ABLE TEACHERS.

Press, Volume LIII, Issue 15873, 12 April 1917, Page 3

ABLE TEACHERS.

NEED FOR EFFICIENCY,

POSITION OF HIGH SCHOOLS

MINISTER OF EDUCATION '

INTERVIEWED

Tho idea underlying his recent communication to the Board of Governors of the Wellington College, requesting that the Minister of Education be given a voice in the making of appointments of their secondary school teachers, was explained by the Ministor (Hon. J. A. Hanan) to a. '"Post" reporter. The Minister stated that his aim was to influence, as far as practicable, properly trained teachers being put into secondary schools which were supported by public funds. Jien he Jieui office as Minister of Education jn 1012, in referring to the need of overhauling the secondary school system, he illustrated some of his views in. this connexion l>v two points. Firstly, there was need for insisting on -*hc training iu practical teaching of all those students and graduates who become the junior assistants iubovs' and girU' high schools. The task given to these juniors, involving the control and discipline as well as the efficient instruction of children at- an age when their effective management was the most difficult of all was one demanding experienced skill and strength of personality. Surely if a long course of training, were demanded lor prinarj* school work,-an equally thorough preparation for their arduous duties should be given to their future secondary teachers —in justice to themselves and to their pupils. * TEACHING MAXIMS VIOLATED. Secondly, there was too violent a departure m the matter of instruction and l'n its method confronting the pupil who passed from the primary to the secondary school. This often liad been pointed out . but the curious assumption was made that all the adaptation should be made by altering the primary course. To say the least, it was a serious violation of teaching maxims when new instruction was not built usou what had been already acquired, and if the prim.iry course was in itself a good one the logical thing, contended Mr Haiiiui, was to establish tho desired continuity by adapting the beginning of the secondary course to the closing part of the primary course. ELIMINATING A GAP. '•One of our aims/'' said Mr Hanan, "should he to reduce if not eliminate the gap between the last grade of the primary school and tho iirst grade of the high school, so that the. chango for pupils will be gradual and without points of abrupt transition, etc. In the course of his address at tho Jast meeting of the New Zealand Educational Institute, the president (Mr \V. Eudey), in emphasising the importance of training teachers, said: —'I mentioned before that a number of teachers were appointed to positions on the staffs of secondary schools merely because tliev were the possessors of university degrees. Now th*t our secondary schools are practically State .schoois, it is incumbent on the Stafb to see that properly trained teachers .'ire put ill thesu schools. Tho mere fact of having learnt Latin, French, or mathematics does not make a man or •). woman a teacher of these subjects, and provision should be made for training teachers for these posts. Before the war there was a great difficulty in getting ni'ii to take on the work of the secondary departments in our district high schools. Young teachers looked upon these positions as avenues leading to nowhere. But if the State rewarded these men bv appointing tli em to mastershipp in our secondary schools, not only would the district high schools be improved by gaining yelling university graduates, "but later the secondary schools would gain bv having these young men, after experience in our district high schools, appointed to vacancies as they occur.' " NO TECHNICAL TRAINING. "'lt cannot be denied," said the Minister, "that a number of teachers come into high schools without technical training in teaching. The methods which some of them tend to pursue are the only methods witn which they are familiar, namely, those which are prevalent among university profe&sors, and wlijch, obviously, arc poorly adapted to high school instruction, flic pupils in the junior forms of secondary schools have to be initiated into the study of a foreign language, abstract matnematics, and systematic science, and their whole attitude, to these subjects, as well as their future progress in the study oi them. very largely depends on how this initiation is made. The task of introducing pupils for tho first time to new lines of thought and responses calls for thoroughly trained and efficient teachers in the lower forms or grades of secondary schools. High iSchool Boards have taken teachers who have not passed through our training college, although there is ample provision ior' the training of secondary teachers therein. A VITAL QUESTION". "Again, the lAaiter of the qualification of high school teachers is a vital one because boy* and girls enter those schools at an age— the adolescent stage, with its men tii) and physical eftanges. This is the time when they begin to have an individuality, when they look upon a larger world and new powers aro given requiring wise husbanding" and direction."' Dr. Don, Avho had furnished a special rejwrt ■ concerning secondary 1 schools, in conversation with him recently, had referred to this subject when discussing with him the weakness in some teaching staffs and work done in these schools. "Too much stress cannot be placed on the efficient training of teachers," continued IMr Hanan. "Ministers of Education and education authorities may issue new programmes and new sets of regulations, but unless v."e have teachers who are trained to understand the new ideals and the use of new methods, the results will be disappointing. If the school .is to fit into the needs of the community, then much more must l>c done for the training of tho teacher than has yet been done. TO MOULD THE YOUNG LIVES. "Finally." remarked th© Minister, "since the war, there has been an increased demand for efficiency in all walks of life, and the demand can be satisfied only by maintaining efficient educative forces to mould the lives of the rising generation. Whatever else we may put up with in the way of inefficient craftsmanship, we ought to recognise the right of our children to be taught by men and women capable of ' doing the work well, and striving to [ accomplish this object.'' In answer to a question. Mr Hanan j said the power of appointing primary ! school teachers was entirely in the ; hands of the Education Boards, and ' that tho sole right of appointing sec- I ondary school teachers was in the hands of High School Boards. There- j fore, the only way in which the Minis- i ter could attempt to raise the standard | of efficiency at present was by making suggestions such as had been referred to in the interview.