SECONDARY SCHOOLS

Evening Post, Volume CX, Issue 45, 21 August 1925, Page 3

SECONDARY SCHOOLS

PRINCIPALS AND ASSISTANTS CONFER

. EDUCATION DIRECTOR'S VIEWS

The combined conference of principals and assistants of secondary schools was continued this morning. ■ Mr. J. Murray presided. The Director of .Eduoation (Mr. J. Caughley), addressing the conference, repudiated the idea that secondary education was being given to too large a number of students. The wider life of today made increased higher education imperative. University education was far from perfect, but the middle area, involving secondary school problems, must be dealt with first. The schools must be modelled to meet, the needs of every type of boy and girl. The wrong educational diet might be the cause of a boy's failure at secondary work, but he did not agree that a different type of school should be established for different needs. General education should he provided for one universal type of school. In purely- technical schools general education was liable to suffer. When he spoke of' combination, he did not mean. the setting up of. machinery plants at all secondary schools. These things attracted boys naturally, and detracted from interest in general education, but there should be some form of hand work taught in every secondary school. But it was essential that boys shpuld be taught the skilful use of tools before being allowed to handle machines. A handy man could work a machine in six months as well as a man trained for twenty years. He had seen, in all factories, that the handicraftsman disappeared as a handicraftsman when put on a machine, and lost the touch of work with his hands. JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOLS He confessed that he had changed his mind regarding junior high schools and their articulation with the existing system. The primary form of instruction was too long already, and it would be a mistake to lengthen it. The greatest argument in favour oi the junior high, school was that it caught the pupil on the threshold of adolescence, the receptivity was greatest, and if a cleavage were to be made between primary

school and junior high school,, that was the point to make it. It would be impossible in small centres jiot to attach the junior high school to the secondary school, as apart they would he too weak to stand, .and united they offered the ; benefit of the full six years' course. In . the lareer centres the position was different. " In Auckland there would have to be nin* high schools if they were not to exceed 600 or 700 pupils. If each of these was made a full secondary school; the numbers in the senior forjns would V . so attenuated as to be inadvisable. 2f had come to the opinion thai the ju»' or high school course should be part of • t jj e ordinary high school course. [Applar (ge \ The bigger school attracted prestiga an ft even those pupils who did not iatt' complete the course liked to aJtV > n( j jt. He had suggested, in regard f free places, that they Bhould canr* . obligatory attendance at a junior IU/ fa gohool This could be extended to&to .ttier three years' course at a secondaoy school, as the exemptions were libesr , enough to cover any circumstances. Answering questions, ? Ir> Caughley said that if schools becaw et^ j arge the headmaster was necesssr j y too i gnoran t of all that happened tor the good of the school, and for that ree son the joining'of two or more Junior lligh schools to a secondary school wou> d {orm too cumbersome an institution. j t wou i<i b 6 a nega . tion of the junior ' Aigtl school po i icy to add a junior higr n schoo i . te a tech . nical school, as i' _ wou ld force selection ol a trade at w_, ear ]y an a g eThe Director / of Education was thanked for his add resßi

RE' AITS CARRIED The folloT /ing remits were carried:— "That t; ie Senate of the University of New 7 ,ealand be requested to provide and permit use of four figure logarithr n j c tables in the matriculation examin/ ition." "In the opinion of this association, at tb/ j entrance scholarship examination 300 : marks should be allotted to geogra> phy instead of 200." . ' 'That the arithmetic paper set' in w atriculation, 1924, was most unsuit- »' ble." ■"That this association expresses its admiration of the broadmindcd terms of the Lissie Rathbone bequest, and its appreciation of the actions of the trustees in allocating £3000 to each of the four colleges for the endowment of additional university entrance scholarships." "That the association learns with pleasure of the liberal endowment by Mrs. J. P. - Gabbatt of a travelling scholarship for women graduates, the Sir William Hartley scholarship," ■ "Tliat the Senate of the University of New Zealand be requested to amend the statute dealing with the entrance scholarship examination by reinserting the words, 'ratio, proportion, variation, the progressions, permutations, and combinations' in the Algebra prescription." RIDDIFORD CUP COMPETITION TJie report of the special committee set up to considor the Riddiford Cup competition, recommending that the Defence Department be written to stating the opposition of the association to 'the Riddiford Cup, was adopted, for the following reasons: (a) That the competition interferes unduly with the •general work of military training, which itraining must of necessity vary to suit ■different schools, conditions, and localities ; (b) that it interferes unduly with other soliool activities; (c) that the competition gives an undue advantage to small units and makes it an absolute impossibility for larger unitß to compete on an equality with smaller schools. 'The competition therefore tends,' said the report, 'to present to the outside public a totally erroneous impression of efficiency when comparisons have to be made between larger Units and smaller units. The New Zealand secondary schools are already adequately provided with sufficient trophies and inducements for proficiency in rifle shooting.' " Mr. Strachan (RPiiiglova) suggested 'that a progressive, and evolutionary scheme, by cutting off the sixth standard from the primary school, and adding a second fo>;-tn to tli6 secondary school, would prove more economical and equally satisfactory, compared with an imported scheme, regarding junior high schools. (Proceeding.)