EDUCATION IN BELGIUM

New Zealand Tablet, 22 June 1911, Page 1163

EDUCATION IN BELGIUM

A SYSTEM PRODUCTIVE OF THE BEST RESULTS The vexed Belgian school question (writes Mr. G. Metlake in the Northwest Iteview) is approaching settlement at : last. Minister Schollaert’s Educational Reform Bill is admitted, even by the mouthpieces of the Liberals, to be in many respects a masterpiece. Schollaert did not make known the provisions of his Bill until he had obtained the approval of all the Catholic Senators and Deputies. The followers of Woests and the so-called Young Catholic Party had been divided on several questions . of principle, compulsory school attendance having been the chief apple of discord. How the new Bill overcomes this difficulty will appear in the course of this little article. A On March 14 Schollaert called a meeting of all the members of the Catholic Party for a preliminary discussion of the Bill. Schollaert himself was the chief speaker. In order to show how senseless were the Socialists on the educational policy of the Government, he produced some Very important statistics. In the year 1884, when the Liberals were ousted from the Government, after six years of strenuous Kulturkampf, the number of children attending the public schools was, in round numbers, 324,000; after fifteen years of what the Liberals are pleased to call the domination of clerical obscurantism—that is, at the end of —the primary schools of Belgium (official communal schools and private schools) counted 929,000 pupils. How under the Catholic regime the number of schools steadily increased will be seen from the following table: Public Schools. Classes. 188-5 ... ... 5469 ... 10,549 1900 ... " ... 6814 ... 16,149 1905 ... ... 7144 ... 18,227 Statistics show furthermore, that at most 5 per cent, of the Belgian children of school age were without instruction in 1905. In England, according to MacNamara, the number of children without elementary instruction was, in the same year, something more than 19 per cent. The following figures show that the Government has contributed its share towards the development of the public schools: School Budget. 1835 ... ... 29.480,646 francs 1895 ... ... 32,867,778 „ 1905 ' ... ... : 46,772,673 Calumniators of Belgium are accustomed to point with malignant joy to the supposed prevalence of illiteracy, which they put down at 20, or even, 25, per cent. On what this estimate is based I don’t know certainly not on official statistics. The examination of recruits in countries where military service is obligatory is usually considered a fair index of the condition of popular education. Now, of the recruits examined in Belgium from 1880 to 1907 there were were able to read and write; 1880 ... ... ... 78.34 per cent. 1890 ... ... ... 84.08 „ 1900 ... ... ... 87.99 1907 ... ... ... 90.94 j, Thus in the last named year there were not even 10 per cent, who could not read and write. What nation has attained equally creditable results without compulsory education? - A Liberty Loving People. But why, it will bo asked, hasn’t Belgium made education compulsory? To one who knows the Belgians the answer cannot be difficult. The Belgians are a liberty loving people, who keep a jealous watch over their independence. They resent all interference of the State in their family concerns—and who will deny that education is not a family concern? But, it will be objected, a large portion of the nation, represented by the Socialists and Liberals, wants compels sory education, and the Spirit of the Age seems to demand it. It is true the Socialists and Liberals clamor for compulsory education, but only because they hope by this means to be able to put the Church out of the school —a prime demand, by the way, of the Spirit of the Age. During the period before 1884 the Belgian Catholics experienced in their own persons what the Liberals are capable of when they have possession of the reins of Government, and the terrible lesson the French Catholics have had to learn has not been lost on them. They are determined, cost what it may, to keep God in their schools. Considerations such as those no doubt led Schollaert to write at the head of his school bill the words so dear to every true Belgian; _ ‘ Liberty of Education.’ But he is not unite satisfied with the results obtained by the educational system hitherto in vogue. All the people do not receive the benefits of primary school training, nor is the time given to it long enough. Hence the new bill calls for an extension of the school age, for more schools, for better training of teachers, for better teachers’ salaries and for obligatory attendance. . The Belgian System. Before entering upon a more detailed account of the -provisions of Schollaert’s bill it will be well to say a word

