CORRESPONDENCE.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XXIII, Issue 7657, 16 June 1896, Page 4

CORRESPONDENCE.

EDUCATION. [To. hi* Editor of the Hebald.] fe?S^|^Aa;.obe '.ot the earliest students of |||the/ Bpience and art classes formed at which iusti|||Sution ./Intake -.;tb" be the birthplace of Bit&Ohfaioal edudatiori for British artisans, trust to be considered in order if I k%*atteujpt to answer the questions stated in feltlfo^letter'of" Worker " in your issue of IpSwistday. '--■ ■-• \ §p:-23;.Technical education, from a student's iJ^fppirit.of view, broadly interpreted, may ,'"; be taken to* mean education in arts and ?§fe sciencos, and by the term arts and sciences |?5-I.wißh-to.be understood not the fine arts, ;?aa painting, sculpture, music, etc., or the s: sciences only, but such arts and ,- -;- sciencea as are necessary in order that \:-\- the arts or trades by which artisans obtain sQ'b .livelihood Imay bo .more readily underS^Btood and more intelligently executed by «j:£tttem.S<£s)iThp aim of technical education may be :*ymore;sirnply stated if I give a brief detail ■^X'oi the ciroumatanc9B under wbich science :%'■. ';.;and ark classes were first formed. In 1851 the exhibition of Hyde Park, tj:;- London, was opened, in which some of c • the best speoimens of art and handicraft 6. --that the world could produce at that time i'i/yr'exe exhibited. As a result of that it was proved beyond all doubt ?r that -the work of British artisans as a JJ'^whole was far behind that of many Euro-;s-4-r,peariand other nationalities in beauty of v^V design, artistic finish, and in many cases In order to obviate this 'VI and to replace British workmen in the -^position they had previously held, many &§oßOieatigo-.men formed themselves into a which the late Prince Conpresident. To this committee sJ-'^the surplus funds from the Hyde Park ■ Exhibition were handed over, and were __. .'utilised in building and forming the South V: Kena'Dgtoo Museum and in the establish--7 ment of technical classes therein, the first ■^* leoturers being Professor Farraday, Dr •: -fcXyon Playfair, Dr Frank Buckland, and ;. v many others whose names I cannot recall 'v , at this moment. So numerous were the ,^:. ■ students at these lectures and classes that %y- the Privy Council formed a Soience and flP'A'rb Department, under whose control £■£ are annually held examinations in the jyp following subjeots of science : Machine i^Veongtruetion .and drawing, building con-j-'atsuction and drawing, naval architecture, { . '. msthematics, theoretical mechanics, ap"•implied mechanics, acoustics, light and heat, ;; magnetism and electricity, inorganio •jS,; chemistry, organic chemistry, geology, S* mineralogy, animal physiology, elementary K;vbotany, general biology, principles of J:-^ mining, .metallurgy, navigation, nautical j^. /astronomy, steam, physical geography, £:|;3>rinqipleß of agriculture, aud possibly others ; and in art freehand and model geometry and perspective draw-.V-.'-iDg, water color painting and design. i; ; '^Certificates of efficiency are awarded, the &>;;teaohera, who are, for the most part, ; ; ; advanced students of the early classes at the museum, being paid on the V^tesulta of the examinations. So great was r : felt to be' the need' of technical education -amongst the workers of Britain, and so - beneficial were the results, that at the V .present time there is scarcely a town in the' United Kingdom that has not its .' ; ' soience and art classes in connection with ; .the mother institution at South Kensing- -^ ton, and the movement is still extending :-%f Jts strength and usefulness. |i,:vy .When one realises what the loss of i,:^ prestige in the arts and manufactures and consequent loss of trade would mean to I't^the 'working men of Britain, he can r .JC scarcely wonder that so great a boon as i, ', teohnical education has been so gratefully i' appreciated by them. What this educaH , tion haa done for the workmen of Britain l^ifr'cari do for the workmen of New y.; Zealand, and I think no apology is v , needed for urging its claims upon the §F£;youths growing up around us, who from ;^-the nature of much of the work in every '-6 day execution cannot hope to gain an 1 1 , insight into the higher branches of their ;*,; trades. I?:; -V. Answering the question as to interc ' ferenoe with primary education, I cannot yfi'aeehow it could possibly do that, as these ;- ; v, ioience olasses,J:o be of any use to workers, .; . must be held in the evening. In the I;: event of scholars from the sixth standard gVitad.High School wishing to join, the vXlbnly question to my mind is : Can they ■/ ; '-v possibly find enough time to engage in wfe{. other studies than their every day school work 1 If so the advantage to be gained lil.V by them would be quite as great as for f~-} those learning their trades, possibly /vA-.more so. 'rfis:. ' r-lts .Effect iipon the Present Contract p& System. — So long as those calling tenders iiM\tor work expeot the maximum of work at S=; the minimum of cost, and instruct those Si; vj drawing up specifications to specify |tt^accordingly, the work done under the ££> present contract system must be much as Kf.^Jb, is, bnt if those drawing up specifics- : turns speoified a better class of work, and J insisted upon its being carried out as £ '' { "- r 'specified, the quality of contract work £:fipould be bettered to any extent required 4'j. to, this -end. Technical education would ■ be a great boon not only to the workman ;• and contractor but ako to those drawing - yup specifications of any kind. It is, %i~y perhaps, hardly necessary to state that :;;.;' if superior work be substituted the cost -■a, -of production will vary directly as the jj-r^jquality of the work executed. $ifi-': The Money Value of Labor. — As I have %~^ shown the aim of technical education to «S|j be the making of more intelligent work- . ■! ' men, and after thirty years' experience in ;:: #, the building trades in its various branches |^{U -I have always found the best workmen to ':''-■:. receive the besb wages, I am of opinion rfy that all other things being equal the man -vV who has received a technical education ii?i( would be likely to receive more wages than £.?;:;' the .Lpne who has not received such i. %i eduoation. £&V~ .Cost of Jsstabliahment. — This depends ■&£j largely upon the number of subjects proZ; posed to be taught, the number of $■/ students wishing to join the olasses, and with which I am at :';■, present unacquainted. I cannot at preriJSßent/iherefore, give any idea as to cost. £';i; Ilumbct of Subjects Proposed to be i£i;.y.Tdntghtif~la most of the science and art r claßseB i with which I am acquainted the of subjeots taken up was six, ' whioh were usually made suitable to the '^"-trades or manufactures chiefly carried on - ,' ".-in their immediate neighborhood. Those "<,j;r/'for a town similar to Gisborne would be 3?£,most probably :— jjf-VC! 1., Manual instruction in the use of tools, &0., and building construction and •^.'drawing, taken as one subject. ist':i^-2. ■ Machine construction and drawing. ''%&'■'■ ?• Applied meohanics. %' ; . f.. 4. Elementary mathematics. I?; l|i-'6- .Freehand and model drawing. iflsfi" 6. Practical, plane, and solid geometry. S'SKn I' have to apologise for the length of |J%:;this letter, but feeling as I do that the ;;{ subjeot is an important one, I must crave !?!k your indulgence in the matter. W?,r- ■■•■•■'• .-'■:"■'- . • Wallace Good. l;i*-v,\: ;-■■ . :

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