TECHNICAL COLLEGE

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2741, 8 April 1916, Page 13

TECHNICAL COLLEGE

YEAR'S WORK REVIEWED

NEED OP NEW BUILDINGS

A meetihg of ' the Wellington Technical Education Board f, as last . evening, ■ Mr. Geo. Frost presiding. Tho following were also prosont: Messrs. W. Thompson, T, Ballinger, O. M. Luke. W. H. Bennett, A. Atkins, W. H. Field, M.P. Iho Christchurch Technical College Board wrote, asking for co-operation in obtaining reform in the matter of capi- . tation paid to technical colleges. It .was pointed out that in the case pi ordinary high schools capitation was-paid on tho basis of roll numbers whereas m technical colleges tho basis was on the actual attendance. It was said that this was certainly unfavourable to technical colleges, and it was really a serious matter for them. After discussion it was decided to invite the members of Parliament for the Wellington district to meet the board in conference when the matter will be discussed. The Annual Report. I'n his report for the 'year 1915 the direotor, Mr. W. S.: La, Trobe, said that "the -work .of the year was much hampered by lack of suitable buildings and recreation grounds. The. position as regards buildings is growing steadily worse, and has retarded the ; normal development of the college very seriously during the last few years. It is impossible to adapt rented buildings not specially designed, for technical college work to servo the purposes of workshops and laboratories, drawing offices, and art rooms, or, indeed, ordinary class and lecture rooms with any great degree of efficiency. Consequently the rent paid for inferior accommodation is equal to a high rate of interest on the cost of buildings specially designed -for our purpose and placed on land of greater value for educational purposes than for' industrial or business purposes. A careful estimate show's. that the capital value of the buildings and land which are at present being used for our purposes; reckoning v rent paid as equal to '6 per cent, on: capital value (a reasonable rate, since Education Board property does not pay rates and taxes) would provide properly designed buildings 011 an adequate site, easily reached from all parts of the town' for about twice as many students as we accommodate at present Also, the expenses of teaching and management would bo considerably loss per student than at present. It is to be hoped that the convincing evidence lately submitted to the Minister of F-ducation of the economy and efficiency which would result from adopting the scheme which has beon suggested of providing a homo for tho Tech- 1 nical College on tho Mount Cook Reserve, will enablo the Government to : approvo of tho scheme. In answer to ;

those who suggest that the Mount 1 Cook Resorye should bo kept intact ae ft public reserve and recreation ground it is sufficient to note that land provided for technical college purposes will he used annually for profit and recreation "by at least 1500 students, about half of whom will pay no fees for their privileges; so that as far as real benefit to the citizens of Wellington is concerned, the land will probably bo more used for recreation and profit than any other equal area of public reserve in the city. Future Growth. It is impossible to foretell what the growth of technical institutions i:i this country will bs. It is, however, safe assuraa that the natural expansion |

of the industries of the country will load to an accelerated rate of expan- ' 6ion in technical college -work, ,as it invariably happens that increase in size of industrial undertaking leads to a greater relative increase in importance of technical education. * Consequently, we may confidently anticipate 1 .that the work of the college will pro-; bably grow at a faster rate than that ; of < the increase in population. For' - this reason it behoves the authorities; I to make provision for a probable largo; , extension of technical college worlv/ ; and not to allow the permanent home • of the college to be' placed on a cramp*' , ed site, where extension can only bo , secured at -large and increasing cost. > When one remembers also that in de-, l. mocratic countries—in fact, in all • countries—but very markedly in dei mocratic countries, the educational in- • stitutions |tond to become also. centres ' of ■ social life among the young, it is i the more evident that large educational establishments should be housed oil or . adjacent to public reserves for recreation, in ; order that the younger mem- ■ bers of the community should be encouraged to take their recreation as much as possible out of doors. In this • way some progress may be ' made ■against t the unfortunate tendency that exists for. town life to degenerate into inpoor life, f a tendency which it ii the primary object, of rational town planning to combat, since it is th< i cause leading to what may b( called town sickness with all its attend ant moral and physical dangers to ,th< race. And, since school life involve* a certain amount-of indoor life, it is essential, having -the same object ir tiew, that schools should be designee and constructed" with at least the same regard for the needs of ventilation brightness of surroundings] and sanitation aa hospitals are, and that no considerations, of site or of architectural effect should be allowed to interfere with the development of a building scheme to meet these reeds in the best possible way. : It is easy to see _ that . the6e needs cannot be . met in any building erected on,_a restricted site, 'where the site itself is the determining factor in planning the building. Any modern hospital is conclusive evidence on this point. There are further purely technical needs in'planning school buildings which .also demand freedom , from restrictions of site, and these, purely professional considerations apply '• with greater force perhaps in the design of technical college. buildings than in any others. . School Buildings Should Be Crouped. There is, however, one point to which more-' particular reference may be made, especially ' as it has not'been regarded in soveral of the educational buildings lately erected in this country. It is that the school buildings should be so grouped that there is an open space enclosed by the buildings so as to ■shut out the outside world. All really effective designs of colleges make "the inside the important side; for it is in tile inside that the corporate life of the school as of the city—has its being, a'nd the influence of the spirit of the place is most potent when other influences arc most excluded., 'The college qundranele' round which all its fmportand buildings are grouped is, in my experience; the most natural, as it is als'o the most healthy, ccntre of. college life. It is tho natural home of the spirit of the. place, where oven, the least susceptible cannot fail to make its acouaintanco. and feci its influence For .->ll these reasons it is essential that the Technical College should he housed on (Ki ample and fairly level site, Mich as that at present proposed for this city. Work of tho College. The numbers attending the various classes of the college showed a small Jnercaso over those for Hhe previous year. The regularity of attendance at.

the Technical High School was considered very satisfactory, but in the associated classes, on the whole, the attendance was not as good as in former years, owing to a large number of students being required to work overtime at their ordinary occupations. Larger numbers of students were lost during the year from many of the senior classes, owing to enlistment. Out of 1417 students enrolled dnring the year, 966 took grouped courses of some value. The science, mathematics, engineering, and building trades . were adversely affected by the war, owing to numbers enlisting, i work was done in ft'ost branches, and the attendance was considered to be good. The board had been- successful in arranging apprentice engineering courses, and getting students to take them. The numbers in the Technical High School were less than in 1914, though not less than those for 1913. The numbers in 1916 will-again be higher. ' The fluctuation lis- caused mainly through lack, of ' proper'.accom- 1 modation, overcrowding taking place more heavily in alternate years."