(a) No person who shall have acquired a place upon the eligibility list for any position in any school district shall suffer the loss of such listing and the position thereon as the result of such inducting into military or naval service. It shall be the duty of the school board to provide a fair and equitable method of preserving rights of such persons.

(b) Any person who shall have entered the military or naval services as aforesaid and whose name shall be reached upon said eligibility lists for any position in any school district shall be appointed to said position as if such person were in fact available for actual service in said position, and such person shall be so notified by the secretary of the school board of said district, and thereafter all of the provisions of this subdivision of this article shall apply.