FARMING COURSES

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Issue 82, 23 April 1937, Page 5

FARMING COURSES

Telegraoh— Press AaaooiaMon.)

Lack of Pupils Blamed on Farmers Themselves DISPARAGING ATTITUDE

(By

AUCKLAND, Last Night. The view that the tendency of farmers in their public utterances to present their vocation in its worst light and aspects was in some measure responsible for a dwindling in the, number of boy3 taking agricultural instruction at higli schoole, was expressed on behalf of the Otahuhu Technical High Schooh The principal, Mr F. Martin, and the agricultural instructor, Dr. Hill, stated that there had been a marked decrease in enrolments this year. An agrieul tural course had been in force at the Otahuhu scKool for four years, and the peak enrolments were 81 in 1934. Last year the numbers dropped to 49, and this year there were 37 boys taking the course. It was etated that the sehool sought to present its agricultural course in the most attractive manner, but thr was, in part at least, counteracted by the tendency of farmers to disparage their calling for economie and political reasons. This' public disparagement had been given more publicity of recent yeare and had probably aceentuated the i'alling-off in enrolments. The publi deerying of farming as an industry had undoubtedly a discouraging influence on boys and on parents seriously contemplating farming as a career.