European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - September 13, 1995, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page-14 the stars  education wednesday september 13,1995dodds by . All Brigit staff writer questions about school size Are among the hardest for the top official in defense department schools to answer. A a a a it never takes me by Surprise but its difficult to answer a said Larry Philpot area superintendent for the department of defense dependents schools. Philpot joined two other Dodds Europe officials to answer questions on a recent american forces network radio a open line program. The three answered dozens of questions from callers and about 20 faxed queries during the three hour program.,. A . Joining Philpot were Candace Ransing the Italy schools District superintendent and. De Siemaszko the principal of Gen. . Arnold High school in Wiesbaden  Philpot said a few Days after the program that among the most difficult questions to answer Are those from people concerned with the shrinking  v v a a was we get smaller and we become a system of Small schools it is hard for me to explain to parents Why the number of course offerings diminishes. That a always a difficult question for me to answer a Philpot said. The problem arises when students try to get All of the classes they need into their schedules Philpot said. A we still have calculus and chemistry but where in the Large school we used to offer each one of those three or four times a Day we Are now offering them Only one time per Day. Therefore its hard Philpot or for youngsters to get to the courses that they want a Philpot said. Philpot said that sometimes vocational technical programs also suffer As programs Are Cut Back a now that a something that concerns me a great Deal a he said. 1 a because the facts and figures that i see say that 80 percent of the jobs in the next 10 years Are not going to require a University education. They arc not going to require an education past High school but often what they require is. A specific technical skill that you get at a Community College a Trade College or an on the Job training  one of the ways to compensate for cuts in courses is distance learning programs that link students to programs offered around the world. For example Heidelberg High school offers advanced computer classes that have students enrolled from across Germany Italy and South Korea Philpot said. Students take the course through computer lineups or in a telecommunications classroom. A this is one Way that we can keep up offerings in Small High schools and its fairly successful a Philpot a said /. V t a a a a a a a. A a a he noted however that smaller schools do offer some benefits. \ Quot. A. Students often have More chances to participate in programs such As Model United nations sports and other school related activities. A in general in education Small is better a he said. Quot except that we cannot provide the same number of course offerings and the wide variety of courses that we can at Large  anti nuclear protesters March through Paris Paris apr about 3,000 people chanting to the strains of accordion music marched through Paris on monday to protest Frances resumption of nuclear test blasts in the South Pacific several Hundred anti nuclear Protys ters also demonstrated monday in Orleans in Central France Rennes in the West and Poitiers and Agen in the Southwest a a a a a. A a a a _ a the protests were Small by French standards involving far fewer people than the typical Union student or other anti government demonstration. But they were still one of the Large St shows of opposition yet in France to nuclear testing. The Paris March was organized by about 140 groups including leftist unions environmentalists humanitarian groups and doctors angered by the sept 5 blast under the muru Roa atoll. China is the Only other country that has set off a nuclear blast in the past three years. A Jacques Chirac Assassin we Are All polynesians a chanted protesters who carried banners Reading a no to the militarization of society and a nuclear bomb state  among those leading the Paris procession of about 3,000 people was Louis i Annet Secretary general of the communist led Cut labor Union and Greenpeace France director Remy Par Montier. 1 a. Although some 60 percent of French say they oppose the testing Many Are preoccupied with problems closer to their wallets such As High unemployment. With the exception of a demonstration involving some 10,000 people in june the government has been spared much of the tumult at Home that its nuclear policy has caused abroad especially in the South Pacific. A a a a a. A a a in Tahiti a former police inspector has been jailed on charges of inciting riots after the blast last week judicial sources said monday. ,. / authorities freed eight legislators from Japan Europe and Australia who were detained saturday when France seized a protest yacht near muru Roa 750 Miles Southeast of Papeete Tahiti. At the world court in the Hague Netherlands on monday new zealand claimed future tests could cause a a sub Stantial escape of radioactive material Quot because previous testing damaged Geo logical formations under muru Roa atoll. French authorities contend the atoll remains stable despite More than 100 underground tests there in past years. Even if the court orders the tests halted there is no guarantee France would comply. The court has no Power to enforce its Rul Ings. Chirac has said up to eight test blasts will be staged before the end of May after which he promises to sign a nuclear test ban treaty. A two demonstrators wearing a death mask and a mask Caric Turing French president Jacques Chirac set the tone monday for Paris marchers denouncing Frances resumption of nuclear testing in the South Pacific. Byral Krueger Deutsche  Agenter Paris a  barks out an order from the radio in a military jeep below the Eiffel Tower and the Soldier in combat gear acknowledges it with a terse a up Accord Quot and shouts instructions to his colleague. The tourists lining up before Frances most famous landmark follow the scene with a detached interest. A it is our task to patrol Here and we obey the orders even when it involves unusual surroundings a a Soldier . The Soldier like his colleagues feels somewhat uncomfortable and must get used to the new role. With their automatic weapons held ready they patrol among tourists with cameras and men and women carrying attache cases and shopping bags. Such scenes Are familiar in Israel or Belfast. France is on the Alert but the threat comes from within and not from outside. The enemy is terrorism which has resulted in stepped up Security measures in every area of life. The army has been brought in to maintain order under the emergency plan activated by the government after the recent series of bombings. Its the second time since the persian Gulf War that the 1978 plan has been put into action for maintaining internal Security. The lineup is quite impressive. Of the 5,000 Security forces mobilized 2,300 Are military troops. In addition Are the police and the secret service. At railway stations airports subway stations and Public buildings the soldiers patrol together with the police. They done to have police authority however and Are mainly there to provide Security and to watch for suspicious people or packages. Soldiers also have been deployed on the Borders to assist customs officers and the gendarmerie. Identity papers Are being closely checked and traffic jams have been reported at the belgian and German Borders. The soldiers who help at the Border checkpoints with their automatic weapons in position provoke contradictory feelings. While they remind some people of Iron curtain Days others apparently accept it with Good humor. The local population accepts the military presence mostly with Calm and understanding. The explosions in the last few weeks have apparently left their Mark and Many people Are unnerved. A Driver who parked his car outside a Dijon school in a no parking zone nearly caused a panic monday. Police cordoned off the area when a Gas can was discovered in the backseat. Residents were asked to move away quickly from windows in Case of an explosion. But the car owner returned before the vehicle a could be forced open. He had Only parked it at the first available space on the Way to a Job interview and the Gas can was empty. A similar drama occurred outside a court in mul House where a past by found a Gas Cylinder in a truck. The authorities blocked off the area around the vehicle which turned out to be harmless. They had been at the same spot a Short time earlier checking on another supposed bomb. The number of false alarms has drastically shot up since july despite the threat of severe  by Scripps Howard news sen ice