In the half-yearly report of the Students’ Council, the students report to the faculty and other students on what they have been studying thus far. The representatives of the narrator’s class spoke knowledgeably about their coursework and placed a considerable amount of emphasis on how much they had learnt about different people, cultures, customs, and the importance of international and interracial cooperation.
Miss Joseph and Denham, both students of the narrator’s class, presided over the meeting. Mr. Florian, the headmaster, addressed the meeting with a lengthy presentation. After this, one after another, each class gave a brief report of their progress, through their chosen representatives, on what they had been studying in each subject so far. A panel of teachers was then chosen to answer any questions put by the students.
The lowest class began first; the narrator’s class, being the oldest, was the last to present their report. Miss Joseph began the highest class’s proceedings by clarifying that the common theme underlying all their studies that term was the interdependency of mankind. Potter spoke in the field of math, focusing on how greater understanding in the world is fostered by the use of common weights and measures.
Miss Pegg and Jackson spoke on geography, and Miss Dare and Fernman discussed the subject of physiology, with Fernman stealing the show by exhibiting a model of a human skeleton and stressing the class conclusion that “basically all people are the same.” Miss Dodd reported on history, and Miss Joseph on domestic science. Denham created a stir by speaking on the subject of P.T. and games, complaining that the class ‘was ill-conceived and pointless.’
Mr. Weston, Mrs. Dale-Evans, and Miss Phillips were chosen at random to answer students’ questions. When Denham pursued his inquiry on the necessity of requiring all students to take P.T., Mr. Weston responded quite ridiculously, trying to bluster his way out of the subject, and offering no sensible argument. Unexpectedly, the quiet and hesitant Miss Phillips stepped in and gave a strong defence of the practice. Finally, Denham, knowing that he had been outwitted, had no choice but to respectfully accept his defeat. The narrator was immensely satisfied with the progress of the students of his class.
