Michal Krynski with students and teachers of the Magnus Krynski gymnasium

I don’t know who took this picture. It’s from the year 1938.

This is a portrait of teachers and students from the Magnus Krynski gymnasium.

Sitting from the left: Prof. Ludwik Rath, Mr. Szlamowicz, Mr. Birenbaum, Prof. Michal Krynski, Mr. Berkman, Mrs. Szarogroder, Ms. Bajerowna, a teacher of Latin language, Mrs. Piekarczykowna, a teacher of Maths, Mr. Chlopski, NN, Mr. Landau and Mr. Aronsztern.

The principal of this school was the founder's son, a mathematician, Michal Krynski. It was a very avant-garde school. It was the only school where the lessons lasted 40 minutes.

The system was based on Dalton Plan ideas [a teaching system introduced in 1920 in Dalton, USA, by teacher H. Parkhurst, assumed independence of the student].

Our school implemented a semi-Dalton system, that is partial independence was required from the student. There was a system of assignments, tasks which a student had to tackle without a teacher's help.

On the basis of assignments, students prepared themselves for tests. This system of checking knowledge was also exceptional.

My parents paid 90 zloty per month for this school. It was quite a lot, taking into account the fact that Mrs. Ruffowa, our teacher, had a salary of 150 zloty per month.

She made some money on the side, proofreading for publishing houses, for pennies. Poorer boys also attended this gymnasium, but if they did well at school, they received discounts from Krynski.

I had to take private coaching lessons, because I wasn't doing well at school. In the 1st grade of gymnasium, so in my 7th year of studying, my Polish teacher, Professor Ludwik Rath, recognized my talent for writing, he sent me a tutor, a student from the final grade called Zysman.

The first thing he assigned me was… the multiplication table, so I learned it and I swear that to this day I know it very well. I needed a tutor at the end of each school year. Mrs. Ruffowa taught me later, I became friends with her and she prepared me for tests.