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Previous Feedback about St Michael's and St George, Iringa

Started by nTZ, 29 June, 2009, 12:02

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nTZ


St Michael's and St George




See also

    * Kongwa School
    * Clary Palmer-Wilson
    * Donald Palmer-Wilson
    * Michael Palmer-Wilson
    * St Michael's and St George

nTZ Feedback
Extract Author: Michael W. Branham (Palmer-Wilson)
Page Number: 2008 04 28
Extract Date: 1950's
Clary and Donald Palmer-Wilson

I saw this fantastic website and all the communications between former schoolmates and families/friends looking for each other. I would like to get in touch with Robert Palmer-Wilson, one of my half-brothers. That way I can update him on some things. In case other friends are open to getting in touch, a little background on the Palmer-Wilson clan! I went to school in both Kongwa School and St. Michaels & St. Georges in Iringa.Would like very much to get in touch with old mates! I moved to Alaska in 1964 - worked in Africa part of each year since then.

For Robert Palmer-Wilson - last time I visited with you was in London about 1966. Our father, Clary Palmer-Wilson moved to the USA in 1985. He passed away living with me in 1996. Donald Palmer-Wilson, too moved to the USA and he passed away about 12 yrs. Ago. If you want to email me, we can be in touch again and I can fill you in on the rest of the clan. I am in London several times a year for Board meetings and in East Africa once or twice a year for activities - so we can meet easily.

Cheers! Mike
Extract ID: 5632



See also

    * A.F. Lace
    * Mbeya School
    * St Michael's and St George
    * William Wynn-Jones

Nettelbeck, David A history of Arusha School, Tanzania
Page Number: 25
c. CURRICULUM:

Wynn Jones had no previous guide to academic standards; the children had little or no academic background; some were much older physically than mentally; and there was a wide spread of ages in each class. Right from the start children were entered for the Cambridge Junior and Preliminary examinations, though the Preliminary was dropped after two years.

The Headmaster wrote his own syllabus; and when Mbeya School (an equivalent boarding school in the south of Tanzania) opened in 1942, in buildings vacated by a German School, he went there to consult with the Headmaster; and what they submitted to the Education Department became a basic curriculum for European education in the Territory.

Wynn Jones gave the Swahili language an important place on the curriculum "so that the children would in the future be able to speak correctly to those who work for and with them". He was very proud of the fact that in 1941 the school gained the first 3 places in East Africa in a Swahili essay competition.

By 1938, the enrolment had risen to 73 and the Government let the contract for a 2 storied. dormitory block at a cost of £9,352. This was opened at the end of 1939 and doubled the number of boarding places available. Roughly one third of the pupils were British, one quarter Greek and the rest a mixture of twelve European nationalities. There were no secondary education facilities in Tanganyika for Europeans, but the Government paid for travel to and subsidized the fees at Kenya schools. An inter governmental agreement formalized this in 1943 for 90 pupils at a cost of £100 per place paid by the Tanganyika Government, with parents then paying in addition the same fees as Kenya parents. In 1950 the cost was fixed at £198 and in 1954 £270 of which the parents paid half; and grants of £50 and later £100 were paid for pupils who attended private secondary schools anywhere outside the territory.

A primary school was opened in 1951 with the Overseas Food Corporation Groundnut scheme at Kongwa; and when in 1954 the scheme collapsed and buildings were available, this became a full secondary school, it later transferred to new buildings in Iringa, in 1958 under the grand name of St Michael's and St George's School. Government expenditure on European education in the decade of the 1950s is detailed in Appendix K.

To prepare for entrance to those secondary schools pupils were entered for the Kenya Preliminary Examination (KPE) which was a selective secondary school entrance examination. But what was to be done with those who failed the examination, and whose parents could not afford to send them to overseas schools? The concept of "poor whites" in tropical Africa was politically unacceptable, and parents were not keen to take children away from school until they were employable. Some therefore stayed on at Arusha School to the age of 16 or more, and this of course compounded the disciplinary, social and academic problems with which the staff had to cope.

Wynn Jones was due to go on leave in 1939 and Col. A.F. Lace, on secondment from Monkton Coombe School in England arrived in September to take over from him. Because of the outbreak of war Wynn Jones was reluctant to leave, so for 2 months, the 2 men were joint Headmasters until Lace was called up for the Kings African Rifles and Wynn Jones continued until Lace was released from the army in June 1943.
Extract ID: 4931



See also

    * Cyril Hamshere
    * Bryn Jones
    * St Michael's and St George

Nettelbeck, David A history of Arusha School, Tanzania
Page Number: 37b

When the long awaited secondary school for European children, St Michael's and St George's, opened at Iringa in 1958, there was jubilation that all pupils who finished Standard 7 could go there. However in 1959 a selection examination was introduced and, only 15 of the 36 applicants from Arusha were admitted.

At the Silver Jubilee Speech day in 1959, Hamshere said, "Our pupils go on to other school where they distinguish themselves occasionally for scholarship, quite often for games, and always for being worthy and reliable citizens. From schools in Britain, South Africa and East Africa we receive good reports of our boys and girls, which are worth more to me than any other gift of gold or precious stones".

In 1961, 14 children entered for the Tanganyika General Entrance Examination for secondary schools, which by this time was for all races. Only 3 of the 14 passed and Hamshere commented, "This was not surprising as most of the children were slow and backward".

One of the immediate effects on the, curriculum of the Government take over in 1946 had been that Latin was introduced as an alternative to Swahili in Grades 5 and 6. The teaching of Swahili had been important to Wynn Jones as he tried to identify the school with the community, but Swahili was completely removed from the timetable when the Chaplain/French Master Bryn Jones arrived in 1954. French was then taught to all from Grade 3 and Latin from Grade 5.

