UNIVERSITY EDUCATION.

Press, Volume LXI, Issue 18429, 9 July 1925, Page 6

UNIVERSITY EDUCATION.

ROYAL COMMISSION. CHRISTCHURCH SITTING. The Royal Commission to consider University Education in Xew Zealand commenced its Christchureh sitting yes;crii;iy morning. Tho Commission consisted of Sir Hurry R. Reiehel, Principal of the University of Wales, and Mr P. Tate, Director of Education in Victoria, and there were present Professor T. A. Hunter (Xew Zealand University Senate) and Messrs H. IX Aeland and L. A. Stringer (Canterbury College). More Land Needed. Mr Aeland, chairman of tho Board of Governors of Canterbury College, presented the Commission with' a written statement, in which lie said that he did not feel sufficiently experienced in education matters to do more than express some general observations. Ho believed that the facilities for higher education in -New Zealand were superior to those of the Australian States as they were moro decentralised. In New South Wales, University education was practically centralised in Sydney, and little or no provision was made for outlying districts. The sites used for University purposes in Sydney and Melbourne were vastly superior to anything in Xew Zealand. Hostels, playing fields, and libraries were urgent necessities in New Zealand, and they had been much neglected up to tho prosent. All the Colleges were suffering from a lamentable lack of vision on the part of the founders, in that they did not ijecurc sufficient areas of land -when establishing the College. That lack of vision still continued in Auckland, where more or less complete new buildings had been erected upon a small plot of land where there was littlo ov TU> facility of obtaining an additional ami of any importance. The acquiring oi! land was ono of the important matters which were almost impossible to rectify in years to come.

Professional Schools. It was essential for modern conditions of society that higher education should ceaso to be the privilege of the rich and become the right of all who sought it, whether they resided in town or country. He wished especially to urge the claims of the country resident. Opportunity Should be yiven to people to obtain higher education either by intra mural or extra mural teaching. Wherever possible such advantages should be extended to outlying districts and townships. The New Zealand University, as at present constituted, could not continue very much longer, as its constitution did not appear to be in accord with public sentiment, and for different reasons in various districts There had always keen a vory considerable amount of provincial patriotism in New Zealand, and that feeling had been especially strong in Auckland, which city appeared to want a complete system of higher education in every professional subject. The population did not at present justify tltc duplication of special professional schools; more than sufficient doctors, aud engineers were being produced in the Dominion, not only for New Zealand but for its contribution to the outlying portions of the: Empire. The country would not be justified in spending additional money on additional duplicate professional schools. It was better to have one well-equipped school to which students from outside could be assisted by bursaries or travelling allowances than to havo expensive duplication. The question of the establishment of several professional schools was, however, a policy for Parliament (if the schools' were to bo State-supported) than for local University Boards. Tho answer to the demand for the schools was assistance in travelling expenses, cheap hostels, or halls of residence.

Provision for Kesearch. It was desirable that provision for research should be made in New Zealand. Canterbury College carried out tests and research in regard to chemistry, biology, engineering, timbers, etc., and it endeavoured to supply information to manufacturers who asked for it. A .system could be evolved whereby agricultural and rural industry research, which was now dona largely by tho Department of Agriculture and tho Oawthron Institute, could be done by the University. The climatic conditions were such that more than one agricultural college, was desirable. The University should endeavour to become tho University purveyor of knowledge to tho community, and that competent men should bo available to assist industry in solving chemical and other problems. Canterbury College had established hostels for both men and women, but both were quite inadequate for the demands made upon them.' There were applications already for the women's hostel for next year for almost four times the total accommodation available. It was desirable for all the colleges to acquire as soon as possible considerable areas of land, even at some distance from the present buildings, suitable! for playing fields and hostels. In the constitution of a New Zealand University Senate or other governing body, special interests such as agriculture, industry, commerce, and labour, should not be specially represented. Such representatives tended to become advocates for their particular constituencies, and politics, in , any shape, was not wanted in University government. ,

