TECHNICAL EDUCATION.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 11594, 12 January 1916, Page 5

TECHNICAL EDUCATION.

MINISTER AND DEPUTATION. MOVING PICTURES CONDEMNED AGAIN. DEFENDED BY MR ISITT. . A deputation consisting of Messrs G. Scott (chairman t of tho Board of Governors of the Christchureh Technical College), C. JJ. Opio (chairman of the North Canterbury Education Board), W. H. Cooper, A. Williams and J. H. Howell (director of the Technical College) waited' on the Hon J. A. Hauan, Minister of Education, this morning, and discussed with him several phases of technical education. Tho deputation was introduced by Dr Thicker, M.P., and Mr h. M. Isitt, . M.l\, was also x>resent. Mr Scott said that, first, the deputation wished to have Mr Howell's report on his recent visit to tho United' Kingdom printed, in order that it should bo made available to all interested in technical education.

Tho Minister said® that his Department had recommended that the report should be 'printed', and ho had asked for an estimate of the cost-. Mr Scott said that it was desirable that capitation paid to the Technical College should bo placed on the same basis as capitation to the High School. The college, on account of the present basis of calculations, had received about £4OO less than it should have received'. The fees for attending evening classes to pass Standards V. and VI. should be revised. The positions of the proficiency certificate and the competency certificate should bo reconsidered. The poor, children should not be deprived from continuing their education. In other countries, special classes wore formed for children, who wished to continue education on certain lines. Something of the same kind should be done here. If that class of education was free, many children would continue their education instead of going to picture shows and other evening attractions. The Minister of Education in tho United Kingdom had expressed an opinion in favour of regaining at school the' children who wished to benefit by further education. The Londori"*'" Times" had supported the Minister. The deputation hoped that something would be done to remedy a defect in New Zealand's educational system. The Minister: Will they take advantage of the benefits? \ Mr Scott: Perhaps not; then it should be made compulsory. The Minister said that from inquiries he had made he found that the Tesults were not as satisfactory as lie and others had expected. Mr Scott said that compulsion was imposed' in respect to continuation schools in Germany.

The Minister: 'if you try that in Now Zealand, you will be in trouble at once.

Mr Scott said that another trouble was caused by the. moving pictures. They could be* used for educational purines, but some of the- pictures were most disgusting. Something should be dono4o stop that kind of thing. One other important subject was assistance to technical schools. Those institutions would have an effect on the manufacturing industries. New Zealand was entering upon a manufacturing career, and it should bo self-reliant and selfcontained. The technical institutions deserved more support than they received. The Government should take up more of the work of technical education, and should give more grants to the technical schools and colleges. In reply to the Minister, Mr Scott said that the Board of Governors of the Christchurch Technical College wished to extend its buildings; it had ample ground at Opawa. Mr Howell said that a promise had been made that hie report would be printed. The Minister said that money was required for more important matters than tha printing of reports. There was a financial stringency, and public works mus: receive first consideration. Even primary schools wer-e using old, dilipidated, ramshackle buildings. He recoguised the value of the report, but it must stand over 'until more important matters were attended to. Mr Howell said that boys at gresent had no time for music, recreation or social functions. Those who took advantage of evening educational classes were usually the most industrious, and it would be a good thing to give them time off during the day to compensate for the time they gave up during the evening.

