South Yorkshire Times, March 5, 1960
Picture Not Nearly So Black as it is Painted
Conisbrough Student Gains Good Impression of Russia
Now Teacher Training at Handsworth After Visit
A 23-years-old Conisbrough student teacher at Handsworth Beaver Hill Secondary School, Sheffield, who has just returned from five weeks’ stay in Russia, said the attitude of Russians towards Britain was one of “extreme good will”.
Mr. Terry Ashurst, Denrbook Farm, Conisbrough, said he thought however, that some of the Russian’s scientific development had been done at the expense of the people and this was now being modified
Mr. Ashurst, an old student of Mexborough Grammar School, is training at Sheffield Training College to be a Secondary Modern school teacher.
He was one of a party of 25 British students who visited Moscow and Leningrad as part of an exchange study visit. Russian students are shortly to visit this county.
At Moscow in the mornings, they attended the Lenin Pedagogical Institute – the equivalent of our teacher training colleges where Russian students take a five-year course.
Moved Freely
During the afternoons they visited schools, museums, the Kremlin, and other places of interest. In the evenings there was entertainment if they wished, and Mr. Ashurst visited the Bolshoi ballet on three occasions They were free to move about on their own without guides.
Mr. Ashurst, a fluent speaker of Russian, said the architecture of the schools appeared to be about 10 years behind this country and that the Russians did not seem to bother so much about the looks of the school buildings as we did.
“They do not have ‘streaming’ in their schools and all types of pupils are taught together. The teaching is very formal by our standards but the results are very good.” said Mr. Ashurst.”
He said that all Russian school teach specialise in one subject, got more pay for doing extra duties and sometimes got to school only three days a week, but they only got six weeks’ holiday a year and worked on syllabuses and other administrative duties when the pupils were on holiday.
Taught in English
He went to one school where every subject except Maths was taught in English. At Leningrad the party attended the Herzen Pedagogical Institute. His general impressions were that there are not as many cars as in this country; that there are quite a number of television sets, but of inferior quality, and that newspapers are very dull and do not criticise the Government
Mr. Ashurst said the Russians were convinced that Communism was right for them.
He visited an unusual cinema, where 14 projectors flashed a picture round a circular room and patrons stood for the show.
Frowned Upon
Young Russians like modern ballroom dancing but rocqin’ roll is frowned upon – “although they were very interested when we did some for them.”
One young Russian asked him to tell Victor Sylvester to play the ‘Petite Waltz’ on the radio as he wanted to learn to dance to this tune.
Mr. Ashurst added “I have got some good impressions of Russia and the picture is nowhere near as that painted by some papers. These visits can do nothing but good and there should be more of them.”