LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
VICTORIA COLLECE COURT OF CONVOCATION. Sir,—Your correspondent 'Tacts" is •tii extraordinary writer. In his first lie coin ucd that the graduates of Victoria College had no power, for that not. one of the "moving spirits 011 the Court of Convocation" "is a lion.v lide graduate of Victoria College." Now, since I have shown that these graduaLes are not so hadl.v off, 110 complains they have too much power, and says "Perhaps Mr. Cooke can infqrm us how it has come about that some 300 'young graduates' got the right to elect so many members to the College Council." It is not difficult for me to do so. It was an Act of parliament that gave tlieui the right. "Facts" is decidedly wild and reckless in dealing with facts. Ho says I imilco the "astounding revelation" "that apparently 110 official roll of tho members of convocation is kept." Perhaps that would be an astounding revelation, if it were tho case; but what I said showed that such is not the case. Anyone who has experience of keeping rolls of names and addresses, knows that such rolls constantly need revising.
I have already shown that the "moving spirits" of convocation uro seeking tho co-operation of as many graduates as possible, and that to this end they aro making every effort to obtain the correct addresses of That is, they are getting the roll revised and brought up to date. "Facts" is wrong again in saying that convocation has had the right for seventeen years to elect members to tho College Council; that right was possessed by members of the Graduates' Association. He is equally wrong in saying that by recent legislation the graduates of Victoria College "are given' tho right to elect four representatives to the Victoria Collego Council." In point of fact, the last- Act took that right away from them, and bestowed it on members of convocation. I should only weary your leaders by going over other parts of "Facts'" letter; but there is 01:0 matter treated of in his first leter to which, Sir, with your permission, I will refer, that is- the question of science getting a ''square deal." To he sure, it was not Dr. Hunter, as "Facts" says, but Professor Kirk who urged that the arts course should not lie made easier than the science course.. I sunported Professor Kirk's motion, as I venture to think that it is against all the interests of our Dominion to do anvthing to hinder our students from taking up science. I consider. Sir, that, mrr great need is science. Certainlv in a now countrv, as this is, we need science to assist in developing onr resources. But especially do wo need men and women trained in scientific methods to bo teachers in our schools. A number of the best positions to which teachers can aspire are reserved for graduates. Our young teachers who wish to rise lind it is most desirable for_ them to gradua-tc. The arts course is already rlecidedlv easier than the science course. Everything that is dono to make_ tho arts course easier than the science course tends to induce our students, as a matter of self-interest, to neglect science for the arts course. In the case of teachers, I venture to think this is earnestly to he deprecated, as a. training in scientific method is rcmiirwl for teachers to train their pupils in habits of observation and in correct reasoning from what they observe. —I am, etc., CHAS. J. COOKE. ICelbume, December 25, 1915.
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Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2654, 28 December 1915, Page 9
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593LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2654, 28 December 1915, Page 9
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