The Minister said that the boys' employers would have to be consulted on that point. Air Howell said that boys who found employment as engineering cadets in the public serrice were hampered by the regulations. There should be two schemes for the public service entrance, in the same way as there were two fox 1 the Senior National Scholarships. It would be impossible to maintain the present staffs at technical colleges unless those institutions were treated more liberally. As a matter of fact, the technical colleges were losing members of their staffs. Technical education should be able to offer better ad' vantages to its teachers. Air Opie said that Mr Howell's report was the most important document of the kind submitted in New Zealand. Many reports wero availablo on technical education in other countries, biit they were very voluminous, and Mr Howell, in his report, had sorted the wheat from the chaff. It was necessary that New Zealand should prepare to expand. It was stated that the country could not afford to print the report. The truth was that tho country could not afford to let the report lie unpublished. The Minister: Mr Opie. do you think that the people, in view of the war, would read that report if it was published in the newspapers? M:r Opio said that the report would be read by all who were interested in technical 'education and who sought help in their work. The Minister said that he would not turn down any application for a primary school if ho could help it. With him primary education came first. He wished to cater for the wants of those who had no education. No man was more anxious than lie was to educate the people to the value of technical and scientific education, and he recognised that ~Sw Zealand should prepare for the great industrial acrid commercial war that would begin as soon as the present war ended. All information bearing upon that phase of education wa.s important. At the same time, primary education certainly had strong claims.

Mr Opie said that it was desirable to abolish fees for the fifth and sixth standards in certain cases. He endorsed Mr Scofct's remarks on picture shows: a censor, he said, was required. Mr Wililams said that he hoped the Minister would favourably consider the requests made. Mr Isitt said that he was quite alive to the importance of technical education. Mr Scott's plea for fre© technical education to those who had not taken proficiency certificates appealed to him. Ho thought that technical education should bo compulsory. If compulsory education was adopted it would be "found that it would become more successful as it progressed. He did not agree with the condemnation of picture shows. It was some time since ho had attended one. but he certainly had not secu the things that

other people spoke of- He saw a great deal of silly business and some vulgarity, but not the kind of pictures, the extraordinary iniquities, he x had heard described, while nothing was said of what took place on the theatrical stage. It was necessary to go carefully in dealing with picture shows, because they were the amusement of the working classes. If lie had his way lie woidd make picture shows more educational in toue; hut ho failed to find any grounds for the sweeping condemnation of that cheap and particular amusement of the working classes. Dr Thacker said that he agreed with Mr Isitt in respect to pictures. The question of sex and physiology was not given sufficient attention in the technical colleges.. Children should be taught more carefully what they would grow into. The minister should try to give the children more knowledge of electricity. The Christehurch Technical College should be lighted by electrictiy from Lake Coleridge, as it would be a demonstration of an important State enterprise. THE MINISTER'S REPLY.

The Minister said that it was evident from what the deputation had said that there was a live interest in education in New Zealand. _ He believed that a healthy public opinion was being formed. It would be reflected in Parliament, on the Statute Book, and ultimately on the people. It was desired that there should be in New Zealand a high standard of national industry. If New Zealand was to make greater progress as a. producer, the workers must be highly trained, and that was where technicul education would come in. "Until the country could make good articles, it could not keep out foreign tiade. Specialisation had to be introduced in different callings of life. Great Britain to-day was paying the cost of unpreparedness. New Zealand should not be caught in the same way in the coming industrial war. It must be placed in a position in which it could compete successfully with its rrvals. Germany had been built up largely because of her system of technical education- New Zealand had to learufrom her enemies as well as from her friends. As to dotails of the education system, tlie country should settle tho functions of the different branches, and then coordinate, in order that waste and overlapping should be avoided. He did not say that the doors should not be open to* those who benefited by the secondary course, but it was a question whether the monev spent on the High Schools gave the best results. The question of the admission of certain types of mentalitv to those institutions should be considered. Dr Thacker's reference to sex differentiation was very important. Technical education already had done something in that direction by special instruction to girls; ho hoped that it would do more. He believed that the people of the country would bo awakened to the necessity for training workers in the national industries. He found that in New Zealand there were schools without even play grounds; the children had to play in the streets. There were school buildings that should be expanded, but the expansion could not take place simply because there was not sufficient room. That kind of thing should not be forgotten in tho future. He urged members of the deputation to induce local members of Parliament to bring educational questions before the Hon-e. whore he \vc;kl be with them in a common cuuss*.