May Involve Big Questions

[?]econdary Education in Fiji May Involve Big Questions

From Our Suva Correspondent.

Post-primary education—a controversial subject in Fiji—was the principal topic in the opening address by the Acting Governor (Mr. A. F.

R. Stoddart) at the April sitting of the Legislative Council.

IR. STODDART described the five-year plan proposed by the Director of Education (Mr. W. . Lewis-Jones) in a new Education ‘port as well conceived, well lanced and practical.

The report, recently published, being examined by the Board of lucation and will be submitted to e Secretary of State for the ilonies before definite proposals 5 laid before the Executive and gislative Councils in Fiji.

Pointing out that emphasis during “ last ten years has been laid on imary school development, the )ort states that the planned yelopment of post-primary educa n has not kept pace. :t states that the first need is for balanced series of post-primary urs e s embracing academic, idem, technical and agricultural ication to provide for a reason !e proportion of those who nplete satisfactorily the primary tool course. rhe Director proposes a secondary

school entrance examination, on the results of which a selection would be made for entry to the post primary schools.

From the secondary schools students would go to teacher train ing colleges or such institutions as the Central Medical School, Nurses’

Training School, Koronivia Farm Institute and Government Steno graphers’ School, or they might go into industry, or overseas for university or other advanced training.

The establishment of a series of trade schools and the extension of evening classes is proposed.

A new Fiji Technical College is to be established at Suva, and a system of day-release apprenticeship is to be encouraged, employers allowing apprentices time off work to enable them to attend trade school classes. r[E report is comprehensive, but people who are perturbed about Fiji’s apparent inability to

widen its range of production may ask how it will be applied to prac tical issues.

The process of baking or half baking Fijian and Indian youth in a sort of educational oven is quickly accomplished. The process of placing them in the better jobs that education should hold out to them is not so quick, and the result may well be disapnointment, frustration and agitation.

Except for the fortuitous circum stances which brought the late Mr.

E. G. Theodore and a mining in dustry to Fiji, and the industrial expansion of Island Industries Ltd., there has been little primary

or secondary development in Fiji during the last 20 years.

A pineapple factory was started at Lautoka but could not be main tained.

Increased labour demands are being made for a poor output. In creased export revenue is due largely to increased prices, not to increased production, and very few baskets are required to carry the primary production of the Colony.

The Education Plan provides for some increase in primary produc tion, and some expansion of inter mediate Fijian schools, but the main development will be in secondary education, and by pro viding more for technical and agri cultural subjects, the plan is said to have a practical bias.

Part-Europeans particularly have a natural aptitude for mechanical work, and improvement in standards is necessary for future development, but many of them are now finding better prospects overseas.

Because of low efficiency, building costs are unnecessarily high.

Agriculture when applied to the Fijians is a vague term.

They have their traditional methods. Arable land is restricted and it is generally on river flats and in patches not large enough for mechanised agriculture.

Animal husbandry would be practical. There are areas of hill

country where cattle could range provided that food plantations were fenced.

An educational plan, however good on paper, is controversial unless it is accompanied by a prac tical plan to show how agricultural students can be absorbed, and how

industries can be developed by pi ducing from the soil material tl can be manufactured or processe It should also show how absorb the annual crop of Indi clerks upon whom much time spent in teaching Hindi to t detriment of the language w:

hich they will have to make their ay in business and professional e.

Fiji has a development plan on iper, but there is nothing concrete show how it is to create new in istries and increase production.

Part of the machinery is there, it there is no transmission gear to oduce results.