Most Board Members Favour Special Class

Press, Volume CV, Issue 31002, 7 March 1966, Page 8

Most Board Members Favour Special Class

Acceptance of an experimental class of retarded pupils made Hagley High School “a secondary secondary school," Mr R. Jones said at a meeting of the school board of governors. He said he sympathised with the problem, helped in it in other ways, but was now thinking of the name of the school. “When a very inferior type of pupil is shanghaied here it does us no good,” Mr Jones said. “If they want this type of class, there is ample space for it at the Teachers’ College. “This will hurt this school more than anything done yet,” said Mr Jones. There were cries of disagreement all round the board table. The chairman (Mr H. R. Peers) asked: “Are we not going to help the underprivileged? Are we going to cast them aside? Are we going to become holier than thou? I think we should help them.” The headmaster (Mr T. R. Richards) said there were experimental classes of this kind in three or four schools each in both Auckland and Wellington. They were good schools. “Hagley and Aranui were selected to take these

classes in Christchurch because we were doing most, voluntarily, for the slow learner," Mr Richards said. There was nothing specially novel about this except the “going out” for some trade training. “They have their classes in school and go out half a day a week. I am told that firms who take them for training often give them permanent positions. They are quite capable of good work but have certain difficulties they can’t help,” said Mr Richards. Christchurch South had a similar class at the intermediate level where pupils went outside for certain training. In other respects these pupils enjoyed all the advantages of life in a high school. “It is a fine thing that our school can do this,” said Mr C. R. Russell. “This will give us real prestige.” Mrs P. Campbell said this was relevant to earlier discussion on better distribution of pupils in both numbers and ability. “Those who take the gifted children should do more for classes such as this,” she said. There was no support for Mr Jones's viewpoint.