The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

Regardless of their public grumping about going back to school in September, I firmly believe that both students and teachers are delighted to get back into some sort of routine, especially those who have had rather an aimless summer, as I But generally, except for the new, young teacher with no experience, for whom eopening day is akin to a day in a mental hospital, we get sorted out and stagger off into the next 10 months of what is smarmily known as ‘"the learning Usually, I‘m happy to exchange the light but firm harness of a long vacation, the réins held by my wife, the whip applied by my grandboys, for the heavier but perhaps more comfortable harness of head of the English Department. This year, heading into what is almost assuredly my last year of teaching, I‘m a little sad. Not because it‘s my last year. Lordy, no. When I leave, it will be with the largest grin possible for a guy with a partial plate. The first day back is a grand reunion for the students, a rehash of all the scandalous things they did all summer, and a chance to look around for a new giriâ€"friend or boyâ€"friend. For teachers, the first day is a holy terror, with snowstorms of memos and regulations and forms to fill out. as soon as a grandchild enters the books and an endless stream of items grandmas and grandpas just love to lavish on their young pride and joy. Certainly these generosities enrich a grandchild‘s life. But, I believe, the truly treasurable gifts are those that can‘t be touched. They‘re the ones grandâ€" parents help us to feel, learn from, relish and cherish; the gifts that live, not on a shelf or in a drawer, but in our hearts. A family‘s very young and very eld seem to have a special rapport; they can so easily unâ€" derstand, communicate, laugh and enjoy. Their time together is spent in harmony, unhindered by differences of age. precious â€"people who have a natural knack for filling grandâ€" chitdren‘s lives with gifts galore, both tangible and intangible. The tangible gifts begin to flow These treasures can be found in the rare form of friendship shared between grandparent and grandchild. . Perhaps this closeness develâ€" ops because neither is caught up in society‘s rat race of success. old, are not seeking fame and fortune, power and position. They relish the present moment, lovâ€" ing and sharing, without a preâ€" This past Sunday marked the fourth annual ‘"Grandparents Day*" in North Ameérica, a day set aside to salute our Hats off to grandparents, those Salute to grandparents BILL SMILEY eccupation with thoughts of the future. * For young children, appreciatâ€" ing the present moment is inâ€" stinctive, while for grandparents, it‘s a form of wisdom learned after long, hard years of living. They‘ve chased elusive butterâ€" flies of success, and have fou@ greater happiness and peace of mind in valuing life‘s simple joys. wisdom that a grandparent so willingly imparts becomes a gift of guiding light, illuminating the way for a confused teenager who is baffied and bombarded by an adult world. And throughout adulthood, the grandchild finds a pillar of strength in Grandma or Grandâ€" pa. The young, floundering adult, crumbling, reaches out to the wise, experienced relative, conâ€" fident that the grandparent, a symbo! of stability, will always have time... Time to listen and understand; time to counsel and encourage; but most importantly, time to care. And so, grandparents, for your gift of friendship, wisdom and caring, your grandchildren thank you, not only on Grandparents Day, but every day. Chronicle freeâ€"lance writer who cherishes her close relationship with Leona Mackin, her 80â€"yearâ€" old grandmother and an instruâ€" menta!l and guiding force in her life. By Karia Wheeler There is absolutely nothing wrong with citizens, especially parents, expressing interest in instructional materials availâ€" Maybe I‘m beginning to sound like Egerton Ryerson or Billy Graham. But I‘m not quite there yet. I‘m an English teacher, and it makes me mad, and sad, when I see a highly vocal minority, through pressure tactics,; trying to elimiâ€" nate materials from schools and dictate what shall and shall not be available to other segments of the population. Some movies are worse, catering to the most bestial aspects of man, using foul language for no apparent purpose, and exploiting the medium with horor, with the bizarre, with the perverts â€" anything to drag in the bucks. This situation occurs from time to time and place to place and is almost at the rampant stage in some parts of the U.S., where pressure groups are leaning heavily on sponsors of TV shows to which they ebject. Fair enough. I personally think most of the stuff we see/hear on TV stinks. It is full of double entendres, sexual connotations and sheer brutalization of the human spirit. I‘m a little sad because the vigilantes are popping up on our school board and harassing the other members of the board about the books that students should read, or not read.. Educate, not indoctrinate teachers, supportive parents, and enthusiastic students, is of the utmost importance. An important factor is discipline, not by "rule and rod,"‘ but based upon acceptance of responsiâ€" bility by students, school staffs, and members of the community served by the school. Surveys conducted in this province in the last three years show that lack of discipline is consistently perceived by the public as the biggest problem facing our schools. While people are calling for more discipline in our schools, obedience to authority is being eroded in society generally, usually