EDUCATION OF GIRLS

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 2983, 22 January 1917, Page 3

EDUCATION OF GIRLS

VIEWS OF THE COUNCIL OP EDUCATION

REPLY TO CRITICISM

(By Beatrice E. Talbqfc, Convener of the Committee of the Council of Education on tho Education of Girls.)

An article appearing in The Dominion of Tuesday, December 26, entitled "Education of Girls. A Complicated Question" (by "Parent"), contains rather a misleading criticism of the report of the Council of Education on the education of girls. Tho writer has quite misunderstood the aim of the recommendations made, and the considerations' that led _up to them; he occasionally uses dislocated phrases from a paper written to introduce the subject, and for which the council.is not responsible, and in doing so he puts wrong interpretations on the words, and so gives a, false impression. By quoting more fully from that paper, and stating clearly some of the considerations that weighed with the committee, some misconceptions may be' removed.

The committe© did not enter on their work without thinking of (1) the nature and needs of girls, and (2) the girl's life work. They had in mind an education as much beyond our present system in breadth as our system is ir advance of the old pre 1850 type; for it realised that in character training, in preparation for the practical work of lifo, and in direct training for vocations, there is still much to be done to bring these branches of girls' education to an equality with her purely intellectual training, which some still consider the one and only education.

There was no insinuation that the mental capacity of a girl was inferior to that ot a boy. No one thought of condemning "originality" as unwomanly or self-reliances as unfenunine. The introductory paper, in paying a tribute to the piioneers in woman's higher education, enumerates the names of those women "who first proved that the New Zealand woman could be intellectually the equal of the man; the whole tendency of the report was to give girls more scope and more recognition to women's intellectual capacity, in that it recommends, in order to secure character and moral training, that opportunities be given to a leading woman toacher ro come into touch with all the girls in a school; it suggests that women shrould be teachers in the higher as well as in the forms in all schools, and not only as now in the back blocks, where men do not go, and it leads up to the logical conclusion that the time has come when some of the inspectors should be women.

The report does not assume that there is "only one kind of life-work for 'girls," as "Parent" says, that "they will all marry and have homes to look after." On the contrary, it aims at giving all girls some vocational course. As tho introductory paper says: "Our fourth aim is to provide a vocation for every girl. This opens up aiosD interesting work, and here again the present time urges us to act promptly; for never before has it been so necessary for all girls of all classes to be able to stand alone. ... It is for us to consider what more can be done in all types of schools to fit girls for this independence, and how early we shall work with a definite vocation in view. It is for the primary school to lay such a foundation as may prepare tbe way, and if the foundation is good it should not bq difficult for the secondary schools and teachnical to build upon it; but tho thoroughness, the efficiency, and the accuracy, which are still not so characteristic of women's work as of man's, must be attended to_ from the beginning. The question arises as to what other vocations are now open to girls, and what provision is being made in our secondary and technical schools to preparo girls for them. Girls are being called upon to undertake work hitherto performed by men, where they will need man's acouracy and business acumen. ...

Above all, it is to be hoped that the events of the present time will arouse us to make more practical use of scientiic discoveries than we have already, and there is much scope for girls' work in this direction, especially in our industries and in domestic management." But the origination of the report felt that there was here a great difference between the educational needs of the boy and girl. "We shall have to rememher that the quality of adaptability is far more necessary for a girl than for a boy, and at the present crisis is more necessary than ever. A boy can be trained from the beginning with the one definite end in view;-a girl never knows what is to be the end, and wo want to make her efficient for whatever' life may have in store for her. It is for us to consider how we can best give her, without sacrificing thoroughness, that many-sidedness she is Bure to need.

The committee was determined throughout, to do nothing to lower the standard of intellectual training given I to girls, and considered that'- in dealing witn the syllabus, it was more a matter of adjustment than of elimination, and that the inclusion of some Housecraft or home science in the course of every girl would not entail additional mental strain, nor need it in any way encroach on the time needed for, preparation for earning a livelihood or passing high'examinations. It is generally recognised that girls enjoy lessons in the domestio arts as boys enjoy their military training, and that for both these are a form of recreation. Even before the war there was evidence of a striking return to older ideas, brought about by a combination of true socialism and scientific thought, as to the duty of citizens to thencountry. It is the natural duty of man to bo able to defend his country as it is the natural duty of woman to be able to keep the homo, and the State iB not safe unless its boys and girls are specially trained to fulfil these functions efficiently. This idea is now so generally recognised that there seemed to be no need to urge, in the council the claims of this side of a girl's education. Quoting again from tho paper: "The reaction against the purely intellectual education of girls has already set in, and we are possibly in danger of running to the other extremo in our reforming zeal; let us keep all that we havo gained in thoroughness, in breadth and depth from assimilating girls' education to that of boys; but lot us remember that we are training a girl and not a boy; a girl with a different physical nature, a different class of mind, a different physical strength, and different work in life." When a girl enters into competition with man, and does ,tho same work, she is still differjnt, and although we do find men liKe women, and women liko men, it is not the type we aTo trying to develop. "The task of tho educator is in the first instance to develop to the highest perfection all the powers of the child that he may realise the ideal of the All-Father."

In recommending tliafc girls over ten years of ago be taught by women, the council was not aiming at tha "segregation of the sexes." But it was felt that the wider education wo have in view, must bo in a. woman's hands. The knowledge of life, which, rightly imparted, gives a girl dignity, womanly wisdom, and sclf-rc6pect, is more likely to bo gained if girls, during these impressionable years are taught by a woman rather than by a man. "I would have this question of the mean-

ing of lifo spoken of beautifully whenicver the subject arises, for I believo ,wo could do much to counteract tho great social evil of our days, if first parents and then teachers could deal with tho subject of lifo moro wisely both with boys and girls." Since tho meeting of tho council the need of this wider education haß been emphasised by sad happenings in our largo cities. The remedies suggested — women police, better lighting of our streets, moro wholesome entertainment for our young, deal with tho matter only superficially. It is more education of tho right kind that is needed, and the moro freely our girls have to go about, mingling in public work, away from tho shelter of a homo, the moro will they need that part of education which will give them some guiding roligious principle, and thus womanly wisdom, in addition to their mental equipment and preparedness to gain a livelihood. .. Tho recommendations of tho council go far, though not yet all the way, in the right direction, for until wo can sufficiently sink our religious differences to teach some guiding religious principles in our schools, our system will he incomplete. We should all be grateful to the men on the council who by understanding her needs are helping women to come into her own. It will be to the women who have the broader education that we shall look to copo with the evils that, in spite of our educational system, we have not yet touched. It 'is for woman to purify our social life, and it is this we havo in mind when we try to ensure for the girl the full development of all her power, for she will need all her physical and intellectual strength, all her spirit of self-reliance and _ independence, combined with high principle and womanly wisdom if she is to succeed.