PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS. 9 



I am making the major portion of my address a descrip- 

 tive and critical review of the Vocational Training System 

 for returned soldiers designed and carried out by the Com- 

 monwealth Repatriation Department. A description alone 

 of the system would, no doubt, be found interesting. It is, 

 however,so unconventional in many of its main features, and 

 so much data have been secured relating to branches of 

 education in which hitherto very little has been attempted, 

 that a critical, as well as a descriptive treatment, ought to 

 be given. A fact of considerable importance which also 

 points to the value of a critical account is that those who 

 were responsible for the design of the scheme realised from 

 the very first that the training of the returned men would, 

 because of its scope, novel character and the adequacy of 

 the funds available for the purpose, be more than likely to 

 result in experience of extreme value in industrial educa- 

 tion. Its working was, therefore, carefully observed with 

 this end in view, and though its objective, namely, the 

 training successfully of the soldiers for civil life, was ever 

 the first matter in mind, the secondary value of the experi- 

 ment as a field of useful observation was never lost sight 

 of. In deciding to attempt to discuss it in a critical way, 

 I am therefore swayed by a hope that I may be able to 

 point to some conclusions which may be valuable to those 

 who have to assist in carrying on technical education in 

 Australia. Necessarily, owing to the limits within which 

 an address of this kind must be kept, the description and 

 criticism has to be confined to the most important features 

 only, and no attempt can be made to deal with the history 

 of all the circumstances connected with the scheme. 



The idea of providing training for the returned soldiers 

 arose out of the desire of the people of Australia to ensure, 

 as far as possible, that none of those who actually served 

 their country should suffer through war injuries. 