by forces over which the school has no control. Family breakdown is on the increase, drugs are easily available, the legal drinking age has been lowered, and violence is frequently exploited in the mass media. Schools are simply not equipped to counter these and other trends toward antiâ€"social behaviour, certainly not unâ€" However, steps can and should be taken within our schools to offset negative factors which have emerged in recent years â€" factors such as large schools with impersonal proâ€" cedures, individual timeâ€"tables and loss of homeâ€"room identity, an increase of ‘"unschedâ€" uled"‘ time for students as a result of the credit system, as well as conflicts arising from students‘ increased cultural and ethnic diverâ€" sity. Extraâ€"curricular activities are known to contribute to a positive school atmosphere, increasing schools‘ ability to retain students. The loss of teachers due to declining enrolment has reduced the range of such activities. Clearly, there is a need to draw more heavily on community resources, bringing parents and other adults into the schools to assistâ€"in sports programs and other student activities. _ It has been suggested that there should be a closer link between attendance requirements A healthy ‘‘school atmosphere," which is a oject of wellâ€"designed programs, enlightâ€" Discipline needed I deliberately choose books that will get them interested in reading, that will give them a broad look at human nature, that will perhaps give them an insight into the On the other hand, I am not going to try to foree them to read Silas Marner, which 1 had to do as a child. Nor Anne of Green Gables, which should be enjoyed in priâ€" vate. I consider myself a professional, as do all teachers of English. I am not about to introduce my students to the works of the Marquis de Sade, or Henry Milles. But when the selfâ€"appointed censors begin to attack every book that contains profanity or sex or something else they can find to object to, my hackles rise slightly . I didn‘t make an issue of it. I respected her opinion and gave her other books, not as good, in my opinion, but of high qualiâ€" ty. Nor should students be forced to read something they find offensive. Last year, the brightest English student I‘ve ever had, didn‘t want to read one of the books on the course. She thought it was "rude". And of course it was. It was a satire on war, which is often a somewhat rude business. able to school children. That is democraâ€" cy. In fact there‘s something wrong with parents who don‘t care what their kids are reading orseeing or hearing. In an effort to foster greater involvement of schools in a variety of community projects, thus serving the needs of the community and developing positive attitudes toward citizenâ€" ship, the Project has made a number of recommendations, including the establishâ€" ment of committees on curriculum, guidelines, accurate course descriptions, etc. Informaâ€" tional programs are also important, both for schools and from schools. The final report on S.E.R.P. will be ready next week. explained to the public, in particular, parents need to be "with it‘" in order to offer wise advice, thus fulfilling their parental role. Schools need to keep in close touch with business and industrial developments. They are also frequently involved with the courts and social service agencies. ~ The Project has recommended: â€" That the Ministry of Education, in conjunction with other Ministries and agenâ€" cies, develop more specific strategies and services to help teachers and principals deal with extremely disruptive behaviour in stuâ€" dents. â€" That school boards be required to develop clear policies and techniques regarding behaâ€" vioural issues such as chronic absenteeism, vandalism, drug abuse, and alcoholism. and the granting of credits. The Secondary Education Review Project (S.E.R.P.) felt that school boards and schools should be provided with an adequate guide for development of local statements of attendance expectations, to form part of any code of behaviour. Peer group pressure in secondary schools is obvious and inescapable, and should be turned to good use. Most students will respond positively to endeavours aimed at developing fair and supportive procedures, although there will always be exceptions, of course. The relationship between school and comâ€" unity has probably never been more crucial. aqnges within our school system need to be There‘s a little more to English than grammar and writing essays on How I Spent my Summer Holidays. Let‘s leave it that way. And let‘s hope there are trustees and teachers with guts, and especially, thousands of parents who want their kids educated, not indoctrinated. When I go to a doctor, I accept that he knows more about medicine than I do.I don‘t say, ‘"Why are you sticking that thing up my nose?" ~ When I go to a dentist, I don‘t say, ‘‘Never mind the decay; just paint them all white." Why don‘t we throw it out of all the schools? Surely it offends blacks. Chuck out The Merchants of Venice because it offends Jews. Same with Oliver Twist, by Dickens. Macbeth gives a very poor picture of some Scots. Julius Caesar proves that many Romans were assassins. Moby Dick is about a oneâ€"legged maniac who had an affair with a whale. Far better to teach Jaws. Huckleberry Finn, the first great Ameriâ€" can novel, was deemed unfit to be in public libraries by certain loftyminded censors of the time. The Bible is full of adultery, ‘"begatâ€" ting"‘, whatever that is, and violence. Out with it. glories of the human spirit. I will not feed them pablum in their teens.