SCHOOL ACCOMMODATION

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 7, Issue 54, 7 March 1944, Page 4

SCHOOL ACCOMMODATION

CHAMBER OF COMMERCE INTEREST RKPRKSKXTATIOXS TO MINISTER That there were well over 700 children attending the Whakatane School and that most of the classes ranged from 40 to 50 pup ills with some as large as 60 or 70 were surprising facts reported to the Wliakatane Chamber of Commerce last week when the question of school accommodation was under discussion. The headmaster, Mr I. Hubbard, who was present emphasised the need for Technical Department in order that pupils, could go right through the school and undertake handicraft and. other training. Ho would like also to see a projector installed for the purpose ol' screening educational films. Wliakatane could be classed as a very line but overcrowded school. Already the department had promised a further 1 live rooms but the centres oil the Plains were, wanting to send more and still more children to Wliakatane and the problem was a perpetual one. Speakers Support Mr Dillicar contended . that technical training was vitally necessary and was preferable to many academic subjects which were of. little or no use later on. Mr A. J. Canning thought the Chamber should get right behind the committee in its. agitation for a technical department. In answer to a question, Mr Hub-

bard said that his scheme for the training of boys in industry by allowing them to go in twos and threes during their school training luid. been turned down by the Department, although the Inspector for Native Schools had been most enthusiastic about the suggestion. Training of Maori .Boys Mr Hubbard went on to discuss the training of Maori boys, most of whom desired to go on to the land when they left school. He contended that generally they made very indifferent farmers and thought that a better scheme would be to. encourage them to become fishermen bA* making over the whole of the fishing rights within a given area to them. By nature they were excellent seamen and good fishermen and if they could be encouraged in this direction a profitable avenue would be open to them. Mr J. Grecke. contended that the weakness in the past had been the

lack of agricultural training made available to Maori boys. If a training college could- be thrown open to them it would be the means of turning out good potential Maori farmers, instead of the expensive Maori land .schemes under pa'kelia supervision. They needed to be shown a little, bit ol' scientific farming to enable, them to become good farmers. The average native ;>chool provided a wonderful all round training but missed on the most vital subject of all agricultural training along modern lines.