Magazine  of  the  School  of  Agriculture. 
m. 
teaching  institutions  not  being  under  State  con- 
trol, so  that  though  there  is  no  lack  of  technical 
schools  of  every  variety,  there  are  far  fewer 
facilities  for  a complete  technical  course  except 
in  centres  like  London,  Manchester  &c.  The  fact 
that  technical  education  requires  as  an  in- 
dispensable basis  a preparatory  training  in  the 
primary  schools — long  recognised  and  acted  on 
in  continental  countries, — has  only  recently  re- 
ceived recognition  in  England.  In  nearly  every 
country  in  Europe,  Drawing  and  Rudimentary 
science  are  taught  as  obligatory  subjects  in  ad- 
dition to  Reading,  Writing  and  Arithmetic.  In 
most  Continental  schools  Handicraft  Instruction 
and  Modelling  are  included  in  the  curriculum  for 
boys,  and  Needlework  and  Cookery  and  Domes- 
tic Economy  for  girls.  While  in  England  the 
only  technical  subjects  taught  till  last  year  were 
certain  branches  of  science  called  specific  subjects, 
viz.  Algebra,  Euclid,  Mensuration,  Elementary 
Mechanics,  Chemistry,  Physics,  Agriculture  (prin- 
ciples) and  Domestic  Economy  for  children  of  both 
sexes  and  Needlework  and  Domestic  Economy 
for  girls.  Drawing  was  an  optional  subject,  and 
was  taught  to  only  about  2o  per  cent  of  the 
children.  Science  teaching,  being  also  optional 
was  almost  completely  ignored.  One  principal 
reason  for  the  neglect  of  science  in  the  ele- 
mentary schools  was  said  to  be  the  want  of 
competent  teachers.  In  Birmingham  and  Liver- 
pool, however,  this  difficulty  was  successfully 
met  by  appointing  a teacher  highly  competent 
to  go  round  visiting  all  the  schools  in  turn  with- 
iu  a certain  area  and  ca  rrying  his  apparatus  with 
him,  at  a cost  of  about  £10  per  each  school. 
There  can  be  no  quest  ion  as  to  the  economy  of 
this  arrangement,  but  I am  very  much  inclined 
to  doubt  the  value  of  science  lessons  given  once 
a fortnight  or  so  by  means  of  apparatus  which 
the  children  themselves  are  not  allowed  to 
handle  and  use.  There  is  no  greater  mistake 
than  to  suppose  that  any  science  can  be  taught 
by  imparting  certain  lessons  by  means  of  ap- 
paratus and  diagrams  by  a teacher.  That  method 
of  teaching  is  now  exploded  in  all  good  schools, 
though  1 hear  it  still  obtains  in  some  schools 
here.  Every  child  must  perform  the  experiments 
by  which  he  has  to  Learn  for  himself,  and  from 
his  very  failures  and  blunders  train  his  hands 
and  eyes,  tram  himself  to  observe  rightly  to 
handle  skilfully,  to  reason  truly.  Where  the 
“ Laboratory  method  ” of  teaching  is  impracticable 
it  would  be  far  better  to  devote  the  time  so  wasted 
to  some  other  study.  But  this  peripatetic 
system  of  teaching  should  not  be  lost  sight  of 
in  regard  to  other  special  subjects,  at  least  in  a 
country  like  ours  where  competent  teachers  are 
scarce.  Take  Drawing  for  instance  and  Manual 
training  in  the  use  of  tools — the  introduction  of 
which  as  well  as  of  Elementary  Science  into  the 
curriculum  of  elementary  sehools  forms  the  most 
noteworthy  feature  of  the  Revised  Code  of'  1890. 
