schools during war
Ernest Blaschke (aa568@FREENET.TORONTO.ON.CA)
Tue, 26 Mar 1996 15:02:41 -0500
Mary Haas wrote:
MH=> In preparing a paper to give at a meeting of teachers, I am
MH=> interested in having memories of schooling during WWII.
During the war I went to school in Vienna, Austria. Then of
course, it was part of Germany.
The thing I found most amazing was the curriculum regarding
foreign languages. Even though at war with Britain, English was
taught to all secondary school students from the age of 10.
MH=> What did you study about the war?
We did not study anything about the war in school. We lived
through it and got our information "first hand", or through
radio and newspapers. I don't think students ever study
much in school about "current" wars or politics. It has to
become "history" before it gets incorporated into a curriculum.
MH=> Did soldiers visit classes when they returned home on leave?
No, soldiers did not visit our school at any time. The only
personal effect the "war" had on my schooling was of little
consequence for me: Although among the top 3 students in class my
report cards were always "average" in all subjects due to having
what Hitler considered a "Jewish" mother. She was actually
Catholic, but her parents were Jews, so I was classified as
half jewish and therefore not entitled to good grades. This
quickly changed at the end of the war.
Another thing I recall, is that during the day military police
would frequently go through movie-houses, and if they found boys
or men under the age of about 40 they would find out whether
they ought not to be in school or the army. Don't know what
happened to those that got caught.
MH=> I am particularly interested in how the war impacted schools
MH=> in Europe as the research literature does not cover this
MH=> well. Mary
One impact of the war: Several school buildings were destroyed
by air raids during the war. This often resulted in "shifts" at
other schools. Remaining buildings might be used in the morning
for its students only, and in the afternoon for students of
a destroyed school.
For the most part, however, life in schools was pretty much as it
always is, we had fun, liked some teachers, hated others and
tormented those that would let us walk all over them. It
convinced me never to become a teacher, since I did not want to
be on the receiving end of all the pranks. And since my favourite
subject, mathematics, could only lead to teaching, (no computers
then), I did not pursue it until much later in life.
If you want me to elaborate further on any of this, please let me
know.
Ernest Blaschke.
ernest.blaschke@westonia.com
aa568@freenet.toronto.on.ca