EDUCATION SYSTEM

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 79, Issue 13, 16 January 1936, Page 8

EDUCATION SYSTEM

COMMENT BY MINISTER (Ter I’rtaa Aaaonat op.. ] HASTINGS, Jan. 15. Thp \'(*a- Zealand educational svrleiu i* sufiering from thp heritage <»f ibe economic depression,” said thu Minister of Lducttliun, lion. P. Fraser, to members of ihe Hanke> Bay Education Board, «nen discussing a number ol education matter.* brought to bis notice during the course or a visit to the district. Discussing th? question of readmitsiuu of ihe li\( -year olds to the schools, the Minister said there would be little oiliicu it i <-u tap M"»i-p ut accommodation, but in some iii*tance»* the accvinrnodation was in one locality and the • hildren in another. Investigation intc the position was, theieiore, necessaiy He said thv (»o\?i nment’s decision i hat lii e-year-olds would be readmitt*”. still r-tood as far as intention was concerned and as far as desire and honest. of purpose were • unverned. ‘‘T'ho only question is. *caa you get tlr.i j children into the schools,’ ” me Mini ‘slcr said. He also pc-inted out to | the board the need for an accurate mr'cy of the educational needs of tho country as h whole. He emphasise 1 the importance of added knowledge the question of consolidating schco.s, for uiiifdi he ha I received a numbei of requests. The Minister also said that «»ne of the ui'jrt pm mu raging featuris in national life was the interest taken by parents in the school dental scheme*. However, the question of how far Ine Government could go in its assistance had to Im fat co, Dn ihe subject, of manual training, the Minister said hn did not. think there war such a division menial and manual training ns some people suggesti*d, and he ga v e an assuran p that the question <f manual training would bp. considered as a coequal with the whole educational sys- ' tern, and whatever possible would be I done.