RURAL EDUCATION.

Press, Volume LVI, Issue 17019, 16 December 1920, Page 3

RURAL EDUCATION.

ADDRESS TO PROGRESS j I DEFINITE SCHEME ADOPTED. | Jadging b- interesting address dc-' iivered by'cd-.icationist-s to 10 .^ It meet'"no- 01 the Canterbury Progrt*. League the decision to up a Rural Education Committee has alrer-dv born, ; fruit. Tho speakers explained a comprehensive echemo ot rural education and development iu *f™r I ture, and tho scheme was 'neanuyadop* , ed by tho League• ' . --n^:^ Th« wheme was set out m J form bv meaus of two charts. Tho °ne j • dealing with tho rural education led up from the country primary school to a rural secondary j school"containing two brftiches, a. Turalisctl general course and a vocational course. The latter course, again, led up to tlh? vocational side or the Agricultural College, and so onto■asricnrturnl pursuits and the lann. lnc ruralisod concral course led cir-her iy tho Agricultural College or tho l>?vr&- , sitv CoHogc, and so on to expert agn-| cultural service or the teaching Bem&Sj undor the Education-Department, la&i second chart set out tiho organisation j for rural eduoaliou and agricultural development. It consisted of tw s»»j braachee, the Education Department and the Agricultural Department., ana j Bhowed how all the diftcrent msi,itn-j tions could he connected up. Mr G. H. Holford. 8.A«.. convenor of thn committee explained that only a preliminary report was submitted, p wae a largo problem, and must ho pro-| cceded with slowly, - Information waji being collected us to whero rural KChool 1 consolidation could l>« carried out m | Canterbury. It was desirable to pro- j vide r'or training of teachers m agn-1 oJilturo, so that the Dominion need no,; bo dependent on other countries lor teachers in agriculture. The prehnr.•uarv proposals could bo divided uuuer three heads: <a) Education of childi'en in rural districts: (b) teaching of agricultural Hubjects in primary and see«, ,or|ia.ry schools and in the higlher colleges; (c) provision for the education or boys after they left school, and of adults, by the establishment of boys j clubs and fnrniers' bureaux. To-day it | iv.-is more than ever necessary that, the utmost tJhould be -won from tho land, and ib was fitting that Canterbury should lead in the rural education advance, for Canterbury was tho greatest agricultural province in tho Dominion.! Address 7>y Professor Shelley. ] Professor Shelley, at tho outset 01 bis address, said that the cult lira! side should not bo lest sigiht of in rural education. The tendency ia New Zealand seerned to bo to deyelep ft town education, and give a third-rate share to the country." England had mad* that mistake iii tho nineteenth century, but now the desire was to bring education back to the country. In England years ago there was in the training colleges a special course for rural teachers. . In Denmark there wero 20 institutions for rural training. In New Zealand the country child had to be content for his education wi?h a teacher who was a "'loft-off" from the towns. There we're 1300 teachers in New Zealand, practically all in country districts, who had hardly any teaching qualifications at all. How was the position to be remedied? First of all ib was to get prosocctivo teachers to think in terms of rural education, and*- tho examination should, be altered so that tho rural environment would be tho first consideration. Cultural ' values in education could only bo got when tho ■ subject taught wns an • direct relation to the environment of the pupil. It must be j)ossiblo for the country-child to qualify for the higher examinations along country lines.. The speaker considered that concentration of students in suitably situated schools, which could be made a. centre of culture for, teachers also, would be a means of assisting in. the development of rural education. Mr A. G. Henderson, president of the League, in .thanking Professor Shelley for his address, said he felt sure that the sentiments he had uttered would be.endorsed in Canterbury. Mr Strachan's Address. Mr J. E. Sfcrachan, M.A., B.Sc, principal of the Raugiora High School/ said "that tho ideals expressed by Professor Shelley were t hose of the committee. The first object -was thb cultural education of the child, and secondly such education as would lead to increased productive ability of the community. The speaker quoted figures _from tho last Education report, whiou -showed that onlv 44 per cent, of the pupK* leaving tfie primary schools received any State secondary education. In order to get more detailed information rural schools of Canterbury had been circularised, imd the replies showed that or those leaving school iu 1919 23 per cent, passed Standard 4 only; 18 . per cent. passed Standard C» and 591 per cent, passed Standard 6. This meant that in the country there ■was being raised a class of children which, compared educationally with the artisan class of tihe cities, could bo described as "clodhoppers." • No boy or pirl could be considered as prepared for life's work when the education only went as far as Standard IV.. Ihd speaker displayed a chart showing the number wfao reached different stages of education after leaving primary schools. Seven per oont. oi! boys and girls received four years of secondary education, 8 per cent, received three years, 30 per cent, two years. Of thoso leaving primary schools last year. 41 per cent, had gone on to secondary schools. 15 per cent, to technical schools, and 3 por cent, to private schools,- leaving 41 per cent, with, no further education. Of-flhoso.-who qualified for freesecondary education, only 57 per cent, took advantage. The cause of this state of affairs -was attributed by teachers to a. large extent to the country parents' lack of appreciation of the benefits of secondary education, ana their fear that it tended to draw tlieir children away from rural pursuits. Mr Straehan went on to say that tflio Rural Education Committee proposed, as a' means of developing rural education, the. following system:' (1) A sound general education closely relating to the environments of rural children ; (2) providing some .agricultural training to a boy destined to become an agriculturist, without being in any way detrimental u» his general education; (3) satisfactory equipment for such education; (4) training teachers lor work in rural' schools. So long as tho education system was controlled by a bureaucratic Department, -working by: routine, tihey could , never hope for any ; solution to the problem of tho backblocks boy being assisted in, getting rural education. The speaker's idea ifor the proper training of a rural teacher was that lie should go through a five years' rural course in. a. secondary school, tfhen, After matriculating, ' go to the university for degrees necessary, after which bo should go to a training college where his course could be modified to suit the requirements of p. country teacher, and then 'he would fje fit to take up rami service linden the Education Department. In speaking of the present system of control, the speaker said it was impossible for one man to frame and carry out a polio* of education for tho wholo of tho Dominion. (Hear, hear.) Them should bo a Board of Education, witih the Minister at the-head,-and a.TUral branch in tho Education Department would help, considerably. The* speaker explained the scheme of the Rural Education Committee of'tins League to develop rurcl education,' and concluded by 5-aying. that a cornylete remodelling of the education ejgteai generally-waa 1 needed. The merit" <>£ the ■ Misaestions

