"JUST EMERGING FROM SAVAGERY"

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Issue 157, 21 July 1937, Page 7

"JUST EMERGING FROM SAVAGERY"

-Press Asaoeiation.)

Caustic Reply To Visiting Educationists "BEING LED ASTRAY"

(By Telegraph-

AUCKLAND, Last Night. Regarding suggestions by speakers at the New Education Fellowship conference, that the teaching of mathematics, classies and modern languages should be discarded by the schools, Professor H. G. Forder, professor of mathematics at the Auckland University College, makes the following statement: — • "Some of the visitors from England apparentiy derived their first notions of New Zealand from a study of the posters depicting bush scenery and Maoris in war paint, by which this country is advertised at Home, and concluded that we were Just emerging from a state of savagery. Only in this way can I explain the suggestions of Dr. Boyd, if we are to take them seriously. In his opinion we do not need foreign languages because we never go abroad and literature is beyond us; the only mathematics we need is enough to tell the time and count our change. In an age when the world is closer knit than ever before, we need not trouble to know what foreigners are saying; in an age transformed by the machine we need have no inkling of the part played by exact science and mathematics. These are parts of the white man 's magic; our [role is folk-song and village drama. Creating a Close/ Preserve. "If the people of New Zealand are led astray by this idle talk, and even less attention is paid to xeal work in our State secondaxy schools, one result will be that the private schools will become the sole training grounds of our future leaders, thinkers, scientifie men and scholars. This wai largely the case in England until the enlightened policy of the Board of Education, by encouraging higher courses in State schools, made these schools serious competitors with the English public schools. There were signs in England before I left that many people regretted this exton sion bf the facilities for genuine educa tion, and wished to restriet the State schools to courses for the average only, keeping higher learning as a preserve of the well to do, under the pretence of a Coneern for democracy. Here, of course, the average pupil is already well cared for and we have no provision for the gifted like the English higher courses. English Open Scholarships. "Dr. Norwood ia xeported to have said that the clever boy will always make his way, whether he has special attention or not. This Is puzzling, in view of his work at Marlborough. The most sought af ter honours In English seeondary schools are the open scholarships at Oxford and cambridge ; their standard is equal tq or lxigher than our own degree standards. Many a good school in England is proud if it gets two or three of these each year. "If my memory serves," Dr. Norwood gave Marlborough a special holiday because in one year the scholarships awarded to pupils there reaehed the incredible total of 30. Anyone who has taught in England knows that they could only be achieved by watchiug the clever boy from the day he enters, and by careful and intensive teaching by masters, who themselves afe frequently distinguished men. But I suppose anything is good enough for us." Assessing the Average Pupil. Brief additional comment was made by Professor W. A. Sewell, chairman of the Professorial Board, as follows; — "It seems to me that the deletion of mathematics, •lassies and modern languages from the seeondary school curriculum will have grave eonsequences. The higher branches of scholp,rship, the diplomatic service and other 'plums' of the salaried professions will be reserved (at least in England) for boys from the public schools. I cannot think that we can be" so entirely sure of our "average boy as to train him in such a way that there can be little hope of his becoming1 the brilliant graduate. Average boys have a knack of surprising us, and he would be a bold man who would declare a tty to be 'average' while he is still at tho seeondary school. That is the capital difficulty in prescribing the syllabus for •.econdary school work."