TECHNICAL CLASSES ASSOCIATION

Otago Daily Times, Issue 14786, 19 March 1910, Page 9

TECHNICAL CLASSES ASSOCIATION

'ANNUAL MEETING. About a dozen members attended the twciily-lirst annual meeting oE the Technical Classes Association, which was held in tlio Technical School last evening. Mr G. M. Thomson, M.l 1 ., presided. The annual report, which was read by the secretary (Sir A. Marshall), has already been published.

Tho Chairman said: Gentlemen,—ln moving tho adoption of the report just read, I ■ would emphasise what is said with regard to the technical course arranged for our day and afternoon classes last year. It is a most regrettable fact that when courses of educational work aro open to the young people of tho community 60 many of them should bo so ill-advised as to liock into the commercial coursc, which, after all, requires a much lower level of intelligoncu and work than tho technical courses which are at the basis of all tlio higher trade work, to the great neglect of tho latter. I 11a v-j always held, and the conviction is strengthened every year, that what tho mass of tho community is seeking for is not education in the triic sense of tho word, but those " hall-marks" of education—cer- . tiJi-ojites, diplomas, and degrees-,—which have a commercial value, but the possession of which may ho quite coincident with an absolute want of a good education. Tho necessity for scientific and technical knowledgo is more and more urgent every, (lay, and tho price wo pay for tho want of it is so enormous that wo must' never cease urging its claims on the cominQnity. All men who aro placcd in positions of power and influence, and who, control in any dogroc tlio public purse, ought to bo men not only of wisdom, but of wide knowledge. \Vu aro very liable to be governed by tho ignorant. 1 do not use the word in an offensive sense, but with ibis implication: that men who have the gift of "talk"—l will 'lot call it " elcqucnco"—got thrust into positions for'which their previous education has given them no spoeial fitness. This is one of tho greatest dangers of our present system, -ind tlio wise man tries to avoid its dangers by employing men of speciul knowledge to control special departments. We have only to look round to see this fact at every turn. l By our system of parliamentary control of afl the interests of tho country wo have men with no spocial training for the lyork coming to be in j charge of branohes of the public service which rcquird special technical knowledge. I am not referring especially to our own Dominion—though the fact is very prominent here,—but to that prevailing in most of thoso frco communities. Finance, railways, public health, education, defcnce, mining, forestry—all llieso demand special technical knowledgo, but tho amount of special training possessed by members or tho legislative assemblies is not always sufliciont to enable them to estimate such knowledge at its right value. The tendency in "municipal allairs also is to convert them into largo business concerns requiring very special skill aiid knowledge for their management. We need not look far for an illustration of this when wo think of tho Gasworks inquiry whM' has quite recently oxercised the public mind, Harbour Boards, Drainago Boards, and especially Hospital Boards suroly require men of sjjecial education and training oven to enable them to judge adequately of tho value of tho technical skill they employ; yet ovcry Tom, Dick, and Harry in the place thinks himself qualified for ■ a seat on one or other of three public bodies;-' even though his education, as far as school was concerned, never exceeded that of our present Sixth Standard. What aro. wo to say—in this twentieth contury with all our boasted scientific know-ledgo—-of a Hospital Board which employs a diviner" to locate the position of subterranean water? Wo seem to have gone baok-lo the days of Douslprsu-ivcl. It matters not a whit that he is said to have been successful There aro many parts of this country whore it would bo 1 difficult fc> fail in this search. But that a board munag* ing one of the most, technical and scientifically conducted establishments in the country should do such a thing is astounding. But nothing of this kind surprises me now. | have come to realise that there is nothing in this world so colossal as human ignorance. Thoro is all tho more irjed, then, to urge the importance of tho acquisition on tho part of our young peoplo of some basal knowledge of scientific and technical instruction, and that is what this school is meant to provide. Incidentally, I would like to refer to 'tho conference of educational experts which was held in Wellington last month. I confess that l 'do not know what was expected of the conference, nor can