CHARACTER BUILDING.

Otago Witness, Issue 3111, 29 October 1913, Page 71

CHARACTER BUILDING.

INFLUENCE OF EDUCATION.

SPEECH BY MR G. M. THOMSON. (From Our Own Correspondent.) WELLINGTON, October 23. A speech of a much more interesting type than usual was delivered in the House this evening by Mr G. M. Thomson on the Education Act Amendment Bill. Mr Thomson dealt with the subject of education on very broad lines, and gave expression to some interesting views as to the developments likely to occur in the future in the educational system of the country. Starting with the prediction that the monetary cost of education would, in the future, be materially greater than in the past, Mr Thomson proceeded to give reasons in detail for this belief. There could bo no wiser investment, he said, for the country than in the proper education of the young people. Possibly, economies could be effected in some directions and wasteful extravagance prevented in others, but he thought we must recognise that it would be increasingly expensive. He would point out the directions in which that increase would be manifested. At present the child was started in its intellectual life by kindergarten methods, by which it was taught through the joy of life and trained to observe and develop all its faculties without any coercion. This continued up to the age of 5 or so, when the child was put into standard work, and a new; system started upon. Now the principle of discipline was introduced and the child subjected to close rules and the old joyous methods dropped. MORE KINDERGARTEN. This change, said Mr Thomson, should take place only gradually, and he believed we would be obliged to extend kindergarten methods into the schools till a later age of the child. This would involve expense, because such teachers could w'ork only with small classes. In this connection he pointed out that in our larger schools the teachers dealt with more pupils each than in almost any other country. In the United States each teacher dealt with 25 pupils; in Wales, with 38.3; m England, with 32.5; in Scotland, with 38.1; in Switzerland, with 42.7; and in New Zealand with as many as 48.3 children. If more kindergarten methods wer-» to be pursued that number would be re* duced and the expense increased. After mentioning the possibilities of the Moutessori methods Air Thomson regretted that there was a lack of continuity in our edu cational methods. “I believe,” he continued, ‘That th> day is fast coming when we shall recognise the necessity for open-air schools, n order to counteract the diseases to which children are subject. We are coming to the day when we shall train our children to occupy rooms with permanently-opened windows, and the effect will be very valuable to the community. . Mr Thomson quoted a letter addressed by Dr Colquhoun to the Dunedin Technical School managers, upon the merits of the open-air school, and expressed his conviction that the type of school buildings would be radically altered in the future. THE CHARACTER YEARS. Very interesting observations were next made by Mr Thomson upon the necessity for a closer recognition of the importance of the “character yeax-s“ in a child’s life. In this country, lie said, parental control over the child had largely ceased, and all children enjoyed an enormous amount ol freedom. This might have its good points, but it certainly had its bad points, and he believed that the problem of forming the character of children between 14 and 18 would, in the future, have to be resolutely faced. In a side reference Mr Thomson said he supported the military system because lie felt that it would* morally benefit the voung men and the whole community. Tiiere was a tendency now, he continued, to glorify children. It was a feature of the age, and it had its dangerous side. There was the tendency to make life too easy for our children, that old saying, “It is a good thing for a man to endure hardness in his youth,” being forgotten. Our primary schools had abolished home lessons to a very large ex-, tent. Why, he could not understand. Indeed ho looked upon it as a very regrettable thing, for its effect was to fill the picture shows—those which were doing huge educational harm in the country. There was absolutely no educational value in them, he asserted, and they wore mere.y wasting the time of the country. “FOR PUBLIC MORALITY.” We want to see our children kept more in their homes at night, continued Mr Thomson. Some people talk of a curfew law, but there would have been no need to suggest it if home lessons had not been abolished. That was a system which required them to learn a certain amount every night. It was a good thing; it gave them something to do, something to think about, and it certainly did not interfere with the amount of freedom every child should have. The question of guiding the child over the difficult years of its life would have to be faced. It would cost money, but it would bo money .well spent. His remedy

was more continuation classes. That would have an effect on the standard of public morals generally, and would save the country money in the long run in many directions. It would promote a new sense of public morality in regard to the duties of man to man. The lack of this was, seen in our Labour disputes at the present time, in the conflicts between employer and employee, and the State should certainly strive to work in the direction of raising up a stronger sense of public morality.