful clothes, but how to wear them —very important! I should like to thank Miss Latham for her upholstering work in our transformed school-room-library, and also those girls who turned their needlework and printing to such good advantage in covering and cataloguing the books, notably June Hislop, Margaret Nimmo and Flora Loffler.