Whenever  the  Local  Codeintroducesthese  branches 
of  instruction  into  our  primary  schools,  (and  almost 
the  first  step  in  introducing  technical  education 
would  be  a reform  in  this  direction  in  the 
teaching  of  the  elementary  and  higher  schools,) 
the  difficulty  of  securing  a sufficiency  of  teachers 
to  furnish  such  instruction  should  not  be  made 
to.  stand  in  the  way  of  such  reform,  in  the  prin- 
cipal towns  at  least,  as  the  same  teacher  could 
go  round  to  half-a-dozen  schools  daily.  When 
workshop  teaching  was  tried  as  an  experiment, 
in  the  Manchester  Board  sehools,  a single- 
joiner was  found  sufficient  to  teach  several 
schools.  Of  the  higher  elementary  schools  in 
which  technical  teaching  is  further  specialized, 
and  of  which  there  are  admirable  examples 
in  France  and  Germany,  there  are  but  two  of 
any  note  in  Great  Britain,  the  Central  Sc.hool  at 
Sheffield  and  the  Allan  Glen  institution  in  Glas- 
gow. These  two  schools  afford  such  a fair  idea 
of  the  type  of  an  ideal  school  giving  “ the  best 
preliminary  training  for  those  who  are  about 
to  enter  industrial  life  at  an  early  age”  ox' 
to  carry  on  their  technical  education- by  attend- 
ance at  evening  classes,  or  in  a technical  school  of 
higher  grade,  that  I regret  very  much  the  limits 
of  my  time  will  prevent  me  from  entering  into  a 
detailed  description  of  either  of  them,  especially 
of  the  latter  which  I visited  and  inspected 
recently  with  great  interest.  The  principal  dis- 
tinctive features  of  this  school  are  the  combin- 
ation of  technical  instruction  with  ordinary 
elementary  teaching  from  the  very  earliest  age, 
and  the  progressive  and  extensive  training  in 
science  and  art  and  workshop  exercises,  due  at- 
tention being  paid  at  the  same  time  to  all  the 
requirements  of  a sound  general  education  which 
may  be  especially  noticed  in  the  lower  classes 
of  the  secondary  department ; while  in  the  two 
advanced  of  the  technical  classes  special  attention- 
is  devoted  to  the  relation  of  science  and  art  to 
manufactures  and  commerce.  It  was  with 
rerference  to  boys  who  had  gone  through  this 
curriculum  in  Allan  Glen's  school  that  Mr.  Mtm- 
della  said  in  1884  “ these  pupils  were  becom- 
ing not  only  the  non-commissioned  officers  but 
the  future  captains  of  industry  of  the  country. 
It  was  for  such  purposes  that  technical  edu- 
cation was  required.” 
As  I mentioned  before  there  are  but  few 
Schools  of  this  type  in  Great  Britain,  but 
now  that  the  Revised  Education  Code  of  1890 
has  come  into  operation,  and  grants  provided 
for  encouraging  technical  instruction  and  manual 
training  especially,  a great  change  will  shortly 
be  effected  in  Elementary  Schools  which  rightly 
directed  will  produce,  it  is  confidently  believed, 
most  important  economic  changes  in  the  country. 
It  is  worth  while  noting  here  that  in  the 
Charity  Commissioners’  Report  for  1890  promin- 
ence is  given  to  a scheme  put  forward  by  Mr. 
Assistant  Commissioner  Bond  with  respect  to  the 
advancement  of  the  technical  education  of  the 
poorer  inhabitants  of  London  in  day  schools, 
wherein  he  suggests  three  ways  of  accomplishing 
that  purpose  : 
1.  By  teaching  drawing  and  perhaps  model- 
ling and  the  use  of  tools  as  a part  of  the 
regular  course  of  instruction  in  Elementary 
Schools. 
2.  By  establishing  higher  Elementary  or 
Continuation  schools,  in  which  in  addition  to 
these  subjects  in  a more  advanced  stage,  Ele- 
mentary Science  could  be  taught. 
3.  By  establishing  institutes  in  which  even- 
ing classes  should  be  held  for  instruction  in.  Art, 
Science  and  Technology. 
How  far  these  views  will  suit  our  local  re- 
quirements is  a question  which  may  have  to  be 
considered,  but  1 have  little  doubt  that  it  is 
