EDUCATION

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXIII, 20 July 1929, Page 3

EDUCATION

PROMINENT N.Z. HEADMASTER

MR F. MILNER HONOURED IN • ; i LONDON ■*

One of the most prominent headmasters and leaders in tiie educational world among the ranks of Nelson College Old Hoys is Mr F. Milner, rector of the Wuituki High School. _ • . : ; Mr and Mrs F. Milner and Miss MU'ner have reached England from Canada, and they have an interesting programme ahead (writes the London correspondent of "The’ Post”). _ ; Mr Milner attended, as oflieial delegate from New Zealand, the fourth triennial conference convened by the Canadian Council of Education at Vancouver. En route, he addressed by request at Honolulu meetings of students of Pacific Problems, convened respectively by the Pan-Pacific Union and the Institute of Pacific Relations. The Canadian Conference (oth-lSth April) attracted 1500 delegates, who represented ten countries. The London “Times” characterised the British dele* gates as the strongest representatives ever sent overseas from Britain to ah educational gathering. On the conclusion of the conference,’ he travelled with the British delegates’ across Canada, via Calgary, Winnipeg, Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa, and Quebec, visiting various schools, and churches,' and delivering addresses. Some time was spent on the eastern side of the United States, visiting Boston, New 1 - York, and Washington especially. At the capital city, Mr Milner was received by Dr. Wilbur, ex-president of Leland Stanford University, and now Secretary of the Interior in President Hoover’s Cabinet, and by Dr. W. J. Cooper,' Federal Commission of Education, who' extended valuable educational facilities to him. He studied for some time educational experimentation at Teachers’ College, Columbia University, aud at Harvard University- *■ ■ The travellers left Canada from Quc-* bee in the Empress qf Scotland on 28tft May, arriving at Southampton on 3rd June.

While here Mr' Milner intends tostudy educational developments in Britain for several months, and lie in? tends also to he present, as representative of New Zealand University at' the* Cambridge W.E.A. - World Conference and the Elsinore (Denmark) Conference on the New-Idealism in Education.- He will-also participate in‘the

Geneva Educational Conference, and will study educational progress and tendencies ,in Frauiie, Switzerland, and Germany. >. t- • .

Travel in Italy, Greece, Egypt, and India 'is.‘contemplated, 1 and later Mr Milner hopes do be present at the Kioto Conference’in Ja pan on Pacific Ocean problems,-in which lie is specially interested OLD BOYS’ DINNER > A dinner in honour-oLMr Milner was held by the Waitaki Old Boys’ Association of Great Britain at the Trocadero Restaurant oh tith June. Lord Strathspey presided, and the others present \vcre: Mr E. P. Lee (chairman of the Waitaki Board of Governors), Mr Robert Milligan, Mr A. L. Haslain, Dr. R. R. Macintosh, Dr. K. B. Bridge, Mr A. C. Palmer, Dr. E. H. H. Taylor, Captain R. MatUes6.il, Mr G. C. Dailey, Dr. J. M.’ Young, Dr. D. P. Jennings, Dr. H. T. Jennings, Mr R. F, de Vries, and l)i\ A. J. Harropl - : Lord Strathspey proposed the toast of-the Board of* Governors of the school, “in the world to-day,” ho said, ''wo have many headmasters, but few who are really great men. I think we may say we .have one in Mr Milner, but however great a headmaster may be,‘ lio■ T will have' an impossible task without' loyal and true men behind him on his Board of 4 Governors. If it had not liad'inen of'a high stamp on its board, Waitaki could not have risen to its present'eminence. It raiiks equal with the -great schools of this country—though New- Zealand is a young land not a century old as a -British colony. I was at Waitaki in its early days. I remember Mr Harkness, the headmaster. He had two assistants and 33 boys, not niore than half of whom were hoarders. I am greatly interested in Mr Milner’s migration scheme for public school boys, and I hope it will enlarge and go "ahead. I am sure that it is on the right lines.”- - Mr Lee, in responding, thanked the old boys • for the way in which they maintained thqir interest in the school. “We owe milch,” lie said, “to the founders who saw that the school had plenty of laud.. It would not do for me to Claim that the . success of the school was .'attributable to any very large extent to tlje present' board, but it would be idle- if I did not recognise that tlie board can assist the school in its activities. T have-been'(ihUirmaTi of the ‘board during a very interesting period, in us much as the starting of the junior high schools as an experiment' was entrusted to Mr Milner and the lady principal of the Girls’ High School. Mr Milner brought back'tlid idea of the schools from America, and Sir James Parr,'who,-1 may say, lias been a very good friend of Waitaki, selected the ’Waitaki Schools as the bdse of operations. ■' ' “I liad the' pleasure of speaking to one of the London Central Schools on Empire Day, and the : boys there and the staff were amazed at the'opportunities offered to the boys of "New Zeuland not- only in education, but in sports' facilities. lit my public activities I know ; Of nothing which has given me greater pleasure than my association' with" Waitaki,' and the .board always has the satisfaction- of seeing that it is amply repaid for £he time and energy it Expends in the school’s service. Mr . Milper’s visit to - 'England id-the best thing- that has happened toWaitaki* and I only wish he’ fcotild Have come ten. years ago.” (Applause.) ENTHUSIASM FOR EDUCATION

