HIGHER EDUCATION.

Auckland Star, Volume XLIII, Issue 106, 3 May 1912, Page 8

HIGHER EDUCATION.

FREE UNIVERSITY TUITION. CO>TEST~ATIOX CLASSES. (By Telegraph.—Press Assentation.) MASTERTOX, Thursday. The Hon. 1. A. Hanan (Minister for Education) officially opened the Assembly Hall at the Masterton District High School to-day. .Mr. Hanan said that the new Ministry had decided to extend the principle of free university education by opening the door provided by university bursaries somewhat more widely. Hitherto such bursaries had been tenable only by those who gained credit in the university junior scholarships examination, even although they had not obtained scholarships. It -was now proposed that university bursaries carrying free university education should be" open to all who had completed satisfactorily a four years' secondary course. After referring to the work of technical schools, the Minister sta-ted that ■we must endeavour to educate public opinion in order to ensure that boys and girls after the age of 14 should attend continuation classes until they had reached the age of IS. He felt that in many cases there was * period of idleness, which was not in the interest of those concerned. Mr. Hanan outlined a scheme which had been adopted by tRe Government, providing for medical inspection of i school children. He also urged the importance of education to equip children for the various walks in life, laying i stress on the agricultural course, which had developed into a science. The Hon. Te Kangihiroa spoke of the advantages of education to tne Maori race.