Untitled

Hokitika Guardian, 22 May 1931, Page 4

Tub Prime Minister when speaking ;u, a school jubilee at Christchurch this week questioned the value of the cost of education in respect to the mental stamina ol tin* people to meet the special circumstances of the times. This qirery gives point to a statement by an educationist in Wellington the week previously who stressed the broul filing of knowledge nowadays underthe educational demands, a fact which was creating an age for the specialist in education. The speaker in 'Wellington, president, ol the Public Schools Assistant Masters’ Association, was comparing the changes hi ought aoont in business, finance and production by division of labour, wjth consequent specialisation, ‘knowledge’ became very educational system. Mr Pryor, the gentleman in question, went on to any that in turning to education "we find that although many great reforms have been made, still the actual organisation of teaching has ehangpd but little. This would seem difficult to understand especially when we consider the great increase in the breadth and actual content of knowledge, largely brought about by specialisation. There was a time when knowledge was unified, and it was possible to master ‘knowledge’ in the sense of ‘all that was known.’ But. with t’y advent of specilisation, ‘knowledge’ became very definitely split into different ‘subjects, 1 some of them having, it would appear, very little relation to the others. Instead of mastering knowledge jn the old sense, it was now possible to ' master only certain subjects, for the more extensive our academic knowledge becomes, the greater Is the tendency to spocinlhL.” With the great increase of knowledge, and the record ot knowledge had come a broadened and j enriched cirri, alum in all our schools, j said -Mr Pryor. Indeed, the subjects required to he taught in our primary schools had increased s o greatly that, to-day the cry was often heard of "an overloaded curriculum.” Education to-day aimed at the broad all-round development of every child and the formation of character rather than the mere "imbibing” of knowledge. If each child were to retain his indi'vTduakty in any proiess of education a very broad curriculum was essentia],i It was foolish to talk of an overloaded cirriculum when we were catering for the needs of every child. But along with this it must be remembered that the teacher was also an individual, and as such was entitled to respect. Was it fair, then, to load him with the task of teaching every subject jn the curriculum if each child were to receive the full benefit of his education? Surely it was not the curriculum that was overloaded but rather the teacher who had to handle it. The teacher .must be imasker of the subjects lie was to teach, else he could not carry out fii.s vocation. Ope glance at the primary school syllabus showed that it was impossible to bp master of all tpe subjects that were included therein, said Mr Prver, Beside s all the various branches of English there were arithmetic and mathematics, foreign languages, music, drawing, handwork, history, geography, agriculture, nature study, hygiene and physical drill, All these subjects differed widely jn eontent and could not nil be mastered to any great extent by one man, It could not be expected to find a man who was an enthusiast in all of them, The source of this statement suggests that there must be a good deal of foundation in tno belief of the speaker as to the overloading referred, and it is manifest that nil the teachers are not specialists ill all the .subjects. There is tlien file question by the Prime Minister to answer. Is the product of the education system well enough equipped to meet tlio difficult times now to he faced, and which are not going to pass away very quickly according to all the signs of the times? The question is serious enough for special thought on the part of those directing the education system of the country,