Mr Milligan" said: “If fchefh is one thing that New Zealand should be sat' is’fied with, I think' it is the provision the-early’ settlers'made for education. Otago’was Settled bjr Scots;*and Waß taki shared in. their enthusiasm' for education. In-regard to the Junior High School,- we must; remember the very important party played by Mr Lee as . member - for Oamaru. (Applause.) The great help of Sir James Parr,' as Minister of Education, would not be forgotten. - My pleasure at being here tonight is enhanced by the fact that Old Boys of Waitaki the world over have done much credit to the-school.” ' ' ' Mr Haslam, proposing the toast of the school, coupled with Mr Milner’s name, said: “The gathering to-night represents the achievement of the association’s •- highest ambition. (Applause?) We all hope that Mr Milner’s staywill be an-enjoyable one. In the monastic seclusion -of Old World Uni--versifies or the-more hectic atmosphere of the great -towns, we are - in danger of losing something of the spirit which Mr Milner’s eloquence instilled into us in the past. We know the great success he has had in blending the vocational and the Classical in education, and, "to use a i phrase of his own, in helping to dispel in Young New Zealand the idea- that' the -hub of the universe sticks out in their backyard for them to hang their hats on.” (Applause.) , ■ Mr Milner, who - was received with loud applause, said: “After being but a day iri’this-great'metropolis, I feel as if I had the mentality of a yokel, going about plucking the hayseed from •my back hair. Whatever intellect I ever had seems to, have deliquesced into a musli.i (Laughter.) I thank tlie whole' of you, in tlic’ naihc of the school, for the practical interest you have shown by.coming- here to-night, in many cases atr considerable inconvenience. I - have often meditated a trip to England. I felt I-nceded'careening' in a'pedagogic dry dock', and when the opportunity canie to represent’ New Zealand at'the fourth' cohferehed •-•of the■ Canadian Council of Education, I determined to make the visit a stepping stone to England. That conference was a unique experience in my drab and* isolated life. ■ We were-surrounded with all the glamour of plenipotentiafies, literally walking knee deep in the plush and dining off gold salvers/-(Laughter.) Wo were the guests at' all sorts of intellectual and'- gastrouomic functions. In the United States.’, -too,. I- was treated with every courtesvy and l ean say that any splenetic’-outbursts '-against Great Britain from" tliat -country do not come froto their meu of education. TRIBUTE TO FOUNDERS ’-“To my disgust, the delegation from Australia'arid New-Zealand was dumped together nfp‘Australasian’ ih Canada, b’strongly protested; against this-.(Ap-plause!) I objected' to the--idea of New Zealand as 'aii Odious approximation or geographical appendix. I -\vtis"f creed' to tell the story Of the Australian orator, 'wh6 said ‘that • with better 'irrigation and a better class of immigrant, Australia would bd as near' perfection as can be attained in this world, only to '.bear froni ah' •interjector, 'Say, mister, j that’s-all Hell Wants.’ (Laughter.) 1 ' j.'M'i ahf tp pay'a' tribute to | the ! fotiptier *f for /theit'‘yis:ibn.; ‘iTo'day’ we’: havo Sixty- hcres. - ' of 'playing fields and a very good cricket i ground, ' •which visiting Australian teams have pronounced the "finest in New Zealand: All boarders sleep in the open air, and I noticed with surprise in Canada that the boys sleep in an artificially heated atmosphere and that

their physical development is not so carefully looked after as in Now Zcalandj Love of open air and sunlight da a great tiling, and it helps to build up healthy minds. * i“The world’s leisure time is increasing, and ill America already the five day week is in sight. On - the Way in (Which leisure is' spent depends the future of the world, and the schools must decide. At Waitaki we try to give’boys interests which' will (ill their leisure profitably. Although there are academic, commercial, agricultural, and engineering courses, all boys must take English, literature, history and geography. For the average boy, classics take up so much 'time in accidence aud general gymnastics that his time may bo more profitably spent in acquiring a passion for English literature and a knowledge of the political problems of the day. • WAITAKI V. LINCOLN : “New Zealand is dependent on the grass, as Mr W. D. Hunt said recently, and farming is- becoming increasingly Intensive. Science is now inseparable from farming. The English boys , who \v!ent out to Waitaki had been there only a lOitnight when I came away. I felt that some of them liad come out rather late." From Hi to 10J is about the best age. The boys are taking science, English, arithmetic, anil bookkeeping, as well as practical work, and I have arranged for them to take part iin .actual work, on farms. I am not in d. position to say yet whether the scheme will he a success or not, but it must be butter to acclimatise the hoys in this way than to put them straight on the land to take their chance. (Applause.) I offered to utilise Waitaki in this way because, in my opinion, Lincoln College was being ruii on much too conservative line's. Massey College has only just started, and in both colleges together there is not at present 1-o*olll for a number of boys from Engltl"After going carefully through the „reat schools of Canada, I am convinc- I ed that the schools of New Zealand | have not -a great deal to learn from them. I do not say,- however, that l Will find the same , thing in England. At Waitaki I have tried to imbue boys wit-li -true patriotism—to Steer them also towards a sane internationalism. I felt in America that if we Englishspeaking races cannot wofc together the world is doomed. Science has mficje war so terrible that if another conflict came civilisation would be relegated to barbarism, and we should all haveto sprout tails again and learn to climb trees.” (Laughter,and applause.) m '