APPENDIX II 207 



It is true that many ardent educationists consider this to 

 be insufficient and advocate twenty hours weekly. But it 

 must be remembered that even eight hours per week is 

 more than is given in most countries where day continuation 

 schools have been in existence for some years ; that it will 

 require vast effort on the part of Central and Local y\uthori- 

 ties to make adequate provision for eight hours' continuation 

 instruction a week ; and that finally, when we have the new 

 machine working smoothl\ , it will ahvaNS be possible to 

 incre:ise the number of hours. 



Not for one moment must we lose sight of the fact that if 

 the new developments are to be successful the first essential 

 is to concentrate attention on the training of the future teacher. 

 Two years' training in a college is not suflicient — three years 

 should be the rule and not the exception. 



And more and more the training colleges should be given 

 a university character and atmosphere. 



In regard to the actual creation of the continuation day 

 school, a perfectly possible procedure in any county would 

 be to select so many of the best and largest of the elementary 

 schools, add a cheap wooden class-room, and appoint either 

 a " continuation master " or put the elementary school head 

 master, if suitable, in charge of the continuation school as 

 well, increasing his staff as necessary. This would be the 

 continuation centre to which children within a three-mile 

 radius would come. My own county is not thickly populated, 

 but study of the Ordnance Map and of the population between 

 the ages of fourteen and eighteen shows that a good continua- 

 tion attendance could be secured at a good many centres. 



In the early stages of the movement the object should be 

 quality rather than quantity. One centre properly run, full 

 of intellectual life and educational activity, will be worth half 

 a dozen inditierent centres. We must do more than simply 

 create continuation day schools : we must call into existence 

 centres of intellectual activity that will permeate the life of 

 the whole neighbourhood. The best elementary schools 

 would provide a good nucleus, also the small rural secondary 



