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Hokitika Guardian, 4 January 1933, Page 4

A far-r hacking change in secondary school education to meet the needs of the modern business world was forecast by Dr. Cyril Norwood, headmaster of Harrow School, at the opening of a new secondary school at Kingsbury, Middlesex, lie said Itliat the higher education curriculum now taught was a definite preparation, of pupils l for the universities by their taking matriculation and intermediate -examinations. Of 70,000,090 boys and girls who obtained matriculation in 1931 only 4000 to 5000 went to universities; the rest went into the business world with an education which was not- for business. Boys a,nd girls, on leaving school, should have a knowledge of their own language, one other language and reasonable mathematical minds. He cited the case of a boy with a “credit” on his matriculation certificate for English. “Does, it mean,” he said, “that he knows how to express himself ar.d understand English grammar, c-r dees it mean that he ho-s' read two of ' Shakespeare’s plays—and the notes? I am in no way a heretic,” he added, “but I have my doubts about the use and value of algebra and physics and chemistry for a bov in this modern business world. Pupils leaving school generally know nothing of biology, hygiene, the care of their bodies, ithe laws of growth, and the elements of trade and finance, the structure of this country to-dav.” He contended that pupils should learn about events from 1789 'to 1932. They should ho taught modern geography, not only the names of the capes and the rivers, and something about banking and distribution' of money and exchange. All this meant setting ■secondary schools, free from the tyranny of university courses and matriculation.