E.—l

40

It is to be roted that females outnumber the male students by about one thousand, and that the number of students engaged in agriculture and in other trades and industries is only slightly under one-third of the total number in attendance at the classes. A falling-off in the number of classes in the various branches of engineering has to be recorded ; but whereas it has been usual during the past four years to record a decrease in the number of classes in subjects connected with the building trades, this year's records show an increase in both, classes and students. The workshops and equipment of the principal schools enable them, to provide a fairly complete course in workshop practice, and while many objections may be advanced against keeping these workshops up to date in the matter of machine tools, it is considered that if the instruction given is to react advantageously on the industries of the country a reasonably complete equipment of the best modern tools is necessary. There is, however, a growing conviction that the school workshop is not the principal factor in technical training. It ranks with the laboratories in importance, as the principles learned in the latter can be practised or applied and tested in the workshops, but the training must not end there. If the youth of to-day is to become the efficient workman of the future, if he is to take his place in the industrial system, as a man and. as a skilled craftsman, he must comprehend his work not only from the standpoint of the workshop, but in its relations to science, to art, and to society in general ; and the technical schools, if they are fulfilling their true function, exist to show him those relationships. One of the most enlightened directors of vocational training has said, " Industrial training shall be primarily not for the sake of industries, but for the sake of citizenship ; to this end it must be conducted on. a purely educational, basis, and not on behalf of interested manufacturers " ; and, further, " The young workman who understands his trade in its scientific relations, its historical, economic, and social bearings, will take a higher view of bis trade, of his powers and duties as a citizen, and as a member of society." There is a slight falling-off in the number of classes in agricultural subjects, but there is a marked growth in the appreciation, of the value of and the desire for knowledge that can be of immediate service in the solution of problems that arise day by day on the farm, or in matters connected therewith. The number of classes held was 98, as against 127 in 1917. The subjects dealt with include agriculture, dairy-work, wool-sorting, shearing, and orchard-work ; and, although the subjects may not be studied as thoroughly and as fully as appears desirable, there can be no question as to the educational and practical, value of the " short course " in agricultural subjects which has been made a special feature of the work in some districts. In these courses a problem is dealt with in each lesson, all matters extraneous thereto being as far as possible eliminated. The scientific side of the matter is dealt with in such a manner as to enable those whose science training may be limited to comprehend its meaning, and the method of dealing with matters generally is empirical and practical. That the instruction has value was well shown by a farmer in attendance at one of the classes, who remarked at the close of a lesson that if the knowledge he had gained that day had been available ten years ago it would have saved him many hours of hard work and hundreds of pounds in hard cash. The establishment of classes in wool-sorting, exclusively for women, is a new and interesting feature of the work, while combined classes of men and women are not at all uncommon. An increase in the number of classes in subjects related to the home has to be recorded. These classes are for* the most part attended by those who desire the knowledge for special and home use. So far no serious attempt has been made to provide the necessary technical instruction for the large number of young persons engaged, in. the trade, but some of the classes in conduction with the domestic course in technical high schools provide the preliminary|training for many of those who afterwards take the special course in home science and domestic arts at the Otago University. The number of students in attendance during the year at this special course was sixty-five, of whom, thirty-eight are holders of Government bursaries, and may be regarded as prospective teachers of domestic subjects. Three degree and five diploma students completed their* course in 1918. Some of the most important