AGRICULTURAL TEACHING.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 773, 23 March 1910, Page 10

AGRICULTURAL TEACHING.

I ; WHAT ABE- DOING. ■: '•Tfie.<)cSpoi;;insKctpralof She Wellington district-state in their/annual report 'thatdtf'iiract'ically.alL'th'o country .scn9pls ii the. lower classes is arranged' to-lead up to school "ln-'iiie 'Higher.,. .As' teachers ' begin £0 appreciate*tho'aim aiid value ..pf./chis a .steady improve-' merit, and in-'air increasing mimDer of rQiir.'schoqls exc'ellbnt'ai'drk'is' being done. .Mr.jPaVjies/reppxtSuthafcoij schools are now. ear.hing-.,capitation for elementary : agriculture, thav 180 were .paid not being 'cbnfined'to scliobrs u -carriin'g capitation— ■and that" of teachers' was provided -for:by fhroc courses of lessons at Gfoytown.,'"At all these:ses- , siohs,-'/-,iMr.--Davics ■ reports,- "special at--to'-'-tHo-- elemental-;,' botany of"grassland'-weeds which were studied, not only in the laboratory but also ori neldexeu'rsions. The advanced [work: was';do?ofedimairily. to the ;com.pq.sitign7prppeJitio3,"aiid~ihTprovement of ; soils and. .and composition' Pf.fertilisers.. I have to acknowledge the assistance rendered by Mr". Nottage, of the. Agricultural. Department's staff, oiid - Miss Haggett,. or the "Marimu ,'Schooly ;-;I;-have;'pleasuro;.in. ..reporting ;a steady advance in the condition of school gardens-andy-in' tho educational value.ot .the operation) carried-out and .higher apprecialjonv.pn:the;part of-the '."teachers of!'the 'true. aims .of agricul-;tu'falv]iat'>ifb'-'¥{.udy.'-''--Tho -weakest feature, undoubtedly is the caro of tho agricultural .note-books,...which in hut few instances give evidence of sytematic attention. In some cases the moral influence of well-kept tools has been lost sight of. 1-have tothankfjlly acknowledge the hearty and ' steadily-increas-ing spirit of co-oporation in our work en tho part of the board's teachers." The inspectors, however,.issue a word.of warning against'too early specialisation: .'"that tho average age of tho "highest class cf the primary '.school is under fourteen years 'of ago is a fact "that i.appeals to to .lost sight of by ■ many of those who a's crying out for. the introduction of special subjects into our primary course. "Earners' Unions, Chambers of Commerce, and similar as-sociatipns".:all.-seem;.to.;look to the primary: schools \to pre'paro the boy for the special vocation with which each is connected. Wo arc pleased to noto the interest that many of these bodies are taking in our educational system, but itus'to tin: technical, schcol and the high school, certainly uiot to the primary school, that they should look for this spechl vocational;, training. As a matter of fact. many-.'of the foremost educationists of the (jay deprecate any kind of!specialisation until the boy is at least sixteen, years: of age. In our primary. schools there:.should be no attempt at specialisation." Our aim should be to select studies with the idea'that the boy |to be liberally educated should, be learning how to learn'.' " • •''