55— THE PLACE OF MANUAL TRAINING IN SOUTH 



AFRICAN EDUCATION. 



By Thomas Lowden. 



Among the many questions before the public of South Africa, not 

 the least important is that of Education. Recently I was glad to 

 notice, that the Rand Daily Mail had, in a series of leaders, directed 

 attention to the question of practical education, under the title of 

 " Our Future Artisans." 



In the Colonies it is just as much of vital importance, and 

 perhaps more so, that our youths should be as properly prepared, if 

 inclined to take up trades, as the Home youths. It seems to me that 

 South African born and reared youths, and over-sea born, but 

 reared here, should take the bulk of positions as highly-skilled and 

 highly-paid artisans and mechanics, and high places in offices or 

 the Civil Service, and not have to take, as is too often the case, 

 what is left after valuable posts have been filled by highly-paid 

 imported men. Undoubtedly good colonists are needed, but not at 

 the future expense of our boys. Further, in a country like this, 

 where the mineral wealth has only been scratched, where agriculture 

 is practically only emerging from its infancy, and where manufac- 

 tures are yet to be born, the education must be such that the youths, 

 our future pioneers, the kings of isolated places, may be self-reliant 

 and self-contained. That our boys have been, and are, still some- 

 what handicapped, most will agree with me, and that being so, it 

 is necessary to study the cause and the means of prevention. On 

 enquiring why so many imported men from all parts of the world 

 occupy the good positions, we are told the lack of training facilities 

 for our Colonial youths has kept them in the second place. When 

 should we begin the training of " Our Future Artisans," Argicul- 

 turists, etc. ? Undoubtedly the training should begin the moment 

 a child starts its school life, and should be of such a character that 

 the transfer from the classroom to the business life should simply 

 be a change of environment, and a change of master. That business 

 life is simply an expanding of school life, and the application of 

 the principles, information, moral tone, perception and application, 

 reliability, and habit of work acquired at school, and that there is 

 nothing to unlearn. 



Educationalists must face this question. Perhaps no profession 

 outside those of religion, law, and medicine, sticks tighter to Tradi- 

 tion, or is more classic and conservative than the Teaching 

 Profession. Because, in the Middle Ages, what little information 

 was to be obtained, what little was known of Theology, Philosophy, 

 Science, and Mathematics, was wrapped up in books written in Latin 

 and Greek, and it was necessary for scholars to get at that information 

 first hand, to be expert in Latin and Greek, is no good reason why 

 so much of our students' time should be spent over dead languages. 

 Nor are any of the arguments put forward by those in favour of 

 classic education of commonsense or utilitarian value. The needs 

 of the community are sacrificed to custom. Ninety per cent, of our 

 students will never require Latin and Greek in their manhood. 



