IMPORTANCE STRESSED.

Rotorua Morning Post, Volume 1, Issue 8, 1 September 1931, Page 3

IMPORTANCE STRESSED.

. sch'eme adopted at rangiora •high school outlined.

: ROTORUA POSSIBILITIES. ' j In view of the interest which has been f bcussed ujpon the proposed introduction of an agricultural basis into the curriculum of th^ Rotorua High School, the following interview given to the "Post yesterday by MrD. A. Campbell, M. Agr. Sc., B.Sc., instructor in agriculture ^ at Rangiora High School, is of particular interest in Rotorua.

A particularly successful and praetical scheme of agricultural work has been evolved at Rangiora, and as the Rotorua High School Board proposes to model its own scheme upon the lines which have been followed at Rangiora, Mr. Campbell's outline of the work which is being done at his school is of considerable importance. After outlining the general scheme of work which is being followed at Rangiora, Mr. Campbell, who has some knowledge of local and district conditions, expressed the"hncouraging opinion that Rotorua had an opportunity to develop a very valuable scheme, not only in introducing an agricultural training into the school, but perhaps by utilising the areas of undeveloped land adjacent to this centre for a scheme which would enable the boys to be placed on the land after they left school-

The lack of prospects for the application of farming education, even when it had been given, was, he stated, one of the chief obstacles to be contended with in developing New Zealand's agricultural resources. At present, even if a boy had received training which would eqtiip him for successful farming, it was so diffieult for him to obtain a start, that in many cases he was deterrqd from proceeding further. In the majority of districts in New Zealand, considerable capital was necessary to make a start on the land and this was one of the chief obstacles to progress. But this handicap did not apply to the same degree in Rotorua where there were still large areas of comparatively undeveloped land which could be obtained at a reasonable price and which would perhaps give the Board an opportunity to carry their scheme further and give the 'boys who received agricultural training at the school, eventual prospects of becoming successful farmers. T-his, however, was a suppleme'ntary idea and one which could only be considered when the Board's scheme of introducing an agricultural basis into the work of the school was prop'erly cleveloped. Importance of Agriculture. Before outlining the work which is being carried out at Rangiora, Mr. Campbell stressed the importance of developing agricultural training in New Zealand schools. As a country which depended almost entirely upon its primary production, it was a disturbing fact that under 30 per cent. of the boys leaving our primary and sc-condary schools were following agricultural pursuits. It had been emphasised many times that this tendency must be corrected if the country was to obtain a proper balance in its agricultural development but so far the results had been disappointingly small. This was due to a number of factors, not the least of which was the superior attractions which "collar and tio" jobs held for budding youth when compared with the prospects offered by farming. A boy who went into a professional position in the towns and cities earned money more quickly, had better hours, and altogether more congenial conditions than the lad who stayed on the farm, and boy nature being what it is, it- was only natural to expect that the drift would be towards the more lucrative and congenial conditionsBut this state of affairs, he considered, was being slowly changed and now that the effects of the depression had made themselves felt, city positions did not offer the same prospects or allure that they had done in the past: The time was opportune to emphasise the long felt necessity for improving the prospects of agricultural industry and for encouraging the youth of the country to devote their energies to the avenues which yielded New Zealand her prosperity. At present, Mr. Campbell stated, 50 per cent of the boys leaving primary schools went no further with their education and of this percentage, latest reports showed that only 20 per cent followed agricultural work. The proportion of those going on to the secondary schools who took up farming was even smaller, and in the aggregate, it could be definitely stated that less than 30 per cent of the boys leaving school at the end of the year would assist the farming industry of the country. Such a position obviously could not continue indefmitely and its effects were already making themselves felt. Employment in professional and ,semi-professional avocations had practically reached saturation point and boys leaving school at the present time were faced in the majority of cases only with the alternative of returning to school to avoid unemployment. Ill-Balanced. At present, of the 28 boys' high schools and mixed high schools in New Zealand, only 16 offered an agricultural course in their curriculum. This was a significant indicafion of the lack of emphasis which was being placed upon agricultural training in a country which essentially depended upon primary production for its prosperity. Moves such as that which was being contemplated by the Rotorua High School were the only means of bombating this ill-balanced emphasis and would, he thought, secure a yery large measure of support from the Department. . There were, of qourse, a number of very serious difficulties to be overcome in approaching the problem There was the: lack of prospects in placing boys on the land, the prevailing lack of inciination to undertake farming work, and on the train- j ing side, the difficulty in obtaining ' men of suitable qualifications to act as instructors in the schools. This last difficulty, however, had now been largely- overcome as men trained at Lincoln and Massey Agricultural Colleges were now becoming available.

