Schools Refuse to Learn
Page 40
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APROMINENT education official, discussing the problem of peakperiod transport, was heard to say: "Family life in •Britain reVolves around the 9 a.m. school start." ' Add to this line of thought the fact that school teachers' organizations :generally are rigidly set against staggered hours, and the difficulties of disposing of this peak problem are very real.
Unfortunately, too, from the public transport manager's point of view, it is not a difficulty which can be tackled on a, national level. • The Ministry of Education . lay down only certain , minimum hours per day for the school curriculum; decisions as to the start' ing and finishing times of the school day are left almost entirely to the discretion of local education committees.
One 'might think it an advantage that public transport operators can approach the loc a 1 educational authority with problems specific to the district. In reality, co-operation from the schools is often non-existent.
For 'example, though Doncaster Transport Department, by constant campaigning, have achieved some success with industry, the education authorities recently brought forward the opening hour of a school from 9.20 a.m. to 9 a.m. This move, which caused much difficulty to the transport department, was instituted by a school inspector.
Enlightened View
At Coventry, the education authorities have taken a more enlightened view and have staggered the starting times of a number of schools. This has proved a great benefit and could usefully be extended. In one instance, the staggering was particularly important where the factory starting time was 8.15 a.m., and schoolchildren were inclined to leave home with their parents in the morning and occupy workers' seats on factory buses.
In Huddersfield, too, the education 'authority has been most co-operative in staggering the starting and finishing times of large schools which have been built in the suburbs. Not far away, at Leeds, however, though a few schools have s tar t ed lessons at 9.15 a.m., the teaching profession is nbt receptive to an alteration of school hours.
One of the major problems of .the Western National Omnibus Co., Ltd., in south-West England is involved in school traffic, particularly in respect of the new large central schools. Mr.
a6 E F. Horobin, chief traffic manager, believes that large savings could be made if some pupils could go to, and return from, school at different times from others.
Because the whole problem is made up of small entities it is difficult to quote figures, but Mr. Horobin instances co-operation where two schools are four miles apart. Originally three double-deck vehicles were run between A and B at 8.40 a.m. and three other double-deckers between B and A at 8.40 a.m. By staggering the starting and leaving times of the two schools, it became possible for the company to work with three vehicles only. These would run from A to B, drop one party of scholars, and then pick up a second party at B. delivering them at A.
Wrong Kind of Change A recent development in Doncaster serves to illustrate the difficulties which can be caused by the wrong kind of change. The Ford Motor Co., Ltd., in adopting a shorter working week, reduced the lunch break to. 30 minutes, and are finishing at 4.15 p.m. from Monday to Friday. Special buses for the workers formerly came from an outlying school which finished at 4 p.m., and went straight to the works after setting down children in the town.
There is now only 15 minutes difference in the finishing times and Mr. T. Bamford, general manager of Doncaster Transport Department, can visualize a time when fathers will finish their day's work • before their sons!
It seems remarkable that, while education authorities insist that it is unhealthy for a child to have a short lunch break which would allow schools to start later or finish earlier, modern workers and management are shortening the lunch period and concentrating the day's work into a shorter, high-pressure operation.
Embarrassing
Mr. C. T. Humpidge, general manager of Bradford Transport Department, also finds timings embarrassing at the morning peak. In some instances scholars ride only one fare stage, but prevent office workers boarding the buses. However, in urban districts surrounding the city, which are under the control of the county council, same schools are now
starting at 9.30 a.m, which helps to• ease the situation.
Barton Transport, Ltd., Chilwell, Notts, were among those who spent a great deal of time in collaboration with Nottingham Chamber of Commerce and the city police, two years ago, devising a staggering scheme.
The virtual abandonment of the scheme was. a big disappointment, but Mr. T. A. Barton, managing director, says they were able to arrange a degree of staggering with some of the smaller factories—and the South East Derbyshire Education Committee altered school hours by 15 minutes, enabling them to reduce some duplication.
At Liverpool, Mr. W. M. Hall, general manager of the transport department, made a vain approach to an organization representing the large stores in the city centre and yet achieved a measure of success with thc education authority, who agreed, two years ago, to put back the starting time of senior schools in the city to 9.20 a.m. Because of its unpopularity with the teaching staffs, however, even this time has been difficult to hold and the problem is still acute.
Mr. G. H. Pulfrey, general manager of Hull Transport Department, has had good co-operation in staggering from the units of an industrial estate six miles east of the city, and there is some staggering elsewhere. But so far as schools are concerned, results have been limited.
Not Retained
Although the education 'authority accepted the principle of staggering during the fuel-economy campaign, they have not retained the adjustments then made. The chief education officer has been advised on several occasions that saturation point has been reached in the provision of school transport facilities at peak times, but only minor modifications have resulted. The siting of some new schools on the outskirts of the city has helped; because many scholars require to make a cross-city journey and give reasonable loads on certain outward vehicles.
To return to the original premise of the education official that family life in Britain revolves around the 9 a.m. school start: clearly this dogma will have to be overthrown if we are to begin tackling the peak problem properly.