ONE SCHOOL SUFFICIENT

New Zealand Times, Volume LII, Issue 12194, 20 July 1925, Page 7

ONE SCHOOL SUFFICIENT

EVIDENCE AT YARSITY COMMISSION UR. PICKERILL’S VIEWS Per Press Association. DUNEDIN, July 18. The University Commission resumed this morning. Dr Pickerill, director of tho Dental stated that he estimated New Zealand’s requirements at present as from twenty to twenty-five dental graduates per annum, but within twenty years they would require to deal with double that number. Instead of duplicating special schools, he recommended the Education Department to establish bursaries sufficient to cover the cost of travel and incidental expenses of students not resident in Dunedin, the bursaries being directly proportionate to the distance. Thuß, north of Auckland students might get £6O and South Canterbury students only £lO. The numerical proportion of the staff to the students should be one to eight for clinical .work and one to twelve for mechanical work. These requirements might be met partly by the appointment of visiting dentists, which would mean probably appointment of six lecturers at a salary of £2OO each. When the new Dental School building was occupied there would be additional maintenanoe cost. Last year the school earned over £2OOO in clinical fees, while students’ fees were over £3000; but even so, there was a considerable adverse balance, and it was therefore clear that the sohool needed a generous increase on £SOO, the present grant frqm the Education Department. EXTENSION OF STUDY i Dr Pickerill also stated that it work, and also that provision would he ably the research and post-graduate work, and also that provision would , e necessary in the new school for the trailing annually of a small number of girl mechanics. He mentioned that it was hoped to- institute a public dental service for Dunedin in which groups of students, under the supervision and with the consent of employers, would periodically inspect, chart, and report on the condition of the employees of all large firms. In answer to questions, Dr Pickerill said that, in Britain the proportion of dental schools to the population was approximately Ito 3,000,000; in Australia 1 to 2,000,000, in New Zealand 1 to 1,250,000. Neither from the service viewpoint nor the public fianance viewpoint was a second school neoessary.