EDUCATION COMMISSION.

Auckland Star, Volume XLIII, Issue 145, 18 June 1912, Page 7

EDUCATION COMMISSION.

LATIN AND ITS EDUCATIVE VALUE. (By Telegraph.—Press Association.) DUNEDIN. this day.

The Education Commission this morning examined the Rev. Mr. Milner, rector of the Oamaru Boys' Hig* School, -who strongly advocated instruction in regard to sexual physiology hy qualified teachers of both sexes. lie also advocated all teachers passing through training colleges being taught the principles of total abstinence from liquor, arid approved of the recent action by the Education Department in this relation. Ail secondary school teachers should be taught in training colleges. He would debar girls from competing for University scholarships on the same terms as boys, and would eliminate mathematics and science from the girls' test. Examinations were made somewhat of a fetish in the Dominion, and he would revise the marks, especially for Latin, which had been reduced to the minimum in his school. He had a poor opinion of its educative value in these days. No subject in the curriculum bred such a degree of cynicism and conservatism. The university was responsible for this. Latin should only be compulsory for legal candidates. He strongly favoured vocational studies, especially in regard to the mother tongue and agriculture, and emphasised the value of debating societies. Tn all secondary schools there should be a wider study of history and geography. There was a lamentable ignorance of colonial history, especially of history relating to Great Britain's colonial policy. More attention should be paid to instruction of civics. 'Every boy emerging from the secondary institutions should be a sane Imperialist, and there should be a branch of the Navy League in every school- Its importance could not be overstated. He paid a high tribute to the daily Press of the Dominion, -which, by reason of its broad outlook and knowledge of Imperial questions, supplied the best possible text books. He strongly advocated the purchase of the best lantern slides for illustrating science, history and geography. He knew from his own experience how much these slides vitalised the teaching of such subjects. Swimming should be made compulsory. Agriculture must be scientifically taught, and, if so, would powerfully affect the productiveness of the Dominion, He was a thorough convert to the wisdom of vocational courses. HISTORY AND VOCAL MUSIC. Rev. Morrell (rector of the Boys' High School) complained of the poor teaching of history in primary schools, which was wholly neglected, except for the efforts of the Navy League. History should be compulsory on all teachers, and a chair of history, filled by a trained historian, should be established at one of the university colleges. Mathematical geography in the primary course should be reduced and made more human. More careful attention should be paid to vocal music, especially to accentuation and enunciation. The syllabus was a good one, and no one of its subjects could be dispensed with. It appeared that the teaching of manual work in primary schools on the whole product of the primary schools was satisfactory. They were too prone to institute comparisons 'between picked pupils fifteen years ago and free places. For himself he thought there was a distinct improvement, and that good value for the money being spent was obtained in secondary schools. If greater efficiency were desired, there must be increased expenditure in staffing. In his school the average class was 23 per teacher, whereas the secondary teachers' conference unanimously decided that the number should not exceed 25. He strongly opposed teaching sexnal physiology by what *he would' call "alienists." To do so by means of lectures would be a positive danger to young people. All private schools should be inspected by an officer of the central department for the protection of the public. If physiological instruction must be given, it should be done by a doctor or a clergyman. 0. R. Richardson, chief inspector of shoals, said that during the last 12 years the increase in the cost of education had .been as follows: —'Primary, 75 per cent.; secondary, 288 per cent.; university and higher techieal, 158 per cent.: ind-v_;fcrial schools,. ISO per cent.; Special deaf, Mind, and defectives, 366 per cnt. The cost of technical education bad increased ten-fold.