European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - February 13, 1989, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 8 the stars and stripes monday february 13,1989 for tiny schoo closure w/7/ be Sweet sorrow a _ Shii i Miffin Iii Flea i it m by Dave Walcza education writer Hemer West Germany Dan Newcome would love nothing better than to try the Blackberry lesson one More time. But unless blackberries Ripen Earl this year he and everyone else at Hemer elementary will have to Content them selves with memories of the Day when every child s schoolwork resulted in apiece of fresh pie. Newcome is the principal at Hemer although not for Long. Come june he two teachers and one teacher clerk will no longer Greet the children enrolled in the overseas school system s smallest elementary. I m sorry to see the school close Newcome said. I wish there was a Way for me to draft a few children. But it s Little late for  department of defense dependent schools officials in Washington came to the same conclusion feb. 7. With the words no longer Cost effective the officials decided to close Hemer Elemen tary. The decision will bring an end to 11years of education at Hemer which fit tingly enough services exactly 11 Chil Dren. It also Means an end to a family style learning environment where Black berries once took priority Over Black boards. We took the kids on a nature walk Newcome explained. We found a Black Berry Patch. All the kids picked blackberries and we took them Back to school. We baked a Blackberry pie. All the kids helped. We got it out cooled it and everybody got a piece of pie. If you have a school of 500 children there s no Way you can have experiences  Gary Nelson 14, has had two plus years to get accustomed to such things As science entailing Blackberry picking an physical education including ice skating. As the oldest of the 11 children the seventh grader recalled the Day he first walked into the school and found it sort of  most people would. Tucked inside British primary school the elementary s three rooms Are the educational Home to four kindergarteners three first graders two second graders one fourth Grade Rand Gary. It s impossible to understand what is Lynda  teacher Mari Blanchard works with student Timothy Long As Daniel Cross and Debbie Long practice drawing. It s like teaching at this school unless you spend a Day Here said Man Blanchard one of two teachers. Blanchard is in her first year at heme Rafter taking a year off from teaching. Her previous overseas school experience Wasat Sembach a West Germany where she taught fourth and sixth grades from1979 to 1987. There Are no conflicts Here betwee students and teachers she said. At Sembach i would sometimes just stakeout the window after a Day of dealing with 35 kids going through  Blanchard Calls her Job the bes teaching experience i could Ever have despite having to draw up lesson plans to meet an array of Grade Levels. I think that sometimes discipline problems occur because children feel that they re not getting enough individual attention she said. Attention from teachers just in t a problem  attention also comes from fellow Stu dents including Gary who prides him self on taking care of the younger one because i like  Newcome who took Over As principal in 1985, said that students helping Stu dents is a Hemer tradition the older ones have always looked out for the younger ones on the playground on the bus. It s like a family  Ward Hawley whose son Alec is first grader at Hemer said he is More than satisfied with the school despite it size. You get special attention to really learn in a one on one situation he said. The advantages outweigh the  Jurgen Isken who doubles As the school s Host nation teacher and Supply clerk said flexibility is the key to heme education. You can be prepared for the perfect Day and five minutes later. There s an activity at the British school or the weather will be Nice and you want to take the kids out for a walk or supplies  Isken began working at Hemer in 1983, when the school s student Popula Tion numbered in the 30s. It has declined steadily a trend that school and military officials were at a loss to explain. Hemer services the Giessen sub com Unity of Menden. Located about 10 Miles North of the school Menden is Home to 69th Field arty det. A Giessen military spokesman estimated the Community at about 200, of which 105 Are soldiers. Exactly what will happen to Hemer elementary s 11 children in september remains unclear. A Germany Region schools spokesman said parents can choose to Send their children to Miinster elementary or enrol them in a British school at school system expense. The Miinster option would mean a 90-Minutebus trip each Way. Parents of the Hemer students met thursday to discuss the options and Hawley said All of them want to enrol their children in a British school. Newcome and the Hemer faculty will be offered jobs within the school system the spokesman said. But for now thoughts of another assignment seem far away. I sort of feel special Newcome said. I feel we re unique in Many ways. I Lynever be sorry for the rest of my life that i came  i know i la never pass this Way again in terms of teaching experience Blan Chard said. I m just going to enjoy  especially if the blackberries Ripen Intima. To plan aimed at teens called appalling n7 ii of a Toni of a Muir to a _ i i. By Deirdre Carmody new York times new York a prop9sed daily 12-minute television news program including commercials that has a potential National captive audience of 6 million Junior and senior High school students is being viewed dubiously by Many educators. Beginning next month whittle communications of Knoxville tenn., will show a seven week $5 million Pilot of the program Channel 1," to 10,000 student sin six schools around the country. As an incentive to the schools whittle is giving each of them $50,000 Worth of 25-Inch color television sets videocassette recorders and satellite dishes. The Only stipulation is that the schools make the Chan Nel 1" mixture of news educational features quizzes and commercials required viewing for students every Day. If the Pilot program is successful whittle wants to expand Channel 1" to 8,000 schools next year at Acost of $ 100 million to the company. In return whittle and its advertisers would have larger teen age audience than is now viewing any exist ing television show except the super bowl the producers of Channel 1" said. But while some educators like the idea of gaining uneasy Way to make students better informed on current events they draw the line at including commercials. A bad idea said Patricia Graham Dean of the graduate school of education at Harvard. I guess for be the really important Issue is the captive audience. As Long As we require children to sit in a classroom until age 16, they ought not be required to watch  officials of whittle communications said the sponsor would have no influence on the program s Content. They declined to name sponsors who had already signed up. The communications concern which specializes i reaching specific audiences also publishes magazines periodicals and Wall posters for High schools and colleges. We will present commercials that Are not offensive to teachers schools and students said William re Kevser editor in chief of whittle communications Anda former managing editor of Fortune and Money magazines. He said commercials for alcohol contraceptives an feminine Hygiene products would be barred. When asked what kinds of commercials might be shown Rukeyser mentioned cosmetics deodorants fast food soft drinks and jeans. Peggy Charren president of action for children television and a leading critic of Channel 1," said when you have a captive audience of every tenth grader in the country or eventually every third grader in the country you have reached advertising  Only message that makes sense is condoms and that s the one they Are going to Jeave  action for children s television is a Boston base advocacy group that supports limits on commercials during programs aimed at children. Todd Gitlin a professor of sociology at the univer sity of California and an author of books dealing with television s Impact said i think it s an  educators say that commercials exploit a Normal desire of teen agers for clothes automobiles and cosmetics and further emphasize the difference betwee those students who have the Money to buy the products and those students who Are poor. Gitlin said when education systems Are starve for resources they will respond to the highest bidder. I Don t know what to Marvel at More the arrogance fan Industry that thinks it has a right to be everywhere or people in the education system who would consider the proposal for More than one  Stan Jasinskas principal of Eisenhower Middle school in Kansas City kan., one of the Pilot schools sees it differently. To be Given 40 tvs at a time when there is More and More available in video programming to enhance instruction seemed like a godsend he said. Jasinskas said that when the school wanted its 722 students to View a program it had to show it Over three Days because of the Lack of television sets. Because the school now has 40 sets shows can rebroadcast simultaneously to every classroom in the building. Some of the schools where the Pilot program will detested Are Mumford High school Detroit Gahr High achoo Cerritos Calif. Billerica memorial High school Billerica mass. And Withrow High school Cincinnati