20

E.—ls.

for all, who are willing, to obtain employment. The higher quality of the work that is done enables the manufacturers to compete successfully in the markets of the world, and, even in times of general depression, to keep their workers employed at a wage which, for Europe, is very good, and advances according to skill. For years it has been extremely difficult for the few young men who have not had the advantages of a vocational-school training, and who do not show a disposition to avail themselves of its opportunities, to obtain work from intelligent employers. As final proof, we must remember that the vocational laws of Wuerttemberg have ever been chiefly instigated by business men, and that the recent advanced legislation in this direction is mainly the work of employers." That the workers have been in favour of it all along is shown by the fact that most of the communes in which they form a majority have voted for compulsory attendance under the Imperial law of 1900. It will be interesting to compare the following analysis of the school state of Wuerttemberg (population, 2,300,330) with the figures given in Tables Al and A 2 for Switzerland and New Zealand respectively : — Actual Number per Number 10.000 of the jn umber. p opulatiolli I. Primary (including preparatory classes of the Gymnasien and Realschulen .. .. .. .. ..341,924 1,486-4 11. Secondary (exclusive of preparatory classes) .. .. 16,477 71-6 111. Continuation and Technicalfa.) General Continuation (evening and Sunday) 73,234\ (6.) Technical Continuation (viz. Industrial, Commercial, Industrial Drawing, Industrial 102,637 446-2 for Girls and Women, " Women's Work ") 28,574 (c.) Higher Art Schools .. ... .. 829) IV. University and Higher— (a.) Special Agricultural Schools (including Vete- \ rinary College).. .. .. -. 9461 „ „. „„.„ (6.) Special and higher Technical Colleges .. 3, 388 j D ' oz zo ° (c.) State University at Tubingen .. .. 2,187J V. Other special schools of varying grade .. .. .. 5,277 23-0 Totals.. .. .. .. .. .. 472,836 2,055-5 Receiving publio ins'ruction higher than primary .. .. 130,912 569-1 It will be. seen from the above that 20-56 per cent, of the population of Wuerttemberg were under instruction, and 5-69 per cent were receiving public instruction of a grade higher than primary, which, though scarcely so high as the proportion for Switzerland, is yet more than twice what we can boast. FURTHER NOTES ON THE SWISS AND OTHER CONTINENTAL SYSTEMS. Methods op Teaching. If I were asked what is the key to the success of Swiss and German methods of teaching, I should undoubtedly have to reply that the chief element to which their success seems to be due is the thoroughness with which all their work is done. It may be a prosaic quality, perhaps ; but teachers and pupils seem to be alike completely imbued with it. The thoroughness of the teacher is due not only to his earnest belief in the supreme value of education, but to his skill acquired by training ; in all these countries there is no place for the untrained teacher. In Germany there are two strong motives urging the individual to thoroughness in work —(1) the possibility, by diligence and good progress through the periods of primary and secondary education, of reducing the term of compulsory military service to one year; (2) the national idea— not as something external, foisted on, but as an essential part of the whole system —the profound conviction that without education a man cannot be a good member of his commune or a good citizen of the empire. To the thorough teaching of the mother-tongue I have already borne witness. Its literature serves, moreover, as the vehicle for stimulating the feeling of patriotism. But in the teaching of foreign languages the methods are equally thorough. In the case of modern languages, the method adopted in ail the schools I visited was invariably the " direct " or " natural " method. In fact, when I asked a Swiss teacher whether this method was employed in all their schools, he replied with some surprise, " Certainly ; there is no other method. But are there any schools in your country where they do not use this method % " There is no doubt whatever about the success of the method when used in the thorough manner characteristic of German secondary schools.