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185
in order to work out the manner in which young men and women
will receive instruction in physical education when the school
leaving age is raised to 16 years.
Fifty boys and fifty girls from four secondary schools attend the
Crystal Palace on Wednesdays in order to take courses of their
choice from a group of sixteen sports. The hundred pupils are
divided into groups of twelve or thirteen and allocated to skilled
instructors in this activity and are given a basic course of skill
training in which the emphasis is on the enjoyment of the exercise
rather than aiming at the polished performance which will come
later. So far the scheme has proved very successful and, even
though the instruction takes place outside school hours, the
attendance, keenness and performance continue to be very good.
In the primary schools, there has been a significant development
in the provision of school pools which have been purchased
by parent-teacher associations. The results achieved by the teachers
in these schools have been remarkable. When it is remembered that
the national average of being able to swim at all is about 30% and
that the nine schools having their own pool average 85%, the value
of having this amenity is obvious. Very shortly about a quarter of
the Junior Schools in the Borough will have pools. This is laying
the foundations of future excellence in swimming.
It is well here to observe how much is done by the Borough's
three special schools to teach swimming. Two of them have their
own pools and the results show how worthwhile the possession of
this facility is in preparing young handicapped children for their
recreation in larger public pools.
The emphasis of the Borough's physical education policy is
not in providing the best opportunities for the gifted few but in
giving to all the young people an opportunity to take part and enjoy
the richness and fullness of a brisk, varied and stimulating physical
programme. Nevertheless, some of the highest honours in sport
are coming to young enthusiasts resident in this part of Kent. One
young man is to be given a trial for the England water polo team,
another will cycle in the Olympic Games in Mexico, another won
the London Schools Gymnastics Championship, a young woman
is the British Gymnastic Champion, a very young girl has won
diving honours in Kent, and many others have reached county
standards in the traditional games.
There has been a great increase in the interest shown in
outdoor activities, especially canoeing and mountaineering. This
has necessitated the special training of teachers, and courses have
been organised and planned to enable them to reach a standard
which will guarantee the safe instruction of all young people placed
in their care. To help with this work, the Authority found a place
just outside the Snowdon National Park which would have been