made by the committee r.-ns that they ' made up a' coherent, s-henie. 'A')*-' plaiise.) * i Mr G. H. Holford sjwko briefly, in j explanation, of the chart fubmit-tod at' the meeting for the organisation of '■ rural education and agricultural <k- | velopmem. ! Scheme Adopted. . ' Mr H. Holbnd moved" that, .the; League adopt the suggestions as laid i down by the Rural Education Commit-1 tee. J _ Mr J. Storry, in seconding the mo- • tion, expressed r.-grvi. that ihero -wore ' not more farmers-present thai morning! to hear the vorv interesting addr«>.-«es. j ei if V, A, P a " llks sai( * th&t Profciior i I bkellov had given a moro revolutionary j lecture in regard to education than ■ had ever been given in Christchurch i beiore. , _ Science must- come to nid the productivity of the country, and it was only by educating the youny in agricultural development that tho most could bo got out of tho land. A farmer had a. bigger outlook on life through being well educated, and he was very pleased to hear tho speeches made that day in support of fostering a- better intelligence among country boys. Mr Banks considered that a deputation should bo set up to meet Ministers and put iho whole facts of the scheme beroro them. The chairman doubted if they could induce tho Education Re.pnrtment to adopter, revolutionary movement. A publicity scheme would bring better results in the end. " The motion war, carrieJ unanimously.. and a vote of thanks was accorded to , Professor Shelley, Mr btrachaii, and Mr "Hoiford for their addresses.- and the \ work they had dono in formulating the scheme. Professor Shelley, in replying to the vote, of thanks, said that the blot on the New Zealand education system wat too much centralisation. Mr D. Jones, M.P., who arrived lat-r at the meeting, said that there was not in the House last session much sympathy for developing education in the country;. The present system of education was not taken advantage of by the country people, becauso they were afriid to risk sending their children to the centres. He was hopeful a change for the advancement of coiftitry eduoa-' tion. would be effected.