TECHNICAL COLLEGE.

Auckland Star, Volume LXIII, Issue 220, 16 September 1932, Page 3

TECHNICAL COLLEGE.

BOARD'S ANNUAL MEETING. WORKSHOP HELPERS AUTHORISED. VALUE OF SCHOOL COURSES. The annual meeting of the board of managers of the Seddon Memorial Technical College was held yesterday afternoon. * A tribute to the services of Mr. H. S. W. King, who recently resigned from the position of chairman of the board, was paid by Mr. C. A. Watts. It was decided to invite Mr. King to have his photograph hung in the board room. It was announced that'the following retiring members of the board had been re-elected:—Miss B. Carnachan, representing parents; Mr. J. B. Paterson, representing local bodies; Mr. C. A. Watts, representing associations of employees; Mr. S. E. Wright, representing associations of employers. Mr. A. Burns was appointed to represent the board on the Auckland Education Board in place of Mr, King. ' It was decided to defer the election of officers for one month.

Tho principal, Mr. G. J. Park, was granted authority to engage not more than four laboratory or workshop assistants, who would be appointed on terms somewhat similar to those applying in the case of student teachers, and who might be paid about £30 a year from the board's funds. It was resolved to make the assktantships renewable for three or four years. Mr. Park said he felt sure the boys would be trained 60 as to be very suitable for teaching in any technical college. Reporting on student teachers Mr. Park said it wae not likely that such teachers would be appointed in technical schools next year, and he felt doubtful whether that principle of training teachers would again be followed. It appeared, therefore, that the board would be wise to conside going back to the policy which was in vogue before student teachers were officially made possible through Government action. . In the days before the Government made regulations for student teachers there had been a, system of laboratory and' workshop assistants cmployed in the college. Unemployment Among Boys. A report of unemployment among boys was submitted by Mr. Park. In this it was mentioned that at the recent conference of the Technical Education Association tho opinion had been expressed that the world depression in industry was not entirely the cause of unemployment among hoys in New Zealand, but that there had been a problem even before the depression became severe. Mr. Park's report said that employers greatly valued the work being done in technical schools. It was a common opinion that a skilled tradesman's, work could often be done by a boy with a thorough technical school course of training. It was considered that training in technical schools should count in lieu of part of the apprenticeship period. In the present difficult times industrialists found that the technical schoolboy trained in the trade processes, was able to produce more toward hie wage than the boy not so trained, and in consequence employers were paying far more attention to the qualifications of boys applying for positions than they had in the past. It was considered that the technical colleges were now equipped and staffed in such a way that they could tram apprentices, as was done in other countries.

Members of the board expressed satisfaction that the value of technical college training was so generously appreciated. It was decided to adopt the report.