For all his strength and gifts, Hamshere was not an educational innovator. Many exciting things went on outside the classroom, but apart from local studies in the social studies curriculum of the lower grades, the impression is of rather formal, academic classroom instruction, with outdated and dull text books, though this may have been typical of his time.
Extract ID: 4941



See also

    * Arusha School Alumni
    * Piet Hugo
    * Geoff Jones
    * Kiru Valley
    * Lobo
    * Manyara Hotel
    * Bill 'Corky' Morgan
    * Ngorongoro: Lodges
    * North-Lewis
    * Arthur Palfrey
    * Eric Six
    * George Six
    * St Michael's and St George
    * Dave Ulyate

nTZ Feedback
Page Number: 2004 12 30
Extract Date: 1955-58
Eric Six - Arusha School 1955 - 1958

My name is Eric Six, Geoff Jones gave me your website, and it was fascinating to read about folks about whom I had not thought in years, surprisingly I was more familiar with the adult names than fellow students. I attended Arusha 1955 to 1958, then went on to Iringa, where I stayed till it closed in1963. There were only a handful that saw the entire life of StM & StG. I completed High School at Prince of Wales in Nairobi.

For those that knew me in school it comes as a surprise that I eventually became a Neurosurgeon, as I have to confess being a fairly lousy student, being more familiar with the tacky, and cane or cricket bat (if you crossed HA Jones); than with prizes in the school magazine. I too was brought up in the bush, in Kiru Valley about 100 miles from Arusha on the way to Babati.( David you were familiar with North Lewis, they lived about 25 miles from us off the Singida road.) Hunting was a way of life on the farm, but after doing that much hunting as a youth, I shoot only with a camera now.

David, I noticed that Elizabeth Palfry also lives in Texas---- I would appreciate you giving her my web address if she would like to write. I am familiar with her Dad, through my parents of course. Funnily enough I also knew Pete Hugo, and a number of the farmers from the Olmolog area.

I was sitting here trying to recall the names of classmates from 50 years ago with little success.

Geoff Jones (BLs son),

Corky Morgan {Father's namesake the old man liked to pull on your ears.},

Gerald Hunwick, {TFA}

John Cashin {PWD},

Clara De Liva,

Paul Marsh,

David Ulyate {farm},

Leslie Hague {The Beehive Restaurant}

Bizarrely I cannot recall but the one girl!

(Fritz Jacobs, Erik Larsen.Klaus Gaitja, Alex Zikakis, Hannes Matasen, Ivo Santi Barry Jones Louis van Royen Kevin Legrange were on either side of us) I am told that George Angelides still lives in Arusha and has a great reputation as a hunter guide.

Do you remember that little dog of Hamshire's, the miserable devil loved to chase us, I happened to be amongst those she caught and got bitten by, I still have the scar..

Sorry about all the parentheses but saves a whole lot of explaining.

After independence my Dad built a number of hotels in Tanzania ,amongst them Lobo lodge, Ngorongoro crater lodge ( the hotel on the rim just before getting to the original rondavels) and rebuilt the hotel on manyara escarpment, those all happened in the late 60's. They also managed Hotels in Zanzibar, and Dar-- the New Africa and Kilimanjaro being better known.

Enough from me. Please remember to pass my address to Elizabeth.

Dear Eric,

I am just catching up with things after Christmas, and realise that I didn't reply to your email from 30 November. However, I was away in Zambia for most of the month of December.

By bcc I am copying Elizabeth Palfry with your email, and shall leave it to her to get in touch with you.

Thanks for all your memories of Arusha and Tanzania. If you ever have time to write more, do please keep in touch. I hope to have your email up on the web site in the next few days. You will also be interested in a History of Arusha School (up to 1971) which will be available in full. I found it a fascinating read, and help me to understand some of the things that happened at the school, which made no sense to me back in 1953-57.

You mention the North-Lewis's. I think that when we left Arusha in 1957 we gave them one of our dogs, which within a few weeks was eaten by a leopard!

Did you find the photo, probably of their home, at http://www.ntz.info/gen/n00452.html#04078. I seem to remember on that trip that a snake was found under our car, and it had to be shot before we could leave!

You mention Paul Marsh - my brother!

Thanks again for you memories - keep them coming
Extract ID: 4962



See also

    * Arusha School Alumni
    * Drino and Winnie Baskira
    * Hester Ellen Rijkebusch
    * St Michael's and St George
    * Beert Wynbergen
    * Ineke Wynbergen
    * Lia Wynbergen

nTZ Feedback
Extract Author: Ineke Belfrage (Wynbergen)
Page Number: 2008 02 19
Extract Date: 1958
Arusha and Iringa schools

I went to Arusha school for only two terms in 1958, prior going to St Michael's and St Georges in Iringa (was at Iringa on the first day and last day - five years later).

Have been to a few Iringa reunions but have very vague memories of Arusha school.

What intrigued me was a Martin Davis mentioning Drino and Winnie Baskira whom my parents knew well and stayed with them whenever visiting me at Arusha.

My brother Beert Wynbergen and my sister Lia Wynbergen also went to Arusha in the 60's.(Beert revisited the school in the 90's and was amazed to see the tortoise was still there) I have enjoyed reading this website as there are many, many familiar names.

There is a daughter asking if anyone knew her mother Hester Rijkebusch. I do remember the name. I think they were part of the Kilombero Sugar Scheme and I remember a Rijkebusch at Iringa.
Extract ID: 5568




nTZ

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