about the kinds of schools at present existing in Belgium. Since 1884 the young Belgians have been trained either in private schools,' properly so calledthat is, schools not sub' ject to State inspection, ; and in consequence deprived ;: of all State subventionor in schools placed under “ State control or inspection and subsidized by the State. To the latter class belong (1) the communal Schools (ecoles communales)/ (2) the adopted schools (ecoles adoptees), and (3) the subsidised private schools (ecoles privees subsidiees), which submit to the State school programme and to State . supervision. ' Every community must have at: least one-public school. But instead of erecting one itself it can; under certain conditions, adopt a private school, thus giving it the character of a communal school. - . All these schools are recognised by the new bill, but in those in which teachers approved , by the State are; employed instructions will henceforth be given free of charge. Six-tenths of the total school expenses will be borne by the State, three-tenths by the community, and one-tenth by the province. The school budget is to be determined for each school at the beginning of school year by the number of children in attendance. This is dene in the following .quite ingenious manner: ‘ - At the beginning of every year the number of children "between the ages of six and fourteen is ascertained by the communal authorities. Each family then receives as many ‘ bons scolaires ’ (school bonds) as it has children of school ago. The heads of families are at liberty to send their children to any. of the existing schools. The children hand their bonds to their teacher, and the School Board then calculates according to the number of bonds the amount contributed by the State, community,’ and province towards the expenses of each school. . But how can parents be induced" to make use of the ‘ bons scolaires ?’ In the first place, instructions in the public schools will be given free of charge, and no parents can in future allege poverty as an excuse for keeping their children out of school, especially as free soup and clothing will be distributed to the children of the needy. Secondly, the employment of children under fourteen at any lucrative work whatever is'strictly prohibited. ' Thus the avarice of certain parents receives, a salutary check. Thirdly, the names of parents forgetful of their, duty will be, after due warning, administered by the justice of the peace, posted up on the bulletin board of the town hall. To prevent hunting or-canvassing for children by agents of the various schools, fines and even imprisonment are decreed against such offences. Up to this the meagre, salaries of the teachers were no doubt the worst features of the Belgian school system. In this respect also the Schollaert Bill meets the just demands of the teachers'by providing for a 30 and 40 per cent, increase in their salaries. However, after January 1, 1917, only teachers of Belgian nationality and approved by the State will be permitted to teach in the public schools. ~ All these improvements in the primary school system will entail an enormous increase in the annual school budget, but the finances of the country are in such a flourishing state that no additional taxes will have to be levied to meet it. • As mentioned above, the Liberal organs cannot help acknowledging that the Educational Reform Bill elaborated by Prime Minister Schollaert is a very clever piece of work, but they promise to fight some of its provisions tooth and nail. Thus they say that the Liberals will never cease > to protest against using public moneys to subsidise ‘clerical’ schools.’ These -same ‘Liberals’ have no scruples* however, when there is question of forcing the .Catholics to pay for the maintenance of ‘Liberal’—i.e., atheistical— as they actually do in those districts of Belgium in which they occupy the majority of seats in the town halls. % h . . : :4i ;■ In 1890 the Belgian Government founded fourteen annual scholarships, valued at 4000 francs each, to be competed for by the graduates of the four universities of Brussels, Ghent, Liege, and Louvain. : The board of : examiners is composed of professors taken from all the Belgian universities. The successful candidates are entitled to spend two years at some foreign university. The result of last, year’s contest was made known a few days ago. Now a single scholarship was won by the so-called university of Brussels, whereas the Catholic University of Louvain carried off seven, the others being divided between - Ghent and Liege. The success of Louvain is the more remarkable if we remember that Brussels receives annually in subsidies 40,000 francs from, the province of Brabant, 25,000 from the city of Antwerp and 200,000 from; the city of Brussels, whilst Louvain receives in all 40,000 francs from the four provinces. Besides, the free university has the advantage of ready access to the hospital, museums, libraries, and galleries of the capital, whereas Louvain is lost, so to speak, in a little provincial town. : •