Cfiapter s
CHILDREN IN WORLD WAR
World War II had a profound effect into secondary school and the ease
on many children. The war may for with which young people could find
some have been an inconvenience, some types of jobs which did rewith rationing depriving them of quired little education. Many
treats such as sweets and choco- young people left schoolbefore they
lates which children enjoy. Others were 13 years old. The government
experienced more serious conse- had begun a programme of buildquences of war; disrupted or inad- ing more schools, improving
equate education and for many a courses and resources and providstrained and abnormal family life ing more teachers. The war interwith a father serving in the Armed rupted this programme.
Forces, either in New Zealand or
The war brought about many
OVEISCAS.
changes to children's education. A
major effect was the departure of
many teachers into the Armed Services. These teachers had to be replaced
with older teachers who had
The Labour Government had
come
out
of retirement [described
come to a realisationbefore the war
that education was the means by by one pupil as "resurrections and
which people from working class retreads"], or increasingly by
families could have a hope for a women. This latter development
better life. Many children were was not always well received, espeunable to receive secondary educa- cially in boys' secondary schools
tion because of cost, lack of oppor- which had been almost exclusively
tunity, the need to pass the "Profi- masculine institutions. Teachers
ciency" exam before being accepted with little experience were thrust
II
into responsibilities for which they
were not trained or prepared. Consequently, the quality of teaching
fell.
Another consequence of the
war was the commandeering [taking over] of schools for wartime
purposes, either as accommodation
for the rapidly-expanding armed
forces, or for use as hospitals. Sometimes schools were commandeered
for a short time [over the normal
school holiday periodl, sometimes
for longer periods of time. When
this happened, school pupils were
distributed among other schools,
or taught in other local building
like halls or even garages. In some
places like Palmerston North, many
schools were taken over for longer
periods of time, forcing education
authorities to develop "communitybased" education such as factoiy
visits, swimming, community work
and so on. Another result of the
war was shortages of many
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Page34
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EDUCATION UNDER DIFFICULTIES
Minhinnick, New Zealarul. Herald, 18 FebrtLary 1944.
reproduced courtesy of New Zealand Herald
materials essential for learning. about patriotism, by fiying and sa- *T _
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Therewas a shortage of paper,with luting the New Zealandflag. Othsecondary pupils having to keep all ers thought children should be
Other demands were made
their subjects'work in the one exer- taught to accept values such as love
of children during the war. Chilcise book. Other shortages of mate- of freedom, reasonableness and toldren were encouraged to contribrials such as chalk, pencils, books, erance as well as pride in one's
ute to the war effort in a variety of
handwork and sporting materials country and being part of the Britways. In their holidays, older chilmade it difficult for a proper pro- ish Empire. Inboys'schools, cadet
dren were expected to help on
gramme of learning to take place.
units aimed to teachboys skills such farms,
orchards and in other areas
Schools were not exempt from as map reading, first aid, basic miliwhich required extra labour. This
the impact of the war. Trenches tary tactics and familiarity with
led to concerns about child labour
were dug in school grounds as part
of the air-raidprecautions, and
drills
were held to train students in how
to behave during an emergency.
Schools trained their students in
going home quickly during an
emergency. Others were sandbagged as an air raid precaution.
Others required children to wear
identification tags and instruction
was given in some schools on antigas precautions. Teachers were
asked to explain the circumstances
of the war to children in a suitable
manner without frightening them
too much resorting to crude propaganda. There were some people in
the community who believed that
schools should teach pupils directly
weapons as a preparation for their
possible contribution to their country's defence. Parades and marching complemented the military flavour of this form of education. However, the government did attempt
to deal with the problems it sawin
the New Zealand education svstem
by introducing a series of ,e?orms
in 1944 such as raising the school
leaving age to 15, introducing
School Certificate and University
Entrance exams to replace the old
"Matriculation" and issuing free
textbooks to primary schools. New
core sub-ects of Social Studies,
Maths, Science and English were
introduced.
Qage
35
being exploited, and encouraging
pupils to miss school. patriotic
fund-raising activities based at
schools or in the Bovs Scouts occupied their time. bthe, children
became runners in the EpS and
helped in organisation like the Red
Cross by collecting materials for
recycling. Many more were expected to help around the home
with extra chores such as with an
enlarged vegetable garden or mind-
ing younger children while a
mother may be engaged in war
work.
F{owever, there were times where
children were not under much supervision and a concern arose about
juvenile delinquency. A common
reason given for crime among
young people was lack of parental
control, with claims being made
about problems arising because
parents were occupied in war work,
or absent through military service.
Children also suffered some health
problems, especially skin problems
and occasional malnutrition. Another concern was with adolescent
girls seeking the company of servicemen, especially US Marines, and
frequenting clubs which were not
thought suitable for respectable
adults, Iet alone teenagers.
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Children entering n neraly constructed nir raid shelter nt an Aucklsnd school during an nir
Weekly Nezos,22 April1942
raid reheqrstil
drill.
THE CEREMONY FOR HONOURING THE FLAG IN SCHOOLS
On
1
December 1941, the EDUCATION GAZETTE published to following guidelines for schools.
To teach patriotism and love of country is
difficult, because these things must develop in
the child's own emotional life. Yet children
can be proud
ofNew Zealand and ofthe British
Commonwealth, and may be helped to be
grateful to those who have served their country
in time of peace . . . it is desirable that children
shall perform together a ceremony in which
there is clearly expressed the gratitude
ofNew
Zealanders for the privileges they enjoy and
the principles on which they believe their way
of living is based. The value of the ceremony
is largely that it is a corporate act in which the
children unite their individuality and feel that
they are part of a great community.
REGULATIONS
ceremony ofhonouringthe Flag shallbe
observed at all public schools in commemora,
3. The
tion of the following days, namely:The 6th day of February, being the
Anniversary of the signing ofthe
Treaty of Waitangi
The 25th day of April, being Anzac
Day
The24th day of May, being Empire
Day
The first Monday of June, beingthe day
fixed for the observance ofthe binhday
of His Majesty, King George rhe Sixth
The fourth Monday of September, be
ing the day fixed for theobservance of
Dominion Day
The 11ih day of November, being
Arrnistice Day.
3. "God Defend New Zealand". or other suitable British song my be sung the children
standing at ease.
4. The assembly shall be called to attention and
a member of staff or a pupil shall recite from
memory in a clear voice the following declara-
.
tion
"We give thanks for the privileges
we enj oy as New Zealanders and mem-
bers of the British Commonwealth
the laws of his Govemment, and
PROCEDURE TO BE
OBSERVED
1, The ceremony shall be carried out in the
presence of all members of staff and pupils of
every public school.
2. Pupils shall be formed up in an orderly
manner facing the Flag. Bags orbooks shall not
be carried. Boys shall remove their caps.
Qage
36
of
Nations, we honour ihe memories of
all those who have served their country, we will honour our King, obey
sele
our Country and fellowmen."
6. A member of staff or a pupil or the whole
school shall recite clearly and from memory:
"The Flag stands for our country and
our people, and for love of nuth, justice, freedom anddemocracy, in which
we are united, through the person of
our King,
with all other members of
the British Commonwealth of
Nations-"