Untitled

Hokitika Guardian, 19 September 1933, Page 4

In an address given to the students of the City of London Vacation Course, Mr P. H. B. Lyon, headmaster of Rugby defended the public schools of England. Fie said he believed that the public schools were on the right track, and would reform rathei than destroy. “We are already approaching a right view of physical education, and beginning to realise the imrrrtance and master the technique of eductaion in sox,” he said. ‘‘More still are we beginning to link school up with the world, and to teach boys, especially toward the end of their time the duty of service, the necessity and understanding of the need for sympathy. . . There is a movement going on inside our public schools which is making them in all respects more fitting to receive our children. That movement is due to the work of the assistant master. They and the work they hare done, to-

gether with certain tendencies in the outside world, are making our public schools better places to-day than they have ever been in the past. To-day I believe it is the exception for a boy to come across bad influences in bis school.” With regard to the criticism that too much attention was given to games, Air Lyon said that boys to-clay definitely disliked what he might describe as “a tough.” That was the boy who was all brawn and muscle and no brain. Though this was the type of boy who used to be regarded as the school hero in days gone by, to-day boys reserved their real hero worship for character. On fagging and bullying, Mr Lyon said: ‘‘For the ordinary boy the only fagging you get nowadays in school is not undesirable and is even rather enjoyable. As for bullying, this is comparatively rare today—especially the bullying of a younger boy by an older one. But you do find some of the younger boys bullying their contemporaries. Little boys are great bullies, and this is one of the things we try to stamp out.”