COMMUNITY CENTRE

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Issue 189, 27 August 1937, Page 3

COMMUNITY CENTRE

Education the Key to All Social Progress WIDER 'vALUE OF SCHOOLS . Tlie part sehool committees could play -as a liason between the education system and the people was discussed "by Mr J. Shelley, Director of Broadcasting, in ' an . addr ess to .. the. New - Zealand sehool committees' conference at New Plymouth. He dealt witli education on' broad* lines. The ckurch used to be the centre of the community, but now tk© sehool was the only institution that represented society. as a whole, said Mr Shelley. The essential thing in any community was ' its thought. A sehool should be attractive Jooking and well' furnished, for they knew that education ' was a matter of - living a full life. The sehool should be a place where children lived, and it should have social amenities." There were schools pverywhere ; ■ let them be the social eentres of ' their districts. . The. world was in the throes of a vast transition in which education was playing a big part. Educationists were the guardians ef democracy. When society . became sick it was not the guardians who were called in, but experts. Many nations lxad practieally given up ^ their citizenship and had called in their experts. That was only due to tho sickness of their society. To keep society kealthy: they had to keep their outlook oii education healthy. Sehool committees were the nieans of communication between the education system and tlie people generally, Any • education sybtem was' likely to get into a routine of its own and society to go. on oblivious. . It was the work of the scbool committees- to act as the gobet.ween. Education was a life-long job,.though people were apt to think of it in terms only of schools. Schools were important, but it was questionable whether they were the most important factor. The people who advocated a partieular social doctrine were the people who realised the value of schools. Sehool committees were tl\e missionaries to society to make it realise .that education was not a mere schoolroom affair. It was-, possible that sphool committees .might be given different powers, said Mr Slielley, referring to the possible pverhaul of the education system. If their powers were curtailed they should uot- look at it from. a narrow viewpoint but from the viewpoint of society as a whole. They Had to pool tlieir • knowledge and work for tke benefit of tke nation.