MODERN UNIVERSITIES

Evening Star, Issue 20134, 26 March 1929, Page 5

MODERN UNIVERSITIES

GROWTH WITHIN THE EMPIRE ADDRESS BY DR J. R. ELDER Dealing chiefly with university life in the Home Land, Dr J. R. Elder gave an interesting address at the University last night to memhcrs_ of the Otago University Literary Society. Air A. .1). Trendall was in the chair. In opening Ins address, Dr Elder described the conditions _ which obtained in regard to university bursaries twenty-five years ago, and said that the bursary competitions dominated education, and compelled the schools to maintain the old classical tradition, so that few entered the university who had not spent at least six years at Latin and three or four at Greek, and all had an instinctive feeling that a modern language was not to he taken in a very serious fashion. Now this had been changed, and English was one of the principal compulsory subjects. Referring to the Carnegie bursaries in the Scottish universities, the speaker said that the idea that the Carnegie Trust boro the whole cost of the Scottish student’s education was entirely wrong, and, as a matter of fact, the very best students who had succeeded in obtaining bursaries —and these were, comparatively speaking few in number—had not sufficient when the Carnegie grant and the university bursary Avere added to pry their fees. So far as England and Wales were concerned, the Board of Education had, since 1920, promoted a system of State scholarships whereby 200 students each year received grants in aid of the fees payable for their proposed university course, together with a maintenance grant not exceeding £BO per annum. The financial outlook of students at the British universities had therefore changed, with a corresponding change in his outlook on social activities and university life in general. Referring to the astonishing growth in the number of universities in the Empire and in the world during the past twenty-five years, Dr Elder said that in 1912, fifty-three, and in 1921, fifty-nine, universities were represented at the Umpire University Congress. Since the latter date important additions had been made to the universities of the Empire. The universities of India received important additions lately, and the establishment of university colleges and professional schools. In 1924 262 arts and professional colleges had been established in India, and the students numbered 74,d20, including 1,914 women. If they passed from the Empire to the United States they would be bewildered by the extent of the attention given to the universities and places of higher learning; no fewer than 913 universities, colleges, and professional schools having submitted returns for 1923-24 to the United States Bureau of Education. The speaker then went on to compare the curricula of the English, Scottish, and Now Zealand universities, and to discuss the methods of training in vogue in each, and, in conclusion, stated that if he had awakened the interest of any members in the wider aspect of university life and aroused their ambition to fit themselves to play some part in the advance of university tradition in New Zealand his purpose would have been attained.

A hearty vote of thanks was accorded Dr Rider for his address.