Technical Night Schools.

The system of instruction for young men most generally adopted, and from which most is to be expected, is that of the night school. The apprentice or artisan, under this system, depends on the workshop for practical experience, and comes to the school to learn the theory of his trade and to generally increase his intelligence and power of dealing with those new processes which will from time to time crop up. The first objection made to the system will probably be that it will put too much pressure on the student. As I have, however, already pointed out, this objection loses much of its weight when we consider the numbers of page 18 men working longer hours than ours who find themselves able to go through such a course. It is plain that even on men working long hours the school does not put injurious pressure, for nowhere in the report is such a thing hinted at; and we may be sure that, supposing the men were overworked, if they did not give in themselves, their employers would see that their energies were failing, and would discourage evening study. If, then. Continental and English workmen profit by these night-schools, we may be confident that our workmen will profit more by them; and if they afford the best technical teaching in Europe, there can be no doubt that they will be incomparably the best for New Zealand. Commencing our survey of such schools with them as they exist in France, the Commissioners remark: "The system of evening instruction is one of the most striking features of the present condition of educational effort in France. The walls of the public buildings of Paris, as well as those of every French town which the Commissioners visited, were largely placarded with the announcements of evening lectures and classes, both for men and women. The subjects of instruction are of the most varied character, including modern languages, social science, physical science, biology, mathematics, applied science, astronomy, etc." From the facts which follow it appears that lectures are, at least in Paris, much more common than classes. At the Conservatoire, Paris, one of the principal schools, the instruction is entirely confined to free popular lectures. At the time of the Commissioners' visit, M. de Luynes, the Professor of Technical Chemistry, was lecturing on glass manufacture, pottery, and dyeing. "In his lectures he made use, as much as possible, of practical illustrations. He ex- page 19 hibited the potters wheel at work, and had glass-blowers from various works to illustrate the mode of blowing glass; for the lectures in dyeing, several firms lent workmen to show the practical processes. In the previous year a course of lectures had been given on "Wine." Beginning with the growth of the grape, treating the diseases to which it is subject (a matter now naturally attracting much interest in France), the modes of combating the spread of phylloxera, the methods of winemaking, the chemistry of fermentation, the processes involved in the preparation of various kinds of wine, the modes of testing wine, and, in short, the whole of its chemical history." The audiences at these lectures were very large, and chiefly of the working classes. M. de Luynes informed the Commissioners that in his opinion "the value of these Conservatoire lectures was considerable as interesting the masses of the people in scientific subjects." M. De Luynes probably spoke no more than the truth; but "interesting" people is not exactly the same thing as educating them. Lectures, even when rendered attractive by explosions, blue lights, or the visible growth of glass bottles, are no substitute for work in the laboratory. The French system of evening teaching does not, however, stop short at lectures. There arc in Paris alone no less than 65 Workmen's Art Schools, attended by 3,334 students, of whom 2,488 take ornamental and 846 geometrical drawing. Modelling is taught in almost all the classes, and in five of them the pupils study drawing from the life, anatomy, and artistic composition. The schools arc open on weekday evenings from seven to nine, and on Sunday mornings from nine to twelve. It is to be noticed, however, that though the system was especially devised for the instruction of workmen, and though the classes page 20 are attended by "stonemasons, mechanics, joiners, smiths, watchmakers," and, in fact, by members of all the mechanical trades of Paris, yet the course of instruction is not practical, but purely artistic. All the teachers of drawing, even those engaged in the schools supported by special trades, agree that it is not advisable to give specialised art instruction. The report does not explain what reasons the teachers have for their views, and the impression left on the reader's mind is that these views are the result of some natural repugnance to teaching anything useful. The truth probably is that men cannot design, etc., till they know how to draw, and that they do not learn enough in these schools to fit them to apply their skill to practical work. One of the dangers in the way of technical teaching is sure to be that young men will expect to learn how to apply arts without learning the arts themselves. It is, indeed, not improbable that the Parisian teachers aim at teaching more than the pupils have time to learn, and sacrifice usefulness to an unattainable ideal. At any rate it is certain that in Belgium, wherein the main French examples are followed, it is found practicable in at least one school to set apart special divisions "for constructive drawing for trade purposes. Thus architects, builders, stonemasons, carpenters, joiners, etc., have special teaching suitable to their respective trades, and draw from examples likely to be of service to them in their everyday work." The most extensive system of science classes on the Continent is that of Lyons, conducted by a local Society formed in 1864. The classes were opened in that year with an attendance of 1,359 students; by 1881 there were 131 classes, and the number of students had risen to 7,640. The whole expense of educating this army of learners was only L3,075, page 21 or less than 10s each. How the work is done on such an outlay does not appear. The subjects taught are—Reading and writing, grammar, arithmetic ana elementary mechanics, applied mathematics, applied geometry, ornamental design, figure drawing, linear drawing, machine drawing, drawing applied to carpentry, industrial chemistry, elementary mechanics, general hysics, applied physics, economic Botany, theory of weaving, stone-cutting, book-keeping, commercial law, English, German, Italian, Spanish, history, and geography, hygiene, and gymnastics. The lectures take place from eight to ten in the evening on week days, and on Sunday mornings, and there are two or three lessons upon each subject per week. The winter session lasts from October to April. Each course consists of from fifty to seventy-five lessons, varying from one to two hours in length. If the students desire it, a certain number of these classes are continued during the summer. The Society prints each year a programme of the courses, giving a full analysis of the subjects taught, of which the following syllabus of the course of instruction on fuel and the steam engine may serve as an example:—Special properties of the different fuels—wood, charcoal, turf, lignite, coal, coke, anthracite coal; volume of air necessary for combustion, heat absorbed by smoke, construction of flues, furnaces of ordinary construction, smoke-consuming furnaces, gas furnaces, factory chimneys, production and properties of steam, comparison of the various forms of boilers, boiler trials, comparisons of arrangements for ensuring safety of 1 boilers, incrustation, expansion, testing boilers; theory of the steam engine; high-pressure and low-pressure condensing and non-condensing engines, calculations of the dimensions of an engine; theory of the parts of an engine, page 22 piston, cylinder, valves, etc.; different kinds of valves, experiments with brake and indicator; gas engines. We have now considered, so far as time allows, the practical points in the report bearing upon the technical teaching of schoolboys and of apprentices. Into the question of technical education of the highest class I do not propose to enter. I would only remark that we have at the University high-class instruction in physics, in chemistry, and in mining, and that we shall shortly have a class in applied mechanics.