POST-WAR EDUCATION

Dominion, Volume 34, Issue 85, 4 January 1941, Page 10

POST-WAR EDUCATION

British Minister’s SweepingPlans SOCIOLOGICAL CHANGES (British Official Wireless.l (Received January 3, 7.30 p.m.) RUGBY. January 2. Sweeping plans for education alter the war were revealed by the I’resident of the Board of Education, Mr. Ramsbotham, speaking at Oxford. He said the mistakes made after the last war would not be repeated. lheie would be changes in British social and economic conditions which would hat e a profound effect upon young’people, particularly between the ages ot 14 and IS. Now was the time to lay plans tor great and far-reaching reforms in postprimary education covering the yc<us 11 to 18, he said. He and his advisers were giving deep and careful thought to this problem. As soon as possible after the war the 1936 Act to raise the school leaving age to 15 would be enforced. It was his personal belief and ultimate goal to adopt a minimum leaving age of 16, but before this was possible adequate forms of education' to suit the varying tasks and capacities of the children must be devised. He did not support the demand for secondary education for all because forms of secondary education of sufficient variety and diversity did not exist. He believed that, we should provide and develop types of- post primary education ou a less academic basis for a very large number of children, and we must see that, no question of prestige or fallacious distinction between, social and libcial types of education stood in the way of establishing parity between modern schools, grammar schools and technical high schools.