I see tliatf anything has resulted. It was not clear on what basis it was* framed, and evidently a good many porsons who considered themselves experts were not invited to attend. Indeed, ihc number of exports who wore not asked provided the only amusing part of tho conference. It is not good policy to provide a feast of good things for youi friends and then to leave out a number of persons who expect to bo invited to partake of it. But in this case the uninvited need not .feel muoh aggrieved. Tho conference turned out a vcritablo'Barmeeide leust. There was nothing definite put bofore it, and consequently thoro was agreat deal of palaver about "ideals," about "discovering aptitudes and capacities, and other matters which are tho commonplaces of every good teacher's work, but very little real progress was made. What we would like to Jui\o seen discussed was whether tho present' syllabus with its multifarious subdivisions of work, and the methods of trying to put logical sequence of ideas into immature cianiums, was not turning out, as very many persons think, pupils less worthily equipped for future work than wag tho case 10 or 20 years ago. Whether also wo were not wasting the time of our youn o ** stcrs ill the primary schools by teaching them handiwork instead of grounding tilieni better in the rudiments of sound knowledge. As far as 1 oan judgo from the press reports -the confcrenco was *i waste of ilime and has not advanced the cause of education at all. In regard to domestic scienco_ the University of New Zealand has decided to grant degrees in this subject, and the lirst chair lias been established in Orago University. There is considerable difference of opinion on the questions as to whether, such a chair is wanted, whether it will be taken advautngo of, and so on. Now, criticism is i usually easy, but it is not helpful unless based on sound knowledge. In this caso the establishment of tho chair is an accomplished fact, and it is for us as citizens and pel-sons interested in tho school where a considerable part of the practical .'.raining required for the degree will havo to bo obtained to do our part to further the schemo to the bc\st of our ability, Let 'us'make our part of tho work as effective as -possible, ami in this, a« in all other directions in which wo co-oporato with tho University or othor educational institutions, let us sink all idea of competition, and simply endeavour to make all the teaching here as. effective as possible. There is far too much tendency for different institutions working in tho samo place on tho eanio' lines to run more or less oountcr to one another, I would like to see all the educational institutions of this city working together, with as little friction and overlap as possible, so as to make this city the " Modern Athens" of tho Southern Seas. 11l hie 'report to tho trustees of tho Dunedin 'Hospital, dated September 1, 1608, Dr Falconer said: " At my request the Dunedin Technical School has opened' a class in physiology for nurses. 1 have hopes that this class will bo tho forerunner of that school becoming recognised as a preliminary training school for nurses, teaching the subjects of physiology, cooking, domestic economy, and hygiene. This would prevent the nurses being unduly taxed with studies during their hospital career here, and allow them moro time for tho study of medical and surgical nursing. It would also facilitate arrangements boing made for post-graduato lectures to the certificated nurses and ward sistors." Dr Falconer informs mo that in London and America there are _ regular training schools for nurses which give preliminary training in anatomy and physiology, plain and invalid cookery, domestic and hospital economy, household hygiene, etc. Thus tho time of Iho nurse is saved when she comes to the hospital, and she is ablo to undertake the study of medical and surgical nursing forthwith. And where a young lady knows she is going in for nursing, sho could lill in hor waiting time profitably by attending classes in these subjects. Dr Falconer proposes that tho Government be asked to allow candidates who hold the certificates of the Technical School in anatomy and physiology to sit for the first State nursing examination. That practically means that ho suggests that the Technical School bo a recognised teaching tcliool in anatomy and physiology, as it is at present ill the subject of sick 'cookery. All the senior Hospital nurses take their cookcry coursc in tho Technical School. Dr Falconer examined tho students last year and found the standard of their knowlodgc quite equal to that of the first State nurses' examination. All privalc hospital nuiws ■should also attend our classes. Complaint is. frequently made abou,t the great cos* of <