Scheme at Rangiora. After dealing with these preliminary aspects of the position, Mr. Campbell ,proceeded to discuss the lines of work which had been adopted at the Rangiora School, and which in all probability, will be taken as the foundation for the scheme which the Rotorua Board is contemplating. At the outset, he explained that a wide general course, embracing all general subjects such as history, english, geography and mathematics was taught at the school to give the foundation which was necessary for any specialised training. , In this connection, he explaimed that the Department, in order to encourage vocational training, stipttlated only certain general subjeets which must be taught, and left the arrangement of the remainder of the curriculum to

the principal and the Board ox Governors, subject of course, to departmental supervision. Super-imposed, however, on this general course was the agricultural vocational course which the Rangiora school had introduced. The term agricultural vocation, Mr. Campbell explained, although it might appear a little formidable, really meant a general course in practical and theoretical farming with the sciences allied to it. Under the school curriculum, boys taking the agricultural course, devoted one third of their time to its various subjeets and the remaining two thirds to the general course. Agricultural CourseThe agricultural course itself was divided into three sections — soil husbandry, field husbandry, and animal husbandry, and each of these subjeets embraced a number of courses of study and practical work allied to them. All three sections were" carefully co-related and were followed simultaneously. Soil husbandry, included the study of elementary chemistry, and physics, the character of soils, soil properties, the appljcation and use of fertilisers, and the general application of cultivation. This might sound a little technical but actually, it was a most important section of farm training for it enabled the student to understand and apply intelligently scientific principles to soil development. Field husbandry included work in biology of both plants and animals botany, applied to plant and crop diseases, plant relations, and soi" tertility. This course was intended to provide ground work in an understanding of the principles of crop and plant cultivation. The third section, animal husbandry, embraced the study of the anatomy and physiology of farm animals stock breeding, an elementarj study of stock and animal diseases; and feeding problems. In addition to these -main sections however, courses were conducted in wool classing and the general study of wool, the study of insect pests, agricultural economics, bookkeeping, farm business methodsand farm management, all super-im-posed upon the general agriculture, course.

Practical Work. The value of experimental - work, Mr Campbell explained was fully appreciated. It was the aim of the course to make every boy aequainted with the different phases of work carried out on the farm and.an endeavour was made to effect a satisfactory compromise between practical work and class work. Both were important, and, the scheme of work was designed to eorelate them as far as possible so that the students would have a sound basis of theoretical knowledge as a background to its practical application. The school conducted a farm of 114 acres in connection with its agricultural course, and the work on this farm Was designed to serve botb as a practical training in sound and economic farming, and a basis for experimental work. The farm was divided into two sections, one of 45 acres and the other of 69 acres. On the smaller section, 25 grade Jersey cows were run together with a piggery and an up-to-date milking shed and plant. Most of this area was in permanent pasture and was sub-div-ided into 13 paddocks in which a system of eontrol grazing was carried out in conjunction with pasture top-dressing experiments, and fodder trials. The remainder of the property was devoted to mixed farming. Twenty acres was in permanent pasture and a small floek of sheep was run over it. The balance of the area was divided into- three-year cropping rotatation paddocks designed to meet the special conditions of the district. All cultivation was done with the school's own implements and team. A smaller area of about three acres was divided into .experimental plots, but in this connection, Mr. Campbell expressed the opinion that plot experimental work was not of a great deal of Value so far as field conditions were concerned- Results which were obtained in experimental plots often worked out quite differently when applied to larger areas. At the same time, he said, hS did not wish tof dogmatise; a great deal of valuable demonstration work could be carried out by means of these plots. All crop , experimental work was carried out in the paddocks in which the crops were grown and in conjunction with the Agricultural ' Department which gave the school valuable assistance. Supplylng Hostel. A poultry section was also being developed, and it was hoped would form the nucleus of a poultry club which it was intended to form. A small apairy, a vegetable garden, and an orchard were other adjuncts of the farm, and produce from them was

supplied to the school hostel. "It is the objeet of the course," concluded Mr. Campbell, "and what is more, it is carried out, to see that every boy takes part in these operations during his first, second, and third years. "One of the biggest difficulties so far as we at Rangiora are concerned, is that we have no. arrangements for getting the boys on the land after they leave school, whereas here you have an excellent opportunity for evolving a scheme which would meet this deficiency. You have large tracts of undeveloped land in this vicinity, and it might perhaps he possible for a scheme to be instituted which would enable boys to obtain farms of their own after they had had the training to fit them for an agricultural career." Mr. 'Campbell yesterday eonferred with the Rotorua High School Board of Governors in connection with its proposed scheme. ,