CHANGING WORLD

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Issue 127, 15 June 1937, Page 9

CHANGING WORLD

. — Own Correspondent)

Serious Problems of the Adolescent EDUCATIONAL TRENDS

(By Telegraph

AUCKLAND, Last Night. A suggeation that more should be done by educational societies and organisations in New Zealand to establish contaets with those in the United States vas made to-day by l)r. I. L. Kandel, president of the Iuternational Instifcute cf Columbia ITuvt rsitv, New Yorlc, "»'.ho arrived fr-jm, San Fraucisco on a .six weeks' visit to the Domitiion. One of the outstanding educators , connected with Columbia University, ■ I>r. Kandel has come to New Zealand to investigato educational developments and to address tbe Netv Educational Fellowsbip Conference to be held here in July on a number of importam subjects. "We are very poory served. in Arnerdca with informatiou about the progreas of education in.New Zealand,'; said Dr. Kandel in an interview, "and we have. not the eontacts which are established, for example, with Kurope and the Orient. There is, however, a sign of improvement, particularly in the number of students and people interested in education who are going from New Zealand to America. At present the increase is slow, but it indicates a growing desire to learn more of the developmehts in the larger centres of learning." Schooi Age and BirttvRate Discussing the educational problems of to-day, Dr. Kandel spoke 1 mainly of his observations in the older countries and in the United States. He said the chief problem undobtedly was that of the adolescent. There was a need everywhere ot something more advanced than elem utary training. In America the age limdt was being raised in the schools, and more attention was being given to the vocational side and to the distribution of youths and girl* in employment. A change which would be permanent was being experienced in all the leading coUntries. In America more than 50 per cent of those between the | agvs oi 14 and 18 were now in the j secondary schools, and the proportion | was increasing. The question arose as j to what kind of education should be I given to these millions of young people. Openings in manual work and in the skilled trades were diminishiug with the progress of technological cliscoveries, macliines were taking the place of large numbers of workers and this was atfecting the young people everywhere. 'To some extent, continued Dr. Kandel, the pressure of youth on ernployaiexit was being relieved" by the falling oirth rate, but this was also creating new problems. "All over Europe, in the United States, and even in the faackward countraes we hear of a docrease in the birth rate," he said. "It is the same among coloured people of Africa as in the most advanced countries of the world, and we do not know definitely yet whether it is due to declining fertility or to a desiro to dm-. prove tho standard of living." Education for Leisure. The ever-increasing demands upon che intelligence of the people - in modern society was bniefly commented on, and Dr. Kandel said it was the duty of education Ieaders and of the colleges and universities to prepare the rising generation to meet the greater domands of politics, economie science nnd industry. Another problem was that of dncreaa ing leisure. Education must equip the people to use their leisure to advatage. That applied not only to eulturo, science, art, music and drama, but also to physical education. Provision was being made almost everywhere in Europe, England and America to meet this position. Youth movements were springing up and in parts of Europe had assumed huge proportions.