GOODWILL TO EDUCATION SEEMS FROZEN

Chronicle (Levin), 16 May 1946, Page 8

GOODWILL TO EDUCATION SEEMS FROZEN

Press Association

TEACHERS OUTSPOKEN ON SIZE OF CLASSES

! Bv Telecjravh-

W EJ jLINOTON, Alay 15. The Khortage ot' teachers standing in ! the way of a reductibn in the sizes or j scliooi classes, is regarded by the bJew ' Zealand Kducational Institute as the I grcatest obstacle to all educational re- ! l'orni. The Government is to i)e asked : by the Institute to take the following ' steps to speed up the supply of trained i teachers: — I Establish an emcrgeney training j schenie. j Jlequire education boards to requisi- | tion suitable buildings for cmergency ; classrooms. ! Establish an additional training col1 lege. ! Establish temporary boarding places ; I'or students. I A remit to that eiTect was adopted at j the annual meeting of Ihe Institute m j Wellington today. They luid lieard from both the Prime I Minister and -Ministcr of Education | that there was a reservoir of goodwill j in the Government howard educational reforni but it abnos.t seemed as if that goodwill wero a frozon asset, said Alr. H. Binsled (Auckland), who moved Ihe remit. The forco of informed and ■ directed public opinion was needed to i thaw it out and set it to work on behalf j of 'the children who. at prosent asked for j bread and received a stone. It was less Jack of material resources tlian Jack of ; will that eonstituted the main difficulty , in solving the prolilern of Jiow to reduco ! the size of classes. The baneful effects 1 of large classes on a child's behaviour t had been largely overlooked, said iMr. i Binsted. Psychiatrists wero cmphatic 1 that behaviour disorders arising from I sehool conditions were of the grcatest importance to adult health, j "It would be depressing to estimate I wliat four generations of pupiJs who I liave ]>assed through the schools since j 1914, have lost by the delay in instij luting tlie small c-lass refonn, " said AI r. : 10. P. York (Auckland) seconding Ihe j rnotion. At prosent tlie Dominion had ; approximatoly 10,000 teachers and that ! number would need to be increased by ; half as many again if the inertia. ot obsolete tliinking ai)d, out:of-date.habits. . of behaving were to be over'come in i timo to enable tlie collective mind of | the Dominion to grapple with the prob- : lcms that confronted it. j The following remit: was also adopt- | ed: "That the (lovernnient be asked as a most urgent matter, that there be set ; up a t'onsultati ve Committee 011 the ; selection and training of teachers, ' widely representative of Ihe teachers, • departmental and comniercial interests, I with the following tcrms of reference: I rnvesligate Ihe current practice and its ! efl'ectiveness, in the selection and train;ing of teachers for all tvpes of schools I and educational institutions in New Zealand; to reeommond changes and innovations deemed necesary to increase the supplv of teachers of all hinds; to reconimcnd steps to be taken to improve the quality. of the teaching personnel from the points of view of training ot entrants and further training of praetising teachers; to recommend methods of coordinating teacher training with Ihe university and with the industrial and commereial world." The New Zealand Oouncil for Eduealional Kesearch is to be asked by tlie Educational Institute to make an exhaustive investigation Into consolidation of schools. Moving a Waipa remit to this elfect, Mr. G. D. Warring said that was no'fault to lind with the pi'inciple of consolidation, but there was definitc evidepce to show that there was widespread dissatisf'action witli the administratioji.