OFFICE JUNIORS.

Auckland Star, Volume LXV, Issue 136, 11 June 1934, Page 8

OFFICE JUNIORS.

SPECIAL TRAINING. "UNWISE," SAY BUSINESS MEN. matriculation preferred. In the opinion of members of the council of the Canterbury Chamber of Commerce it ii 3 unwise for school pupils between the ages of 13 and 16 years to specialise in commercial subjects in the hope that they will have a better chance of success. The pupil who has had an all-round education is preferred by employers. "A young person entering an office having specialised in bookkeeping is more "likely to become a hack and a drudge than a success," said Mr. H. S. E. Turner. "The young man is better equipped when he joins ail office staff having had a good general education. His judgment is better, and he has plenty of time to do specialised work afterwards." Mr. A. O. Wilkinson said that every employer appreciated the junior who came into his office with matriculation and the sound all-round training that went with it. He agreed with _Mr. Turner that specialisation resulted in a narrowed outlook. He did not know the opinion of tho New Zealand Society of Accountants as a body on the subject, but ha did know that the matter had been before the society, and many of its members supported the view that specialisation before entering a job was harmful. The discussion arose when Mr. Turner was asked to report 011 the investigations that had been made into the proposal of the Government to replace the matriculation with a school leaving certificate. Mr. Turner said that the executive of the Associated Chambers of Commerce would like to have before it the views of the chambers in the four main centres 011 the subject. If the views of one were shared ny the others the executive would then have grounds for putting a case before the Government, which had already gazetted its proposal.

The idea was to introduce a more practical examination than the matriculation. The student would be required to pass in English and four other subjects, of which there was •> list numbering 31. The main objection to it was that it tended to cause specialisation.

A committee was apppinted to draw up a memorandum for submission to the executive of the Associated Chambers of Commerce.