TRAINING OF SECONDARY TEACHERS. 651 



together of intending teachers in an atmosphere surcharged with 

 pedagogic wisdom and priggishness (which is the idea many people 

 have of training colleges), 1 for one should infinitely prefer the 

 present chaos. But even if they were desirable, there is no agency 

 in Australia that is likely to establish them, and no fund by which 

 they could be maintained. It may be taken for granted that a 

 course of professional training must be both theoretical and prac- 

 tical. For the theoretical we must look to the university, for the 

 practical to the school; and neither institution need be remodelled 

 in order to supply these new demands. In each of our universities 

 at the present time professorial lectures are given in psychology,, 

 ethics, and physiology — the educational sciences. The only 

 additional course of lectures to be supplied would be in the history 

 of education, and some member of the existing staff could pro- 

 bably in each colony be found to undertake this. Attendance at 

 these lectures should be made compulsory upon all intending 

 teachers, even (I might almost say, especially) if they are already 

 distinguished graduates ; for the great heresy which must be 

 combated in all its forms is the idea that intellectual attainments 

 are of themselves sufficient equipment for teaching 



The practical part of the course can only be provided by existing 

 schools, and here is another difficulty.. Xot all headmasters will 

 be disposed or (may it be said without rank blasphemy ?) even 

 competent to su])erintend the work of student teachers, to heljD in 

 difficulties, to suggest fruitful ideas, and stimulate to self-improve- 

 ment; yet this, it seems, is nut only desirable but even essential to 

 any practical scheme of training. Would it be possible to admit, 

 on probation, those who are recognised as merely learning to be 

 teachers ? The question with head masters will be — flow can we 

 make room for them when our staff is already complete and the 

 woik mapped out? It is partly a matter of expense and partly 

 one of organisation. If, however, a year's actual teaching were 

 universally required before admission to full work ami regular 

 status, probationers might well be expected (as in certain other 

 professions) to be content with nominal remuneration while thus 

 qualifying themsehes. If room were afterwards found for them 

 on the regular staff of the schools where they have been trained 

 an enormous advantage would be experienced by headmasters in 

 having assistants to whom they have imparted their own spirit and 

 their own methods. 



The present system has naturally perpetuated itself. Head- 

 masters have not felt able to insist on their assistants receiving a 

 preliminary training, because their choice would then be exceed- 

 ingly limited. On the other hand, university men will not subject 

 themselves to preparatory discipline for the teaching profession, 

 because they are sure of admission somewhere without it. It is^ 

 easy to understand the reasons for this : a man fresh from the 

 university presumably brings with him a breadth of intellectual 



