34 



NA TURE 



[May lo, 1906 



purposes. His special training should not commence 

 until he is about seventeen years of age. To ensure 

 such a standard of efficiency a leaving examination 

 for secondary schools is desirable throughout the 

 United Kingdom, so that there may be no room for 

 doubt as to whether a boy has received a satisfactory 

 preliminary education. 



Advanced teaching of history and geography, with 

 instruction and practice in essay-writing and in precis- 

 writing, should be included in the ordinary school 

 curriculum; and the instruction in English subjects 

 should include at least an introduction to English 

 literature. 



Greek should not be required, but an elementary 

 knowledge of Latin is desirable. The study of Latin 

 should, however, be discontinued during the last two 

 years of attendance at school, or after the standard 

 required for the leaving certificate has been attained. 

 Modern languages, especially French and German, 

 should be studied, and should be taught colloquially 

 or in such a way as to give the pupils a practical 

 knowledge of each language, sufficient to enable them 

 to study its literature and to converse in it with some 

 degree of facility. 



Instruction in mathematics should be given by 

 methods differing considerably from those usually 

 ■adopted in the teaching of this subject merely as an 

 intellectual exercise. The geometrical side of mathe- 

 matics should be fostered, and before they leave school 

 boys should be conversant with the use of logarithms, 

 and with at least the elements of trigonometrv. In- 

 struction in practical arithmetic should be carried 

 further than has been generally the case hitherto, with 

 the object especially of encouraging the use of con- 

 tracted methods and of encouraging also the expres- 

 sion of results with only such a degree of accuracy as 

 is consistent with the known degree of certainty of 

 the data on which the calculations are based. 



It is preferable that boys should attain at school a 

 general knowledge of physics and chemistry rather 

 than that they should pursue in detail some particular 

 branch of science. Special attention should be given 

 to drawing. Work in the nature of handicraft, such 

 as carpentry or turning, may be encouraged as a re- 

 creation, but should not be required as a school 

 exercise. 



The committee very properly recommends that the 

 scheme of education outlined in its report should be 

 communicated officially to the Board of Education and 

 be circulated widely amongst those responsible for the 

 work in secondary schools and engineering colleges. 

 The importance of the committee's recommendations. 

 Indeed, cannot be overestimated. Educational ex- 

 perts have long foreseen the impossibility of securing 

 a rational system of secondary education in the absence 

 of a carefully planned investigation to determine pre- 

 cisely what secondary education has to accomplish 

 and how the desired end may best be reached. The 

 Institution of Civil Engineers 'has by its public-spirited 

 action _ shown schoolmasters the \vay so far as the 

 ■education of future engineers is concerned. Here is 

 the opportunity for which earnest educators have been 

 looking. The ground to be covered has been carefully 

 mapped out by experts, and we at last know precisely 

 what is required of the secondary school so far as 

 training engineers is concerned. It is earnestly to be 

 boped that the opportunity will not be lost. If 'for the 

 next ten years these judicious recommendations could 

 be made the basis of the secondary education provided 

 for all boys intended for engineering, and if the results 

 of following the scheme could be accurately recorded 

 •during this period, we should in 1916 be in possession 

 of data which would bring us within easy distance of 

 formulating with confidence a course of school study 

 NO. 1906, VOL. 74] 



which would provide engineers with boys trained in 

 such a way as to make their future rational develop- 

 ment easy and straightforward. 



Engineering Tr.mning. 



It was eventually decided by the committee to deal 

 together with the sections of its inquiry concerned with 

 training in offices, workshops, factories, or on works ; 

 training in universities and higher technical institu- 

 tions ; and post-graduate work. As in the case of the 

 investigation dealing with the school career of the 

 future engineer, so in this case a schedule of questions 

 was framed and circulated widely. But a modification 

 was introduced ; the committee embodied in the 

 schedule certain conclusions on important subjects on 

 which it was unanimous. At the same time a free 

 expression of divergent opinions was invited. 



In the schedule of opinions and questions the com- 

 mittee expressed its opinion that the age for leaving 

 school of the future engineer should be seventeen 

 years, and seventy per cent, of the 267 engineers and 

 others who sent replies e.xpressed agreement with this 

 proposal. The opinion of the committee that it is 

 desirable that the course of training for all branches 

 of engineering should include at least one year's train- 

 ing in mechanical engineering workshops, where, 

 ordinarily, information would be gained of the prac- 

 tical applications of electricity, was endorsed by 72 per 

 cent, of those who responded to the invitation of the 

 committee to express their views, and 21 per cent, 

 considered this period too short. There was, however, 

 far less unanimity as to when this introductory work- 

 shop course should be taken. The committee laid it 

 down that the course should be taken at an early 

 period — either previously to the commencement of 

 college training, or after that portion of the college 

 training which is common to all branches of engineer- 

 ing has been completed. Thirtjf-three per cent, of the 

 responding referees merely expressed agreement with 

 the committee, while 47 per cent, were definite that it 

 should be before the college training began. 



Four-fifths of the replies received agreed with the 

 committee that during the introductory workshop 

 course, and indeed in subsequent similar courses, boys 

 should keep the regular working hours, be treated like 

 ordinary apprentices, and be paid wages. Rather more 

 than half the referees replying thought boys should be 

 expected to attend evening classes during this work- 

 shop course, and 35 per cent, thought educational 

 work should be suspended during this time. A large 

 majority of the replies showed that it is generally con- 

 sidered desirable that this workshop course should be 

 followed by a period of study in a technical college or 

 university before specialisation in particular branches 

 of engineering is undertaken, and that the period of 

 college study should be arranged so as to alternate 

 with the practical training. 



There was great diversity of opinion as to what 

 constitutes a reasonable total period of practical train- 

 ing on works, in factories, workshops, mines, and so 

 on — apart from the introductory workshop course. 

 Thirty per cent, of the replies mention three years, 

 twenty per cent, give two years, and the remaining 

 opinions vary from one to five years. The committee 

 recommends a total period of four years inclusive of 

 the introductory workshop course. On the other hand, 

 it seemed to be generally agreed that the scale on which 

 appliances and equipment for instructing engineering 

 students should be provided in technical colleges 

 should be limited only by the funds at the disposal of 

 the college authorities. 



The three concluding opinions formulated by the 

 committee on the schedule distributed met with 

 general approval. It is considered desirable, in con- 



