Children thrive in our village schools

LETTER - Many people are deeply concerned about plans to close the school in Lydbury North, Shropshire, and other similar village schools.

One of the virtues of rural life is its friendliness and sense of community, and rural schools, as well as post offices, play a vital part in the life of a village.

Children thrive in the environment of a small school, where they see themselves as members of a close, well-knit community, learning good standards of behaviour by interacting with adults and other children alike.

Larger schools are more impersonal, resulting in mobs of youngsters guided by peer pressure and media idols, but lacking respect for teachers and other adults.

The recent Brand and Ross scandal made this absolutely plain. One of the worst aspects was the huge number of young people who could see nothing wrong with taunting an innocent person with offensive messages, because it represented a "sense of humour"!

To them it is dreary and old-fashioned to treat other people as you like to be treated yourself.

So how do you produce ever more yobs and bullies? Send children to big schools where peer pressure is more likely to become the biggest influence in their lives.

How do you produce more decent citizens? Keep them in small schools, where children learn to treat each other, and everyone else, with respect.

Rosemary Cooper, Powys