Petersburg High School - Missile Yearbook (Petersburg, VA)

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Use of the language lab enables French teacher, Miss Taylor, assisted by Ken Jeffer- son, to devote individual attention to the pronunciation and accent of her students. 25

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Languages Emphasize Global Understanding Listening attentively to French tapes, Chuck Meroth repeats words and phrases to increase conversational proficiency in the language. The increasing importance of languages can be seen in the re-vitalization of relationships between the nations of the world in which these languages are spoken. Also there is a greater emphasis than ever before on understanding among these nations, and it lies here that communication in the native tongue is most important. The Spanish and French languages, in addition to enabling us to communicate with the nations in South America, Africa, and Southeast Asia, also allows us to make ourselves heard and re- spected in the countries of Europe. The Latin lan- guage contains the historical and cultural heritage of Western thought. Not only does the literature of this classical tongue reflect the creative and philos- ophic spirit of the ancients, but also its study pro- vides an excellent background for the mastery of the English language. This knowledge helps to form a well-rounded student, and the Language Department is aptly suited for the task. Lelia Walton Doan 1901-1967 Miss Doan’s friendly approach to Latin inspired many students in an often difficult subject. In class they learned much of the ancient customs of Rome, and as a culmination of the semester’s work held a real Roman feast. 24

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Study Of History Develops Perspective History has a practical value in understanding the present, interpreting the past, and hoping for the future. Every day, events are taking place all over the world which will one day be recorded as history. What we gain from this record is dependent on our ability to link the past to the present. We should not look forward to the future with blind optimism, but with the realization that the knowledge that we gain by looking back will guide us in the future. In addition to history, a knowledge of geography familiarizes the student with the countries which are so vitally important to us today. Government is one of the essential elements of social organization, because it exists to maintain our civilization, and without it democracy and culture are destroyed. Particularly in a democratic society such as ours, knowledge of the process of government is important. All of these — history, geography, and government — are offered for the benefit of the stu- dent’s adjustment to the world today. The world of the Civil War is still alive in Petersburg as students Larry Azlin and Joe Langley probe the ground with a metal detector for relies such as this cannonball. 1608 comes alive as Mr. Ruffa’s history class presents a re-enactment of the saving of John Smith as portrayed by Joan Hiler, Kevin Scarborough, Billy Wilson, and Steve Bach. 26