PUPILS REASSEMBLE.

Press, Volume LXI, Issue 18362, 21 April 1925, Page 9

PUPILS REASSEMBLE.

SECONDARY SCHOOLS OPENING.

From yesterday the ban imposed on secondary schools consequent upon tbc epidemic of infantile paralysis was lifted, and to-day the various bells, which have been rusting more or less Bincc the Christmas "break-up," will again tinkle out a summons that for once will fall on welcome cars.

Though permission was given to reopen the school doors, only two Christchurch institutions—the Girls' and Boys' High S"hools —were yesterday in a position to take advantage of it. The result was a complete, even if perhaps temporary, reversal of the poet's dictum ot' the lagging schoolboy. Considering the manner in which the students of both schools, in number and in spirit, arc reported to have settled down to the opening tasks of .an abridged school year, it can hardly be held that the teachers yesterday had to welcome charges who had plodded an unwilling way to school. The staff of the Boys' High School informed a reporter that out of the full number of roughly 500, there were 4SU boys at. tho school yesterday, and that both teachers and students were evidently so pleased to resume the normal order of things that the first day's work went off with a surprising smoothness. New boys were examined for classification into forms, and the older boys resumed their form work without a murmur.

Miss Gibson, Principal of tho Girls' High School, reported a similarly happy state! of affairs. Quite 75 per cent, of tho full roll was in attendance yesterday, she stated, and as in the case of the Boys' High School there aro many students yet to arrive from inland districts and from the North Island. The other schools which havo boarders reported last evening that tho outside pupils were already re-assembling and it was expected that there would bo a good response from both town and boarding scholars. Christ's College is to resume work on Thursday, and the headmaster (Rev. E. C. Crosse) when approached yesterday stated that though ho had no positive idea as to what the response would be, he had ovcry reason to bo hopeful. Ho added that both town and coutttry students had entered very satisfactorily into tho spirit of the system of correspondence tuition. Tho only primary schools to resume yesterday in the Canterbury Education Board's district were those in the West Coaßt counties." "I sincerely hope that the Christchurch schools will be able to start next Monday," remarked a headmaster with whom a reporter discussed matters. "Tho correspondence course is moving along very well, and most of us have every reason to bo satisfied with the lesser of two evils. This virtual idleness, however, is no good to anybody," he added, "and the headmasters are growing very tired of it all. We hope that tho schools will not remain closed very much longer." Some paronts have been heard to give expression to similar sentiments.