View report page

43
During the period covered by this report special day and evening courses have been organised
for teachers working in junior and unreorganised schools. The response has been excellent, and
many hundreds of teachers have availed themselves of the facilities provided.
While the majority of central schools had been equipped with a good range of portable
apparatus prior to the period covered by this report, climbing ropes and certain other items had
not been supplied, and it was hoped that this apparatus would be provided during the current
three-year programme. The demands of the senior reorganisation, however, make this unlikely,
and additional equipment can only be supplied in so far as central schools come within the scope
of this scheme.
Central
schools
The demand for specially trained physical training teachers is growing throughout the country
and, at the present time, the output from the men's training colleges is rapidly absorbed for posts
as organisers or tutors in training colleges, or teachers in secondary and technical schools. The
result is that the central schools are not at the moment attracting teachers with this qualification,
and only four of the boys' central schools have teachers on the staff who have attended a one-year
course.
While many children bring their own shoes, and great efforts are made to provide separate
clothing or to adapt the normal clothing, it has been shown during past years that such provision,
in spite of every effort on the part of the teachers, leaves a large number of children unprovided
for.
Clothing
It is a matter for regret that no advance can be recorded with regard to the provision of
plimsolls and clothing for physical training by the authority. It is necessary to point out that the
physical training cannot be really satisfactory until proper footwear is available and suitable
clothing is worn by the children.
Reference has been made to the extensive provision of shower baths which has been made
recently, and one of the problems which has to be solved is how this facility is to be most effectively
used.
Shower baths
Difficulty arises when a parent flatly refuses to let his or her child have a shower bath.
Compulsion is not possible, and the teachers concerned are deserving of the warmest praise for
persuading between 70 and 80 per cent, of the children to take part.
The most difficult problems which have to be solved are those concerned with the provision,
drying and storage of towels. Every effort is made to induce the children to bring their own
towels, and, while this method is effective so far as the majority of children are concerned, there
are many who fail to bring towels. If these children are to use the facilities provided, towels
will have to be supplied by the authority. Assuming that every child has a towel, the problem
of drying and storing has still to be faced. It is a comparatively simple matter for those whose
physical training lessons take place during the last period of the morning or afternoon, as
they can take the towels straight home with them. But if the lesson takes place during the
first period of the morning or afternoon, then a wet towel has to be disposed of for the rest of the
session. Some practical and cheap method of drying and storing towels must be evolved, and it is
urged that experiments should be started immediately to discover the solution of this problem.
The shower baths have been planned so as to permit of rapid showering, drying and dressing,
and, with this end in view, the space available for this purpose is divided into three sections, one
containing the actual showers, one serving as a place in which the children can dry themselves,
and one providing the accommodation in which the children dress. It is essential to separate
the drying and changing spaces, otherwise the children, returning direct from the showers to the
changing room, are apt to get their ordinary clothing wet.
It has been shown that a total of ten minutes is sufficient time for changing and showering
purposes: three minutes to change into gymnastic clothing at the beginning of the lesson, two
minutes to shower, and five minutes to re-dress at the end of the lesson. Of course, if the task
is to be carried out in this time method is necessary. Drying and dressing are things which can
take a long time ; anyone who has had to deal with children will realise this.
The actual showering space has, in each case, been planned in one of two ways. If the
showers have to serve both boys and girls they are of the individual type with the side shower,
the cubicles being formed by movable rubber curtains. If the showers have to serve boys only,
then they are planned on the continuous "walk through " basis with the water projected from
two sides simultaneously. By either of these methods 12 children can receive a good shower in
45 seconds, and the whole of an average sized class in two minutes, thus leaving five minutes for
drying and dressing.
A great experiment has been started which, if wisely and energetically directed, should
produce far-reaching results.
Allocation of
ime to
ihysical
ducation
One of the immediate results of the issue of Circular 1445 by the Board of Education was
that the Education Committee decided to circularise all schools for a second time with regard
to the amount of time which should be devoted to physical education. The recommendation was
couched in the following terms :— 1
" The appropriate Committee wish to direct special attention to one point raised in
the Circular, which is set out in the following paragraph :—
" There should be a daily period of organised physical activity in every elementary
school, the length of these periods as well as their allocation will depend somewhat
upon circumstances, but an allowance of three periods weekly to physical exercises,
one to swimming, and one to organised games, will often be found suitable ; for girls,
dancing may, on occasion, be substituted for games or swimming.