UNIVERSITY IDEALS

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXX, Issue 21498, 23 May 1933, Page 11

UNIVERSITY IDEALS

MEETING THE CRISIS LEARNING AND DEMOCRACY ; NEED FOR HIGHER EDUCATION ADDRESS BY LORD BLEDISLOE Some observations upon the place of universities in modern life, and particularly in the crisis through which the world is passing, were made by the Governor-General, Lord Bledisloe, in his address at the jubilee reception at the Auckland University College last evening.

" Any university, in order to exercise its most vitalising and stimulating influence in its civic environment should, within bounds, enjoy freedom of speech, of policy, and of curricula," said His Excellency. "It should, in a general and non-partisan sense, mould politics rather than be moulded by them. " For this reason, if for no other, although State grants are to a large extent proper and essential for university maintenance, a revenue derived to a substantial extent from outside en- ' dowments is of high value in ensuring that spirit of virile independence and untrammelled breadth of outlook, which have characterised throughout the ages all the great universities of the world. It is difficult to conceive any object of testamentary benevolence more worthy of beneficent consideration on the part of far-sighted patriots. - Lack ol Faith Decried " Amid conditions of unparalleled industrial stagnation, it may be well to contemplate with long-range vision the effect of economic tribulation upon the prospects of a university. Funds may be lacking for extension of premises, • but, bearing in mind that industrial prosperity is a vital condition of professional well-being, and that the former is increasingly dependent upon greater and more precise knowledge, especially in the fields of advanced science and post-war economics, the need of such higher education as only a university can provide becomes more insistent and more widely recognised. " There is a tendency to speak woefully of world-wide depression, overproduction and unemployment, indicating perhaps with strange lack, of faith in the future and of confidence in the nation's destiny and our own that these conditions are chronic and largely irremediable. To do this is to accept complacently for our country and our race a standard of mediocritVj intellectual, moral and industrial, unworthy of British traditions or of those gallant, self-reliant pioneers who blazed the trail in this sunny land of immeasurable opportunity well nigh a century ago. Democracy is in theory the most perfect form of government. " A university which is not democratic in its administration, its human ambit and its curriculum, is unworthy of the name. But if the modern interpretation of democracy as applied to the higher grades of education means a levelling down of educational, and inferentially vocational, standards, instead of levelling them up, if it' involves putting a premium upon intellectual mediocrity and the stifling of the genius of a nation, the supreme academic embodiment of such a system is not a university, but may more fitly be called a workhouse or a prison.

Call For Leadership " The world, and pre-eminently that large part of it over which floats the Union Jack, is crying aloud to-day, not for human mediocrities raised in an atmosphere which obstructs normal growth, but for men and women of, commanding intellectual and moral stature, who will fearlessly, prudently and confidently become leaders, not only in public life (of paramount importance though that be), but in every branch of professional, industrial and commercial activity, who, instead of truckling to the lack of knowledge or the weaknesses of the proletariat, will promote its greater welfare by courageously and knowledgeably indicating, and constructively opening up, the paths by which national prosperity, contentment and happiness may be achieved, and, once achieved, permanently maintained."

Lord Bledisloe quoted with approval the following passage from Sir George Grey's valedictory address to the citizens of Auckland in 1891: —"With humility, yet with fortitude, pursue your task. Falter not. March resolutely on, with trii'th and justice on" cither hand, with the love of mankind as your guiding star, your duty to your Maker as the staff on which you lean. Then will God bless you and make you a blessing to the ages yet to come." The Test of a University With these stirring sentiments he fully agreed, said His Excellency, but to-day they needed amplifying and interpreting in the light of modern world conditions. If the aim were to be fulfilled, then, in the nation's interest, no curb must be put upon opportunity for self-realisation for every individual, however humble, who was endowed by his Creator with exceptional genius and the capacity and inclination to cultivate and employ it for his country's good. The fame of a university did not depend upon splendid buildings or equipment, but upon the quality and vocational achievement of its graduate output. In every phase of its work thoroughness and meticulous accuracy, together with self-discipline and perseverance, must be" stressed as essential conditions of assufed success among all those, however limited their natural endowment, who' enjoyed the privilege of university training. This was of even greater moment than the duty of assuring due scope to exceptional genius. His Excellency's Prediction

The prizes of the world were destined to go, not to those peoples and individuals who were rich or clever, but to those who showed the qualities he had mentioned —qualities that had declined in the post-war period. "It is because I firmly believe that the human material of this Dominion is unsurpassed in its physical and intellectual calibre and potentialities by any in the world,'-' concluded Lord Bledisloe, "and because the. past history of this college has furnished it with a solid foundation of sound tradition and worthy achievement, that 1 confidently predict that it is destined to play a conspicuous part in making New Zealand in the years that are to come famous throughout the world for virile intellectuality*! constructive achievement, and truo culturo."