Argentine school officials have been instructed to stop teaching and wheel televisions into the classrooms during Argentina's World Cup games. The new measure was brought into effect because school
officials are fed up with kids skipping classes to watch World Cup games. It would seem they're now using soccer as a way to lure kids back to class. An astonishing 21 of the country's 24 provinces
recommended that public schools let kids watch today's match between Argentina and Serbia & Montenegro. Those schools that acquiesced were treated to a thoroughly world-class performance: Argentina
routed the Serbs 6-0 with several standout performances all over the pitch, from Javier Saviola to Leo Messi, who netted his first World Cup goal and provided an assist in just 15 minutes of play.
"During the World Cup, everything revolves around the national team,'' said Marta Bustos, principal of a primary school in Buenos Aires, where 50 percent of its students didn't come to class during
the 2002 World Cup. "We can't ignore such an important event." Meanwhile, Argentina's federal government has given directors of each of the provinces a 47-page manual on how to use the World Cup as a
teaching instrument for geography, politics and such.
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