EDUCATION FOR COMMERCE

Hokitika Guardian, 2 March 1931, Page 2

EDUCATION FOR COMMERCE

MODERN J,AXG UAGES. NECESSARY IN COMPETITION FOR TRADE. LONDON, Jan. 8. The annual conference of the Incorporated Association of Head Masters was continued and concluded at Guildhall yesterday. An address was given by Sir Francis Goodenough on the work and the objects of the Committee on Education for Salesmanship. He said that committee very soon came to the conclusion that Great Britain was suffering a severe handicap in the competition for the world's trade through our lack of efficiency in modern languages. What was most needed was much closer cooperation between business and education. If this country was to retain its hold upon the markets of the world it would be necessary to have better human intmments to serve it, and it was the common interest of education and commerce that better human instruments should be forthcoming, In commerce we badly wanted better leadership and greater readiness to follow the leadership of worthy people. If the work of the Committee of Salesmanship was to have any value public opinion must be nrepnrcd for it beforehand, and emrm must realise the need for employing better human material. The trouble row was to find openings for the best men whom the schools produced, but that was only due to trade depression and to the cold feet which many people had when they ought to have cool heads and hot feet from hard work.

He not only hoped but believed that, in the comparatively near future, there would be a greatly increasing demand on the part of commerce for the best men the schools could produce. They had been told that there was no prejudice against commerce in public schools; he wished he could believe that. (Laughter.) He was afraid it was still true that commerce was looked upon as something in which a. boy could earn a living rather than as something in which he could take pride. Until commerce was recognised not only as something financially worth while, but as a career of which a hoy could be proud, the he'd, tvoe of man would not come into commerce. On the other hand there must be scientific recruitment of boys for commerce instead of the present haphazard rociuitment by employers.

MODERN LANGUAGES. Salesmanship in the narrow sense of the word could not be taught in the schools; what commerce wanted was men trained to learn, to think, to act, and to work, Be suggested that modern languages could fnrm the ba«is of fl course of humanistic study of great value to the citizens «<■ a great worldwide mercantile Empire, What was desired was a combination of the practical wjfh the cultural, without any loss to the cultural. There had been a development in the organisation of education since the beginning of the century of which far too many employers were unconscious. The Committee on Salesmanship stressed the importance of the effective teaehingof foreign languages. They wanted the teaching of modern languages to produce that ready acquaintance with the spoken word which would make languages far more interesting and far more Useful to students who acquired them. In conclusion, the speaker said that what lie had been saying required to be impressed more upon business men than upon teachers. There was not the demand from the business world that there ought to be for well-trained linguists for service abroad.

In the discussion, Mr Guy Kendall (University College School) said he had been told by young men who had entered commerce that they had been required to work for several years at routine, tasks in which their special education was not utilised. Mr F. R, Hurlstone-Jones (Holloway School) said there was no evidence that employers would be easily convinced of the necessiy of getting better educated boys, or, when they had got them, that they would make the befit use of their ability. The old idea of getting boys young and putting them through the mill died very hard. They were taken from school, and put on to mechanical tasks, which did not give them any training or enable them to set a real knowledge of the business in which they were taking part. The schools had to serve industry ns well as commerce, and they could not new- j lect science and mathematics to give an extraordinary amount of time to j modern languages. j Mr L. F/ Wallis (County School), | Willesden) .said it was hopeless for schools to specialise in modern foreign lenguages unless there ivere openings to be found for those pupils who attained linguistic efficiency.

DANGEROUS ANALOGY. Mr H. B. Widdows (Whitley and Monkseaton High School) said it might be dangerous to apply to this country the anaogy of the teaching of modern languages in European countries. The people of such countries as Switzerland, Belgium and Holland had, as a matter of business, to understand foreign languages, because of the large number of foreign visitors whom they entertained.

Mr W. A. Barron (Brighton, Hove, and Sussex Grammar School) said education and commerce could not he brought into closer contact by Government Departments or committees; it would have to be done by employers in commerce and the teaching profession getting together, and by the employers being willing to revise their system of recruitment. Recruitment was generally done at the present time by personal influence.

Sir Francis Goodenough. in a short reply, said the discussion had revealed too great a tendency to pass on the baby (laughter) and to say, “ Evervbodv is to blame- hut outsclves, especially the employers.” The fact that a boy might have no use for a few after he entered husinrfiss for the foreign languages which he had acquired, was no reason why be should not learn these languages. No doubt there were stunid employers, but there was also a reasonable number of intelligent ones, and their number was increasing as more hov* with public school education came into commerce and took positions oi responsibility and authority. They realised the value of education.