Separate Universities. Separate Universities appeared to be <[esir:iblo in New Zealand, and popular sentiment was steadily growing in that direction. When established, local Universities v,-ere' likely to get much greater support than the Colleges got at present. Modern Universities required a stream of gifts to keep pace with modern development and the New Zealand University system, as at present existing, did not produce them to any extent. Individuals would give to institutions which' they saw and knew in their local districts when they would not give to the community as a whole. In the event of separate Universities being established, it was most desirable That their constitutions be such to give them freedom of development unhampered ty the baneful influence of bureaucratic control. He wished to urge the claims of the W.E.A. to increased support and recognition, and in that respect it was most essential that the classes, which usually consisted of adults of all ages, should be free to obtain the knowledge they required. In a country such as New Zealand, where popular and local government was so strongly developed, it; was essential that a large proportion oi'

the community should havo an educate J mind and a proper civic outlook, and _ir.rj.hat he did nor consider University degrees were in any wav necessary, or even desirable, except as standards for various profession and e.v pOHitmems. The next development in education would be :• rrreat extension of -ngher edv-ation of adults, especially ot ;> vom_;\-;ry nature. That develop:i:"'ri" v ''° : ' ; '' •■■•'ke rd:••,-: in the next 10 '■far* 'i", l \r> «-.t .i»i -j. ■. - . ' ~' ■'' Lll t -- , i ri:o necessity jnr jmmediato <<.•=-,.;, : : , 0 taken t ' rid- lor the demand. Sir Harry Kcicl.nl; Your main diffi--Mr ~Wand: Yes. and we have no pmsruvt* or extension, as the buildings arc,-, theatre :f the town. hn ', u \ I]nrrv ""-l that the Commission .',"'',,! >r ""' -- r ' ; ck both in Auckland and \w.|,;Mcrton i-. v ii ui ,. lok of visjoTl on '.'"' " ; ' n nf :, ' , ' > founders of the Colleges !ror p £r Tonrif -;. _ \.r Aclr- T ,,-i that it was de--ira.ib' that- hicrh-r eduction should b? -a Ken as fa r ;i , risible into the counfrv._ lie woald be in favour of establls.Miia- j, p,,, K ] , n { , KI . oxfprnnl sh , d( , nt3 mva]: rc-rr-.vc /■),., henofit of instruction. • s pf\akiii!i of University endowment, f ,,„ f __. „; ns foi]nr] thnt £"_'' n - P ::i ' ! iobrs!:ir>s sometimes put the j-'O!h>£rn l 0 i] ie iH.'Mmjrs r.Ti.f LectureK no„]fl be provided rather than scholarships. Sir Harry: Is the corporate life of the students snnh-enflv developed?— , ot '' lls m "ch as I would like, but it lias improved. Rector's Evidence.

The T> C ot 0T of Canterbury College, Dr. <-._ Chilton, s/atcd that he was stronsrlv or opinion that the time had arrived when steps should be taken to establish rour separate Universities. The attempt to manage tho business of the University and to secure the necessary cooperation of the University Colleges by a Senate sitting once a year in Wellington had proved to be largely a failure, and many of those most associated with the work of the University Senate of recent years were of tho opinion that the University had become unwieldy, and that this could be remedied only by a system of decentralisation. The Board of Studies was established with a view to taking over from the Senate, largely a lay body, tho control of academio matters. It had failed even to do that, and the existence of tho two bodies with their different opinions and outlook on higher education had led to friction and to increased complication, delay and expense. The number of students at each of tho University Colleges was already sufficient to warrant the change into an independent, University. Moreover, in each centre there was.a training-col-lege with two or three hundred students, and if it were incorporated with the University, as he understood was frequently the case in Great Britain, ' any doubt as to the number of possible University students would vanish.

