Notes. 293 



Winter Vacation Short Courses, 1922. 



'Jlie \\ inter ya'jatioii short courses of iuslructioJi were held as 

 usual this year at the schools of agriculture, including' Cedara, where, 

 owing' to the training of returned soldiers, these courses have not been 

 possible since 1918. Their ixipuhirity is evidenced net only by the 

 increasing attendance from year to year, but also by the individual 

 interest and keenness of those attending. The attendance figures foi' 

 the last nine years (commencing from 1914) are as follows: lOG, 19^), 

 265, 300, 349, 398, 378, 419, and 041. Of the total of 641 students 

 for 1922, 397 were men and 244 women (38 per cent.) ; the majority, 

 446, were of the farming community, 73 were teachers and 122 had 

 other occupations. 



Potchefstioom is the only institution \Ahich showed a decrease in 

 the ])r()i)()rli()n of farming representatives, ascribed, liappily, to the 

 increasing facilities for extra-mural instruction offered to the farming 

 community of the Transvaal in the way of " farmers' weeks " ami 

 other organizations of a like natuie, ^liere lectures and demonstrations 

 are given. At the other scdiools there was a large increase in the 

 proportion of farmer students — a very encouraging feature, indicating 

 a growing desire on the ])art of the farming community to improve 

 their methods. 



These short courses are held during the winter vacations, as 

 accommodation is then available owing- to the absence of the regular 

 students, and farmers are not too busy ;;t that time and can spare a 

 \Yeek or so to attend. For teachers at public schools specially designed 

 courses are arranged (when possible) to take place during the ordinary 

 school holidays; unfortunately, in the case of Glen, the poultry course 

 could not be held this year during the stdiool holidays, and no teachers 

 could attend it, although many desired to do so. 



Formerly the short courses consisted of two periods of about two 

 weeks each, the first period being devoted to subjects suitable to small- 

 holders, teachers, and women, while the second was designed more 

 for farmers. The tendency during the last few years, however, has 

 been to introduce " single subject " courses or, at most, two or three 

 closely allied subjects, and at the same time to reduce the period of 

 each course to a week at the longest. It was felt that in the limited 

 period of a fortnight it was impossible to teach a large number of 

 subjects, and that the aim sliould rather be to concentrate on one 

 subject so as to give students the applied technical kno\Aledge they 

 were specially in search of. Many students who attended the longer 

 general courses were keen only on one or two subjects, yet had to take 

 all the other subjects and thus remain longer than necessary away 

 from their work, while the subjects on \^ hich they vrere seeking infor- 

 mation could not be treated as fully as desired. It was also found that 

 often the students attracted by the general courses wviv not the most 

 desirable type : their ostensible desire to take a large number of 

 subjects, evinced no particular keenness to learn any of them very 

 thoroughly. A few of the two weeks' general courses were held this 

 year at certain of the schools, but expeiience again showed that they 

 are not altogether suited to the requirements of the farming com- 

 munity. It is, therefore, proposed next year to continue the process 

 of specialization, thereby obviating the ditBculty of many farmers in 

 arranging for absences from their farms for more than a week at a 

 time. 



