215
co-operation
Local firms
63. We deal in the next two sections of our Report with the question of the Closer raising of the standard of building trade labour. We have not found it possible to re- between the commend that an instructor in ceramics should be among those whose recruitment University's to the suggested Technical School's Staff is recommended at the outset. The Univer- Staff and sity's Engineering Faculty has a materials testing laboratory and we notice that in the is indicated. terms of paragraph 11 of Statute 3 of the University Ordinance any professor or lecturer may, with the approval of the Council, engage in professional practice in a consultative capacity. We think that the professors and lecturers of the University should be encouraged to help local commerce and industry by placing at their disposal their scientific knowledge and their capacity to deal with technological problems. We venture to think that this is the case in which closer co-operation between the University Staff and local firms is called for.
V. Intermediate Education.
Classes in
64. We have already quoted the Singapore Technical Education Committee of Evening 1925 as defining intermediate technical education as being "the standard desirable in Singapore. English clerks of works, assistant surveyors and road overseers, ships' engineers, architectural and other draftsmen." Commenting on the demand for this education in Malaya, the Singapore Committee was struck with the unanimity with which those employers who gave evidence before it advocated the use of evening classes to impart the theoretical side of the intermediate type of technical education. Courses in applied mathematics, physics, magnetism and electricity, mechanical and survey drawing, building construction and mechanics were all recommended. The Committee was equally struck with the failure of employees to avail themselves of such evening classes as had been started in Singapore. The Commitee had been at some pains to analyse the reasons for the failure of the evening classes which had been started and its conclusions were recorded as follows:-
(a) "The English of an apprentice is not up to the standard of English of a good clerk." This statement made by one of the witnesses corroborated the Committee's view that the problem of existence in Malaya had not driven many youths to choose technical careers. The class of youth who chooses a technical career generally lacks sufficient knowledge of English to benefit by evening classes; he lacks sufficient English to get employ- ment as a clerk;
(b) the fact that drawing and science had been until recently regarded as "extras" in the schools and that there had been a lack of effective manual training;
(c) attempts to win the co-operation of employers had up till then failed.
65. The Committee was, however, convinced that, despite the disappointing results, evening classes should be developed and the demand for them fostered. One of the four resolutions put forward in the Committee's Report was :--
"That the demand for Intermediate Technical Education should be met by evening classes in pure and applied mathematics, physics, magnetism, and survey drawing, building construction and mechanics.'
and the
essential
66. In Hong Kong, so far at least as the Engineering and Shipbuilding Industry The pros- is concerned, there is no reluctance on the part of the employees to avail themselves of pects of Evening evening classes. The employers in this industry are, as we have shown, more than Classes in willing to co-operate in any scheme of organized off-shift instruction. They have Hong Kong indeed been pressing the need for this instruction in the organization of which they general have taken the initiative and the statements made before us in evidence show a willing- conditions ness on their part so to adjust and where necessary even to reduce working hours as to to their facilitate the attendance of their employees at evening classes. We have, however, success. quoted the findings of the Singapore Committee, because they bring out two con- siderations which we regard as of vital importance The first is that instruction of this grade in off-shift classes is impossible, unless the workers have some, standard of general education and intelligence, some facility of oral and written communication in their own language and a working knowledge of English. The second consideration is the lure of the clerical career It is impossible to make an intelligent and ambit-