ON EDUCATIONAL TRAINING FOR OVERSEAS LIFE. 277 
separate 40-minute periods per week for science introductory to agriculture, viz. 
geology and biology, and for gardening. Specialisation commences in Upper IV, the 
agricultural pupils being taught agriculture, botany, surveying, book-keeping, general 
science, and gardening, whilst the rest of the form are taking rench and science. The 
agricultural pupils in Lower V (preparing for Oxford Junior) work with the form 
except for French, during which time they do agriculture, botany and gardening. Those 
in the Upper V (preparing for the school certificate) do agriculture, botany, book- 
keeping, and science, while the rest of the form do French and science. About two-fifths 
of the boys in these upper forms take the subject. The Delegates of the Oxford Local 
Examination agreed to offer a special school certificate for those taking agriculture 
identical with the ordinary certificate, except that the requirement that a candidate 
should have passed Grade II is waived; in other words, these boys need not offer a 
foreign language. This arrangement is to be regarded as an experiment. The Secondary 
School Examinations Council has been approached, but recognition has not been 
obtained from the Board of Education, although the Secretary of the Delegates is 
prepared at any time to write on behalf of the holders of such a certificate to the 
authorities of any Agricultural College, stating the conditions on which the certificate 
is granted. 
Practical agriculture is studied on farms by each form for two hours weekly. Each 
form has one period per week for gardening. The agricultural boys of the Fifth 
Form have two periods for wood-work and metal-work ; those in the higher form take 
metal-work as a hobby in spare time. 
The boys take turns in attending to poultry and milk records. 
11. County School, Welshpool (105). ‘This school adopts much the same curriculum 
as that at Great Ayton—the rural bias, an agricultural atmosphere being strongly 
developed. The lower forms take nature study, and then at about 144 to 15 years boys 
may choose agriculture instead of Latin; otherwise they follow the same general 
curriculum. 
A very complete account of the work done at this school, with details of syllabus of 
agricultural and science work, is given in a pamphlet published by the Welsh Depart- 
ment of the Board of Education under the title of ‘The Experiment in Rural Secondary 
Education at Welshpool County School for Boys,’ 1920, price 2/6 net. In the prefatory 
note it is claimed ‘ the experiment proved that a strong bias towards the industries 
of the neighbourhood of the school and a thoroughly efficient course of general education 
are not only consistent with but helpful to each other.’ 
The Headmaster writes: ‘ What we are trying here to do is to give every boy a 
chance of having his eyes opened to what is around him, and training him through his 
environment and cultivation of his powers of observation. It is remarkable how boys 
who have little literary bent respond to this rural work.’ 
He also refers to the same trouble that the Headmaster of Great Ayton has found 
respecting the foreign language difficulty with some boys. In 1920 they were allowed 
to offer six subjects at the certificate examination when not offering a subject of 
Group II, i.e. a foreign language, but since the appearance of the Regulations of 
the Examinations Council such a pupil has no longer an option in this respect. The 
agricultural] candidate has a much bigger range of science subjects than the ordinary 
pupil who takes—say : 
(1) English Language and Literature. (4) Mathematics. 
(2) History. (5) Geography. 
(3) Latin or French. (6) Chemistry. 
The agricultural pupil would take, in addition to the above, botany and agriculture. 
12. At Sexey’s School, Blackford,Somerset, the boys take a general secondary school 
course in which are included physics, chemistry,and botany. The majority on reaching 
the Fifth Form are expected to take the school certificate examination, but a few may 
choose in the form below to join the Farm Vocational Course. These, about eight in 
number, work then to a special time-table, spending about eight hours in practical 
work on a farm of 20 acres and five hours on agricultural science in the laboratory. 
FARM VOCATIONAL COURSE. 
The work done in agricultural subjects is divided into a two years’ course, these 
subjects being so arranged as to enable a pupil to take up the work at the commence- 
ment of any year. 
