ENGLISH IN SCHOOLS.

Manawatu Standard, Volume LVII, Issue 196, 20 July 1937, Page 10

ENGLISH IN SCHOOLS.

SOME PRACTICAL ADVICE. DR. NORWOOD'S BELIEF. Per Press Association. . DUNEDIN, July 19. Speaking "in the spirit of a working school-master,” Dr. Cyril Norwood, president of St. John’s College, Oxford, and a former headmaster of Harrow, gave some practical advice on the teaching of English at the New Education Fellowship Conference to-day. In his opinion what was wanted was to give the pupils before they left •cbool an idea that there was such a thing as good English, and some understanding of the difference between them. Whether or not that result could be achieved depended on the teacher. The pupils should be able at the completion of the course, to express themselves intelligently in speech and in writing. They should have an appreciation of rhythm in language. They should he able to read aloud with intelligence, and be able to follow a line of thought. Finally, they should have formed the beginnings of a love of literature. Tt was worthy, of note that most of these qualities were not capable of being estimated by examination, and the result was that they did not receive the place they should in the school curriculum. He remarked specially, that there was, in general, insufficient attention to oral work. The contents of school magazines showed that there was an immense amount of good imitative work being produced by boys and girls, indicating that written English was being taught along fairly satisfactory lines, hut he did not believe that the same could be said ol oral instruction. Although he did not criticise the examining system in English, which, he said, he thought was probably as good as any examination on the subject could be, he remarked that courses were planned to attain good results in examination and were essentially cramming with facts and second-hand opinions. Tn England 40000 examination candidates got credit in English each year, and personally, ho would not care to guarantee that one of them could read, write, or speak correctly. He would like schools to be free altogether from external examinations English, like religion in schools could not be taught so much as caught from the personal enthusiasm of the instructor. Further, every teacher, no matter what his subject, should require good English from his pupils.