FILMS IN SCHOOLS

Grey River Argus, 12 February 1938, Page 3

FILMS IN SCHOOLS

RAPID SPREAD IN AUCKLAND. [Our Own correspondent]. ANCKLAND, February 10. Through the enterprise of the Auckland Visual Education Association, the use of the cinema in the schools of the province is being rapidly extended. This association, the only one of its kind in the Dominion, was formed in 1935 by a group of 'Auckland teachers, who aimed to build up a library of educational films for schools. In the three years of its existence, the number of schools affiliated to it has grown from three to 31. The annual subscription of £3 entitles every affiliated institution to one reel a week, chosen from a remarkably wide range of 150 films. “Though the value of the cinema as a vivid medium of instruction has long been widely recognised in New Zealand,” said Mr T. 11. \Vhitwell, honorary secretary of the association, “the greatest obstacle to its general use has been the cost of films, the average price of a reel being about £5.” The association had gathered together a library of 150 films. This had been made possible largely by the generous assistance of the Governments of New Zealand, Australia, Canada, Germany, and Japan. Films had also been bought very cheaply by special arrangements with the United States Bureau of Argiculture and similar bureaux in other countries, notably Australia. By the end of this term, it was expected that another 23 reels would be added to the library.