ABSTRACT
The declared aim of the elementary school, as stated by Prof. Dinur, the then Minister of Education, in his Preface to the first published edition of the Syllabus (1954), is ‘the formation of character’. But the bulk of the syllabus is concerned with studies, and studies are admittedly only one of several means of influencing behaviour; the syllabus is only part of the curriculum of the school as a whole. A large and important part in the curriculum is what goes on outside the class-room; and, in considering the influences which mould a child’s character, for good or for evil, we have to take into account agencies outside the school—the home, youth clubs, youth movements, etc. What can be done in this field of informal education, as it will be termed, to strengthen the positive influences, in school or outside?
