Return to old school ways, urges P.M.

Press, 9 May 1978, Page 6

Return to old school ways, urges P.M.

PA Wellington The Prime Minister (Mr Muldoon), yesterday called for a return to the old ways in primary-school education. Supporting the "back to the basics” movement, he told the annual conference of j the New Zealand Educational) Institute in Wellington that I there was convincing evi-; dence, based on tests, to answer assertions that ■ children could not read,) write, or calculate as well as' they used to. "Yet in spite of this, the charge continues to be laid that children today are not) as well grounded in the' basics as the;’ were many years ago,” he said. "1 believe that to be so. I' think the change came about round 1935 when the educa-, tion of the time was dis-i missed as dull and soul-des-i Mr Muldoon said that he! himself had not found edu-j cation then to be dull and soul-destroving. But a “new deal” for children had been introduced, a sort of de-1 mocracy in the classroom. : “While we have the evi-. d“nce or tests to uphold the worth of the new ways.) employers today complain tnai thev find school leavers deficient in the basics.” said M r Muldoon Their complaint was too per' stent to ignore. “The notion that there!

was something wrong with the old ways is false. Learning then was wide and thorI ough and, according to the ‘ dedication of the teacher, i liberal. “Children learnt how to spell: they were taught that ) spelling matters. I believe it jstill does. I don’t think you | can have clarity of thought without clarity of language. “The children of those days knew their tables. I Today pocket gadgets can 'cover ignorance. “There are no gadgets, however, which will spell for today’s pupils, or write i a neat longhand for them.” Mr Muldoon said that too much emphasis was being; put on longer-term objects! . such as promoting a wise! use of leisure, while more) imemdiate objects were!' | overlooked. i “As teachers at primary) I level you can only take! pupils part of the way but,) educationally, you have responsibility for them during) the most formative period of! ) their lives. "You must concentrate on; high achievement in basic! skills, not frills, in prepara-1 tion for the next stage of) (education. “If you succeed in this,) and it is much more a mat-i ter of dedication and hard; work than money, then some) o. your other problems, and; .those of your pupils, will! i rake care of themselves.” I