SCHOOL OF ART SCHOLAR SHIPS.

Press, Volume LVIII, Issue 11108, 29 October 1901, Page 2

SCHOOL OF ART SCHOLAR SHIPS.

BOYS VERSUS aiELS/ At the meeting of the Board: of Governors of Canterbor/ College yesterday ft letter was read from. Mies Dynes, headmistress of the Sydenham School, "urging that -as drawing scholarships or exhibitions at the, School of, Art .were granted by the Board,to the boys in the primary schools, the Board should also grant them to airls. Miss Dynes -pointed out that- t3ae girfi received exactly the same training in the primary schools as the boys, ana therefore she thoped the Boatti would grant flchoUrships-to the girls as well. ■ . The letter had been referred to the headjnastsr of the School of Art, who replied, pointing out that when the primary, school scholarships were granted it was 'at this suggestion that they were restricted to die- boys, as the original object was to iielp and encourage thwee boy* ,who, having a .special talent for drawing, were likely in their future work in life to do best in some branch of industry where 1 a- knowledge of art would be of use, and it' Was felt ,1 that liiere were very few occupations where this knowledtge could be of use to the girls. For .one girl tvHo went to abrade where art wodd'be of the slightest use to-her there -were probably 100 boys. ' He did ntA mean to infer from. t&is that it .iya& useless or undesirable to give girls an art training; on the. ♦contrary, he j though*" it -vrould be a good thing if .scholarships could be provided for the girls, for they were and "eapabic of profiting by them. -It would, however have to be distinctly understood as being quite apart from the utilitarian aspect which iad hitherto governed the question. With the introduction of manual training methods into the primary school another element had enter« 3. These methods were for the most wajrt so intimately connected with-and founded upon art that tie further and special training to Dβ obtained at the school would be a distinct benefit to a few selected spepiallyrqpalifled girls. On these educational grounds, therefore, Mx JEiliott suggested that tf possible ten scholarships should be offered for competition amongst the girls of the-primary schools—five to tha schools having 4CO pupils or over (including both sexes), and five to those having under 400. The scholarships t* be tenable in the morning d<os9. He strongly suggested that the Board be approached and asked to provide at kast another ten, to be divided as they thought fit between tie sexes. The value .

and tenure could "be fixed the principle were agfeed*to. • -7;^ I The Chairman mcged that «»,*Sm I be referred to the Aluseum and I Art Committee to consider and report. &•,- \ This was seconded by the Hon. t Montgomery, smd agreed to. , *. Yr>f- |