our educational system, and its growth of late yoars, and most of this is wrongly attributed to technical education. An examination of. the last report (that for 1908) will therefore be of interest, and will show what the various portions of this department of our national worlc cost. Summarised it 6tands as follows: — Head odico £ 9,119 1 1 Elementary education 662,470 2 1 Secondary education 70,661 4 6 Manual and technical inetntction 77,081 0 2 Training colleges and training of teachers 31,668 8 0 Higher education 26,034 17- 1 Public School Cadets 5,491 15 6 Native schools 32,246 15 4 Industrial schools 36,224 17 7 Infant life protection 1.022 13 10 School for the Deaf 4,188 5 4 Education of the blind ... 2,603 19 2 Home for Backward Children 10,608 9 3 Miscellaneous 6,774 5 2

Total . . 14 2 An analysis of the item of £77,081 for manual and' technical instruction (less than 8 per cent, of tho w-hole cost) shows that £22,023 was piiri as capitation- to school classes, £17,335, .is capitation tc special associated and college classes (shell as those of this school), and £6710 for holders. A very large proportion' of this sum—nearly ,i' third of tho whole—goes then for school classes, and in the opinion, I lwlieve, of tlio great majority of teachers and .others competent to form an oniirioily this money, with tho exception of that P'tid for cookery classes. ; e money wasted. I am sure it also represents much time wasted, bv teachers and pupils alike, that !! t m 1,0 "tib'sed. An item of Railway fares of holders of free places," £2657, forms part of this £77,081. This, of c ° ms ?- ' s '"orely an adjustment between Iho l'.ducation and tho Railway Department, and only represents money taken out of one Uovornmon* iiockct and put into another. If th?s3 pupils did not gain free places it is quite certain that very few of them would travel op the railways, In regard to our own school, I would like to give you a few figures, which show not onlythe -growth of the institution, but I,lie economical manner in which our work has been carried out:—Total spent on buildings since beginning, £70C0; on machinery, apparatus, furniture, fittings, £3500; annual salary list 10 years ago, £500, lire years ago £ICOO, last year £2000; average attendance of students for 10 years, PSO. One is tempted lioro to refer to other >tems in this statement, liuis tho head office is responsible for a<n expenditure of £9119 Is 7d. Hut if to this is added the salaries and travelling expenses of IJio inspectors of flio manual and technical institutions (£IO2B 3s sd), of tho inspectors of Native schools (£1303 12s 9d), of special school inspectors (£1505 10s lid), the cost of .the School Journal, ctc. (£2325 lis Od), we get a total amount of £15,2£6 19s Bd, which it seems legitimate to debit. Ihc head office with. Again, the administration of the various Education Boards (p. 15) alone' costs £39,730 9s 7d. In tho case of the boards controlling large districts tho cost of administration is. probably well expended, but in the small cducatisnal ilistricts it -s certainly - disproportionately high. In conclusion, I think we can congratulate ourselves on the work of our school for the past year. Started more than 21 years ago, it was.carried on, and did excellent work, for 11 years, entirely by this association of subscribers. Air tho othor technical schools in the colony arose either after Government assistance was assured, or as appendages of tlie local education boards. Our school was a voluntary institution, and only passed under the control of the "Education Board hero in order to secure, the property which it had acquired. lam glad to see that the sub ; scribsrs to the old association still show their warm appreciation of the work done by tho 'handsome financial support: they continue to give to it.y!Applause.)' Mr T. Scott, in seconding (he motion for the adoption of the report, ea.it] he thought it was very gratifying to find that the school was in the (position it occupied to-day. One of the principal filings that would come before tho new hoard would ho the question of extra accommodation. In tho engineering class especially they required moro room. There were two schemes before the managers—one to lease tho ground next the school, and the other to build an entirely new school. Ho thought the latter, in tlio face of tlovernment. retrenchment, was out of tho question, and it would come, to leasing the ground and building according to requirements. This last year tho mechanical and engineering classes-had been well attended, and had done an immense amount of good. They had been fortunate in their teachers, who, for the small salary received, had shown a great deal of enthusiasm. Mr G. C. Israel said everyone connected with the school appreciated the work done, and he thought every opportunity should be given the public to inspect the work turned out. As to the question of extending the premises, it was undoubtedly necessary that should bft dnim hut he did not know that he altogether agreed -with Mr Scott that they, should look forward to the occupation of the present building for any period. The site had become extremely valuable. They would see palatial warehouses being erected aL-out there, and ho would liko to see tho board contemplating in the near future the possibility of securing from the Board of Education tho vacant site in Stuart street. Tho Board of Education had a desirable site with which it was doing nothing, and lie would like to seo tho board's hands forced in connection with it, and the best made ol the present opportunity to sell the present site. The new building need not bo an extravagant one. They had spent in building, or the Board of Education through- the Technical Sohool had, the sum of £7COO. Just let them oonooivo what £7000 could have done on that site in Stuart street. The present was an building, and the best had been, done- with it, but he thoueht thoy should look a little beyond it. Ho would like to see. a commencement made. They need not expand into a great building all at once. In, Australia a magnificent building ln?3 beon. ©reeled piceemeal. Ho thought they should contemplate in the near future a removal to this site while the opportunity ottered to take advantage of tho enhanced value of the hind in their own vicinity to sell. He tho board would keep that in view .and ,ake steps to move in the direction he had indicated.

Thi; Chairman remarked that they had always had their eye on the Normal School.

Professor White said ho had always taken a great, interest in the institution, and he congratulated the Boird of Governors u;ioii the progress the institution was making. Ho was sure a gocd deal of that progress was owing to the very careful and com■nonsense administration of its manager and superintendent (Mr Marshall). Ho was glad to sec that a very good beginning had Ixmii made in establishing day classes, and ho hoped that that movement would continue, and that ividoi opportunities would be given to boys and girls to attend them. While it might, be a wise thing to launch forth in this Dominion into compulsory military training, it was inore important for the life of our youth, and for their progress and advancement, that our youth should have more intellectual and industrial training. Ho would like to see,the Education Department taking steps to make it compulsory for. ajl youths to have a «r-. tain definite training in . physical exercise and gymnastics one night a week. That he thought was an essential step in the life of our young people. But physical training <vas not everything,' and ho would like to see it made compulsory that youths should go to tlio technical classes and tako one class. It might be mado compulsory for all youths between the ages of 15 and 18 years to spend two hours a week, to be taken out of their leisure time, in getting a sound training at the school. He was sure that it would tend to the improvement/ami elevation of our social and industrial life more than -military training would. As to the site," he had Paid that in 10 years the present site would he too small, and lie had not altered his views. There was not the acCommodatoin at the present school to carry on t,ho work in the way it should bo carried on. He thought, the site in Stuart 'street, was really, the site for their rcmiiremetits for the next 20 or 30 voars. Let them look to tlie future.

Mr Scott explained that ho only meant leasing the ground next to the school as n temporary expedient The motion for. the adoption of the report was then carried.

.Mr J. F. Arnold, 11.P., moved the election of Messrs G. M. Thomson. A. Burt; •A. 11. Wiikihson, and Goo. Simpson as innnasjers, nnd_ this was carried, Mr Arnold himself declining nomination.