MR. FORSTER. M. P., ON EDUCATION.

Temuka Leader, Issue 178, 24 September 1879, Page 3

MR. FORSTER. M. P., ON EDUCATION.

Mr. W. K. Foster, M. P., on Saturday, formally opened a new Grammar School at Bristol. He said when they came to consider the curriculum of a school they knew there were some things which were a necessity. Elementary knowledge was a necessity, but he hoped that in any first grade school, which this must be, however much they regarded the claims of scienco—and thev eight to he regarded-—they would not'absolutely forget the classics. There were, however, three branches of study which always struck him individually as being of enormous importance, namely, one for brain teaching and brain training, one fnr social comfort in after life anil the other "for fitting future men to perforin t..eir political duties. ' He thought it rather a mistake to try to make grammar and other schools as much as possible like the great public schools, because of the difference in the position of the children attending those schools. They could not meet the educational wants of the middle classes generally with the boarding school svstom —it must be done by the dayschool system. Mr. Foster afterwards referred to the great educational wants —that of good intermediate schools. He thought every effort being made to earrv out the plan established by State of elementary scjiools, and he looked forward to the time very speedily coming at which there would not be a boy or girl in England who would not be taught to read, write and cipher, if they took the highest culture —that of the universities—there, too, they found a great improvement. They found Oxford and Cambridge enlarging and liberalising themselves ; but when they came to the schools between universities and primary schools, there was a great want. The need was great, but the English people were getting sensible of the need, and when that was the case they might be pretty sure that before long it would be supplied ; but exactly how he did not yet Bee.