AGRICULTURAL HIGH SCHOOLS

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1642, 8 January 1913, Page 8

AGRICULTURAL HIGH SCHOOLS

. !.[.■>• WHAT AUSTRALIA. IS DOING. Some little, time, ago tho Wellington Education Board wrote to,the STucational authorities in Now South Wales and Victoria, making inquiries in weard .to the ; agricultural nigh sohools in'those States, V: and tho roplios wero'tablod at yesterday'a, meeting of the board,' i.iv . - 'i The Director of . Education'in Sydney ': (Mr. P. Board) replied as under, dealing with the Hurlstone School, the only one in the State.—"This school provides lor . residential pupils as well as day boys, - ' and has so, tar secured a very satisfactory number of pupils. Its curricmlum is divided into < three parts; one-third, of; the ; time being given'to the subjects of a gen-' * eral English education, ono-third to,, science instruction, and one-third to. practical work on tlio farm, >AU the boys. : take-this course, and the gaining , of a' i certificate at the end of two years admits the holder to: the diploma'course of the . Hawkesbury Agricultural Collego, and ho. •. is credited with' the first year's, work of the diploma course. v , . v 'v ■• . "Provision is made for an agricultural course in other high schools, as an alter-■native-to. the other courses oifercd by the,! ' schools, but theso agricultural courses,;' havo not yet 'been / made operatiyo, '-At »,•' present the board is of opinion that high y schools in : country towns providing agricultural oourses as alternatives Will not / prove very successful. Paronts who wi&h their sons to get an-agricultural;educa-tion will; prefor to send them' to schools!, ; iwhich'/NkoiHurlsWno, Jiflo specially organ-,;:;: ised -fdr tllbi,'purpose;!' T - • •'••• •, , '■ "A difficulty arises from:the fact that . • such ;6chools cannot; bo numerous, anil - must, 1 therefore, bo residential,- but>it will i.- > probably prove to : bo .both more.economi- v cal and more effective to establish a low such schools than i to make the ordinary ; .high schools Bervo the, purpose, of ajricultural 6ohools. "The Agricultural Department has «•*., . tablished farm schools, whore the train-..: ing. is largely, practical, but those are not r being attended ,by, any considerable num- ( .. iber of pupils. f, :•> •. ; ■. n . "Notwithstanding that the appreciation!; of the educational foundations of agncul- • , ture is growing, there is still much to bo 1 . done'in forming a publio opinion in.-this L \lircction before a ooinplete organisation of agricultural education becomes . posBible. . • ■ ' i "In the meantime there appear.to Mr, Board to be, three grades whicli. can l>« : -supplied . 1 .; i" . \ ■ 1. The primary school, with school gar& . ening as part of its course. ' '•' • • 2. The. agricultural high; school, which : ; 'provides • for : residential pupils, and is specifically agricultural in its curriculum j i.e., provides a ooursoVfjtudy, in agricul- , ture which all itspilpils take. (That is, does • not make it a mere alternative (to - othor kinds of courses.) i i 3. The, agricultural college, -rbcoiv na .pupils either:; (a) Who have pass«a ... through the ordinary high school, recciv- , ing a general education,"or (b) who havo' . pa,6Sed through the special agricultural ■ f high school of tho -Hurlstone typo. ' "The above represents three successive grades of ■' instruction,. and , comprises : ' sohools which can gradually be increased ■ in number bo far as publio opinion jU6ti- ■ fies them." ; . • , Mr. Board Mys he would apply the namo "agricultural high school" only to echools in which all' the : pupils take the *.' agricultural coursos. In niß opinion, "it is misleading, and a wrong standard,of ;| what an', agricultural education means, ,ia , sot Up in the publio mind if this namo' .is attached to a high school which' simply' t , offers an agricultural course as one of several optional courses of study. : ■ , "The Hurlstone 'Agricultural High Sohool is entirely supported from Government ifunds, and the sole control is,,vested in the Education Department, 1 The, expenditure, for tlio . last financial. year was ,£2908 19s, 7d. The'staff and their salaries are:—Principal, wC3OO per annum, and quarters*; valued at Xl2o per annum ,- assistant, .£lB6 per annum, and quarters!; field foreman, wCIS6 por annum; and quarters valued; at' XSO per annum;.carp«utor, -£IG2;,ecicnco master, J2180,* gardener, J8.150 per annum, '■ with range to -£V3G per, annum j teacher, of blackemithing, I JE2I per annuih, (not a full-timo officer); por: cent.. toacher of plumbing, nil; per cent, teacher of' snefep and wool, nils per cent, salaries paid-a« mcmbors of the staff of tho Sydney, Technical College." ■ ' 1 ' Tho director of tho Victorian Education' , Department, in.tho. course of 'hid, reply,, stated that the fee payable by students ' at the Victorian High Schools is 80s. per term. A maintenance allowance 1 varying - in amount' (according to tho cnVolmcnt) \ frolu <£750 upwards per annum is allotted. This allowanoo Ss exclusive of teachers' salaries, and is'for expenditure upon tho farm only. It is spent upon such things las the. purchase of implements, stock, 1 seed, btc.j tho erection of farm buildings, and fencing, and upon farm ; labour. At least ono-half of the cost of tho nccessary buildings-and equipment has .to bo contributed by local subscription, and an droa of ground of not less than 20 acres, . situated in a position convenient to tho high' sohool, has to be -provided, and vested in the' Minister. .The fact that tho high/school oouricil Is, composed of reproBcntatives of such local bodies as'municipal nnd Bhire councils and agricultural societies ensures local interest. Tho num-' ber of students taking the purely ngricul- , tural courso has not l-eaphoa expectations, principally because the agricultural course • f does not necossarily lead to a salaried" position. Tho Cabinet,' howovor, has under consideration the question of ■ placing tho Exit i Agricultural High School dents upon tt block of- land upon very easy terms; ; If this is done, it is anticipated that tho enrolment of farming studenta will bo materially increased. ' An agricultural high; school'in Victoria offors also f teaching and university oourses. Those are being token full advantage of.' 1 . 1 '