PRACTICAL TEACHING.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIV, Issue 145, 15 December 1911, Page 8

PRACTICAL TEACHING.

FOE GIRLS . By Telegraph —Press Assoeiatinn. Dunedin, ijast Night. 'At the break-up of the Otago Girls' High School. Miss Ma reliant, who is retiring after 10 years of service, gave some of her views on the teaching of domestic science, and the relation of free secondary education to girls generally. She thought the standard of admission was too low, and another grave effect was tliat the girls left so quickly. At Wellington. Ohristchurch, Auckland and Dunedin there were more gtais of high school age in private schools than at the free high schools. This meant that the majority of parents did not want free education for their girls, though fees had been abolished. It was not enough tlmt schools were thrown open for girls to be educated, and girls' parents needed money. Girls whose abiilty was undoubted ought to be given £ls a year to enable 'them to attend school. In schools were wanted girls with brains, and not only those who had time to take high school courses. Some of these girls with ability went away to earn about 5s a week. In 50 weeks they would earn £l2 10s in preference to the present system. Then she would like to see a scholarship of £ls given to these girls and fees maintained in the school for I those who could afford to pay. With re- ! spect to university education, she thought that the appeal to reason and intellect that was the dominating system of primary schools had run mad over domestic science. Business people had an idea that if they could teach the girls chemistry, cooking and physics of this and the temperature of something elee they would make good cooks. There they made no such thing. It was not plastering with science that was wanted to i burn people into cooks. Some of the most unintelleetual people she had seen made the best cooks and the best housewives. For herself, instead of beginning at the top with all this scientific training, she would begin at the bottom. She would have a little house like home, such as girls would live in after life, no fanciful kitchen or gas stoves fitted up quite unlike anything the girls have in the course of their lives. She would send fifth standard scholars to the home and WOTk for three months, and teach them how to do work quickly, expeditiously and methodically. Next year she would send sixth standard scholars to the same place, beginning with the girls of these standards. In that way they woiild reach to the number of threefourths of the womenhood of New Zealand. (Applause.)