EDUCATING THE SOLDIER.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XLVI, Issue 14839, 17 February 1919, Page 8

EDUCATING THE SOLDIER.

THlv CUtKATEST (iOOD FOR THE GREATEST NUMBER. PURPORT OF THE SCHEME. LONDON, Dec. 10. Much is being heard now of the education scheme which is being put into force by the N.Z.E.F. for the benefit of our men, and to th e criticism : "What as the. purpose of all this education? You will have the man only, a few months ! Do you think that within that period you can send men back erJkieiit buildei-s, engineers, farmers, lawyers?" Captain J. 11. Kirk, W.I.R. (Gisborne) makes reply in an address delivered before the Royal Colonial Institute.

It will be remembered that Captain Kirk was one of the initiators of the scheme which is now oeing carried out I under the direction of Colonel H. Stewart, D.S.O'., M.C,, Canterbury Re- j giment. To the inquiries Captain Kirk j answers ' — "That, is not intended- The j scheme will provide that interest for the men without which, upon peace being declared, it would be a lurd and dim- j cult task to keep them to any form of ! military exercise. It will tend to focus their thoughts, not on war, tut on peace, not on destruction but on production and construction. It wil help many to refresh their knowledge of their life vocationj and in many cases will actually lead' them into a new and better lifework. In cases where men can stay the necessary length of time, they will be turned out fairly efficient, but even if this stage be not' reached, it is felt that the best possible will have been done for | them, and that with the continuation j schools established on T'te outgoing ships a-nd in New Zealand;' they will early reach competency and seen become efficient. While adequate provision is J made for the scholar, the university man, or the professional man, the guiding motto has been, 'The greatest good for the greatest number.' " ! THE INITIAL STAGE. Captain Kirk recalls the fact that a ! confei'ence ctf educationalists from the New Zealand camps in England was held I in London early this and detailed [syllabi were prepared m all subjects, both the purely educational and the.vocational. The conference comprised officers, n.c.o.'s and men, among them being three New Zealand University professors camouflaged respectively as a sergeant, a corporal, and a private. The result of the conference provided the material with which teachers could; establish classes in all campsj but before asking that this be done selected teach-, ers— mainly those who nad attended the conference — .were sent to one special convalescent ' depot* where the daily roll was somewhere about 2000, so as to start the' scheme. Four or five weeks later a demonstration of the working of the elasses was given t« representatives of all New Zealand camps and others, and so sucI cessful was this that it not only proved the adaptability of the scheme but fired the others with desire '" o have similar I classes under them.

In due course success was achieved at hospitals and camps in this country, and in France: With the help of the New Zealand Red Cross comprehensive' libraries were . supplied to. -hospitals and convalescent homes, -'and' other libraries purchased from regimental ''funds were sent to all cither depots. Much stress ia laid upon the value of these libraries, which consisted not only of text books and books, of reference and history, but the best examples of English literature.' As proof of the value placed on" these privileges Captain Kirk mentioned that during one month 526 books of reference and text books were supplied to bed patients in one hospital alone. Lectures; on topical suHfects are delivered by men of outstanding ability in England, but with this exception, arid with the exception of a few teachers in art subjects supplied by <>he Y.M.C.A., all instruction is given bv members of the N.Z.E.F. THE TEACHER TAUGHT. 3 Details of lectures are 7 a>d down, andas far as possible the lecturers and' teachers take refresher courses undei the principal instructor i t.hat particular subject. Facilities have been readily offered in respect to laboratories, and iii other ways by universities and schools of technology throughout C>reat N Britain, and many of the instructors have been inspired by the privilege of meeting outstanding men of science and learning whose interest in them and their work has been most cheering and encouraging. Libraries and equipment are standardised, and on a man leaving one camp for another an advice card is forwarded tr» the education officer of the camp to which the man is going, giving all particulars concerning the student's civil occupation, education, the class-work he has undertaken to date, cad his progress. This system enables vhe education officer to indicate the classes which each man is ta follow, and in practice it is fiSund that very little overlapping or want of co-ordination arises. THE SCHEME IN FRANCE. At Etaples a plan similar'' -to that working in England has been undertaken. Arrangements have been made to extend this work to the units on the lines of ccfmmunication, but. in the altered conditions, this may now not bo necessary. In the division, however, | selected teachers have been appointed, and officers to act as education officers, and these are being transferred to England' at once ta get into touch with the organisation and methods here. Lectures of direct educational value are encouraged among the fighting troops, and in the reserve groups and Entrenching Battalions class-work 'is being inaugurated, and the men are keenly making use of the splendid selection of books comprising the Divisional Libvarv. r AT TORQUAY. ' In the near future Torquay will not be required for the concentration of p.u. men, but it will be continued as an agricultural centre. Already farming operations have been carried out o^n a fairly large scale and wth encouraging success. On lands extending to some hundred.? of acres in that part of Devonshire will be established the recognised School of Agricultural under the scheme. Re-afforestation and seed testing are subjects demanding the earnest attention ci New Zealanders, and Captain Kirk says that appropriate steps have been taken to assure that a number of the men will obtain the necessary instruction and experience. Further, arrangements are contemplated, and are in part already being adopted, whereby any man desirous of acquiring further knowledge of his trade may, for a number of months, be attached to an expert in some British citv. THE ROAD TO HAPPINESS. Whether or' not the men ar e returned as competent artisians or qualified scholars, those who have the scheme in hand believe that the men will be sent back with burnished ideals, wifi. advanced and extended knowledge of fundamental principles, with a new inspiration for hicfh citizenship, and a, vrider sympathy with the complexity of life and its many problems. It is 'Captain Kirk's belief that knowledge of these elementary principles will make the aiiisan a better artisan, the cobbler a, better cobbler, and the dock-hand a better citizen. And that it will tend to each man's happiness. Work through .added knowledge will have a new and grt'&ter interest and be less mechanical and dull. Only through a fuller knowledge on the part of employer ad employee, o f capitalist and laborer, of the conditions of life 1 of each, will anv satisfaction solution be found of social unrest.