WORKERS’ EDUCATIONAL ASSOCIATION.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 21102, 12 August 1930, Page 15

WORKERS’ EDUCATIONAL ASSOCIATION.

WHAT) IS ADULT EDUCATION?

This is how a writer in The Times educational supplement defines adult education;—

“ The adult docs not, as a rule, thirst after knowledge' of the text book kind; he wonts to understand better the world of men and things which are the daily experience of himself and his fellows. It is a philosophy that he desires, and the mechanics’ institutes offered him facts which were deliberately chosen -to help him in his daily labour. He withdrew, and the institutes become social clubs for the lower middle classes. The university extension movement again offered him lectures —not utilitarian this time, but cultural, yet in no way related to his background. He withdrew, and university extension courses became the mark of intellectual interests in the upper middle classes. It was only in the twentieth century that we “discovered clearly why the approach was wrong. The workers have realised that what matters in their daily life is a science called economics and a state which governs them. *lf they could only understand the laws of science, and appreciate the pm and purpose of the State, they .believe that they might understand the humbler problems which perplex them. They hunger, too, for the culture that has been denied them, but they are less' united in agreeing as to its form. Music, literature, painting, the theatre, all have their following and. all play their - part in humanising the masses. But tbe supreme quest is to understand. Free discussion 4s what really matters. So long as the tutor guides, so long as the students are stimulated into a mental activity which can resip his domination, so* long is adult education vigorous, .healthy, and good. Bat the devices which can secure this activity can never be foreseen, or passed on from one country to another;, they most be discovered * and fashioned anew in every place. Adult education is toe obvious need of a democratic state, just as is the expression of a people who want.to understand better their status and duties as citizens ,by viewing more clearly the forces which operate on their daily lives.”. ADULT EDUCATION IN RUSSIA.

One ..of the greatest needs in Russia, of Course, is the spread of education among the masses; and a recent,bulletin of the World Association for Adult Education has an interesting article on the theme. The current ambition is to work for “ districts of complete literacy.” “The North Caucasus,” it is said, “is already considering the problem of: complete elimination of illiteracy by May 1, 1931—i.e., in a year and a-half, and in connection with this it must teach during the course of 1929-30 900,000 illiterates and, semi-illiterates, %nd 1,500,000 in 1930-31. Many districts in . the Central Black Soil region have announced themselves districts of complete elimination of illiteracy and entered into a socialist competition among, themselves for completely covering and, training all illiterates in 1929-30. In the same' region three . districts—Kursky, Oriel, and Usman—have become districts of complete elimination of illiteracy and teach a total of 500,000 illiterate ' and semi-illiterate persons. In the Urals', too, 1 there are districts where complete literacy is being taught. . ’ . , , The ienfpo adopted by the Central Black Soil district, North Caucasus, and. Lower Volga, will become the general tempo., Everywhere in all districts 'and sections, where complete . elimination of illiteracy's going du, it is usually found that these. districts correspond to districts and sections of' complete colleo-' tivisation.

“The planning and carrying out of this work is placed largely on the Society, for Combating Illiteracy. : This is a voluntary., society, existing, since 1924. The society is. reorganising' its methods and form of work in connection with the complete\ elimination of illiteracy; Experience gained in the Central Black Soil district will form the basis for this reorganisation. *

1 “ The basis for this experimental "work is .the mass 'sending, for a brief time .period, of district and .sectional city literate forces to villages "where com-.' plete j liquidation of illiteracy will ; he carried on. This work is based entirely on the system of cultural brigade? existing'in these cities. For example, all'the students of the eighth and ninth years of the secondary school in Oriel .'were released from their .studies and sent to the villages for pwo and a-half months, as were ’the students of Several technical colleges and teaching personnel which* were temporarily unengaged. Ah army of 10,000 cultural workers was thus organised. All work in elimination "of illiteracy tins acquires a special ‘shock’ brigade character. . Careful preliminary organisation is carried out Village meetings decide on obligatory study for aIL Frequently individual villages challenge each other to a Socialist' competition. Beading .huts are adopted, and the question of attracting the interest of farm hands,- poor peasants, and women is given special-at-tention.’ In order to make their studies easier, children’s rooms are established ■where the women can leave' their children during the study hour.

“The cultural brigade, However, does not merely limit its work to elimination of illiteracy in the narrow sense of the word. Work for the elimination of political and agricultural illiteracy in the village is . carried on. Special hoars are devoted to teaching political ahd agrarian questions at bases and in the circles. At toe same time the brigades connect their work with the general political and economic problems concerning the village; they carry on propaganda for the spring sowing campaign, collectivisation, 1 etc. “At toe .conclusion of its work, every brigade reports on its accomplishments, at meetings of the village'Soviets and meetings of The Society for Combating Illiteracy, and describes the future plan of work for the village in question.” And so the great and many-sided experiment 1 goes on.- Whatever one thinks of Russian political activities; surely this tremendous effort at national enlightenment must have the sympathy of every one who cares for knowledge. “The multitude of the wise is the welfare of the world.”