Combination and co-operation of tho different educational bodies in each district would enable a much better, more efficient and, probably a loss expensive control to be exercised over the whole education district, Ihnn was secured by the centralised system. Even under present conditions the University Colleges were practically becoming independent of the Senate in some respects. The medical, dental and homo science schools of tho Otago University were only nominally under the control of the. Senate. The same thing was true to a more limited extent of the National Engineering School at Christchurch, and it would apply to special schools at Wellington and Auckland. The most important function of a University was the advancement of loarning, and what was now commonly referred to as "research." For tho higher work of the University, without which its teaching became dull and uninspiring, special qualifications in members of its staff were required, and in ordor that their spirit might be installed into the senior students, thoy must not be overweighted with ordinary lecture duties and departmental business. They must have time free for sufficiently lengthy periods to enablo them to prosecute their research without hindrance. Research and teaching should work' hand in hand. To attain lhat it was desirablo to have as largo n staff as possible. That might bo secured without incurring great expense by research fellowships or by graduato assistants, part of whose time was occupied in doing original work. For evening students who were unable to devoto whole timo to University work, it was desirable to have teachers whoso timo was not already fully occupied during tho day. Professors who had been working hard all day could not bo expected to give stimulating lectures in tho evening. The natural features of Now Zealand and the local fauna and ilora offered many lines of roscarch which could be better carried out by tho University Colleges than elsewhere The need of well-equipped libraries and of some means of publishing results of research, such as that afforded by a Univorsity Press, were so evident that they needed no emphasising.

Answering Sir Harry, Dr. Chilton said that thero were about nino thousand or ten thousand, books in tho Canterbury College library. Sir Harry said that his own'college, with about 530 students, had 65,000 books. If tho four New Zealand colleges had only 40,000 books, they would seem to be at a groat disadvantage. Dr. J. Hight's Evidence.

Dr. J. Hight, Dean of the Faculty of Commorce and Lav/ at Canterbury College, said that the present organisation had become so unsatisfactory and confused that radical alteration rather than reform was required. Tho present system was a, bar to progress; some years ago it had reached tho limit of its usefulness. The greatest good could not bo secured by continuing the University of New Zealand. Professors had far too scant time for reading and preparing their courses; in some cases need for relief was very urgent. The University and, perhaps, tho communitv suffered by the fact that University teachers, as a rule, could not find time to contribute, out of their special knowledge, to the elucidation of questions of current public interest, and help to guide public opinion or extend by direct means public interest in the general progress of knowledge. Professors in charge of departments should have the right to long leave on pay for investigations abroad. With the salaries paid, apart trom questions of fair remuneration for services, unduly high pension premiums, cost of books, and so on, a. large proportion of the staffs could not afiord the ordinary domestic arrangements necessary for the -proper fulfilment of functions. The colleges were overcrowded and insufficiently equipped. Social halls and hostels were greatly needed. There should be special funds for research and more means of latitude should be allowed governing bodies in order that they might givo scholarships and student assistantships of limited duration to deserving students with outstanding ability in research. Students who _ could attend onlv after ordinary y.onung hours should be given opportunity to attend the University for degree courses Each college or 'University should have an income adequate to its reasonable n wds d proportioual to the rational income Separate Lmversxties wo .^ If,ll, n T al su PP° rt > ™* tho IUO,U y ,ite i , „0- tM t U »iversitv libraries was quite luauflioieat.

T,r M uSi t t% Sa C v-i lhat ' he from D ,m£rL „ l f n f° ■«»« the increasing number 01 students was nuttine extra strain o n the If • ? I £ ~„i tint Hm fl„~ Professorial staft, ami rcut tno lmanepq „t ~ n ' '■■-''•;/V'r," *>** £! E l '- u ' l VKb dcsirablo that as Hid

students increased, the finances should increase. ' Dr. Hight stressed the need for more accommodation. Answering Mr Tate, Dr. Hight said that University life was woefully lacking in many of the essentials of corporate University life. lieplying to Sir Harry, Dr. Hight said that his lecturing hours were normally 10 to 12 hours a week, but in addition there was the work of supplying notes to exempted students, and correcting Pa 'ihe S 'Cominission then adjourned until 10 a.m. to-day.