School looks back on 50 years

RETRO: Aranui staff members raided a 50-year-old closet for this look. PICTURE / PAUL BROOKS

Aranui Primary School celebrated 50 years of existence on the weekend, and on Friday, the staff recreated its beginnings by dressing in the style of 1965.
Maryann Roberts has been principal of the school for three of those 50 years and loves it.
"We've been talking to the children about how schools change and how today's education is different. They've been to the museum, played dress-ups, seen photos ..."
There's even a strap, a scarcely missed relic of old-school discipline. It was especially made for one of the teachers when she was working at a school in Raetihi, obviously some time ago. It was never used, so she says.
Corporal punishment in schools was abolished in 1987 and legislated against in 1990.
Maryann's father was a "headmaster" and was, on one occasion, reprimanded by the school inspector for not using the strap.
The students have been immersed in history this year, with the significance of Gallipoli and World War 1 100 years ago preceding the school's own anniversary.
"It shows how different schooling life is compared to 'just' 50 years ago," says Maryann. "Of course, some of the staff remember."
As well as being more regimented, different learning styles were hardly catered for 50 years ago.
"Everyone learned the same way; that didn't work for everyone. Nowadays we use technology, make things visual ... all the learning styles are better catered for."
They have talked about corporal punishment and all the occasions on which it was used.
"It's a very different world ... to some of the children," says Maryann. The pause was not unnoticed.
The school has been getting messages from around the world from former pupils. Maryann calculates more than 5000 children have been schooled at Aranui over the 50 years.
"I'm sharing with the children that there was another school here beforehand, the Castlecliff side school, and we had a person who went to the side school here to share her memories."
It would be an odd child indeed who could relate to the tales of the two classrooms and the outside "dunny" with squares of newspaper on a string and the teachers' ritual of adding lime to the mix. They learned about playing marbles and the practice of extracting the "bottley" marbles from the soft drink bottles.
"The children are having a real, rich experience," says Maryann.
The Facebook group has 360 members. "We look forward to it keeping on growing for them."
Photo boards are arranged in the hall and the school has an extensive photo album collection.
On Saturday the school had its main jubilee event followed by a dinner and dance at the racecourse. Twenty-five years ago a time capsule was buried in the school but no-one's too sure where it lies. A search conducted on Sunday failed to find it, in spite of suggestions from former pupils via email.