لحة
Staff: R. Robertson, M.A. (Professor of Economics and Political
Science.
M. A. Cooper, B. Comm. (Lecturer in Commerce).
T. A. Martin, A.S.A.A. (Part-time Lecturer in Accounting
and Business Finance.
W. H. Hong Sling, M.A. (Part-time Lecturer in Pacific
Shipping & Trade.
No changes of note fall to be reported in the above De- parments for the year 1931. In Group 3 (Social Science) Biology resumed its place as a subject which may be taken in the 2nd Year of that Group. This subject is substituted for Statistics, which is now taken, during one term only, by students in Group 5 (Commerce).
The
The numbers of undergraduates in the two groups mention- ed showed an increase, especially in the first year entries. total numbers of undergraduates in all years taking the December Examination were,
in Group 3
24,
and in Group 5
25.
The introduction of an extended course in Geography would increase the effectiveness of the syllabus in both Departments. The order of studies in Group 3 (Social Science) suffers to a certain extent from the inclusion in the second year of Biology, which is a first year course, and the practical or laboratory side of which is not of much appositeness to the purpose of this group. It is hoped that it will be possible to set up a second year course in Geography, which would avoid the anomaly referred to, and which was first advocated several years ago.
The Law and Commerce Society had an active and success- ful year and held several meetings for the hearing and economic of papers on various topics connected with legal and economic matters, these meetings constituting a promising innovation.
R. ROBERTSON,
Professor of Economics and Political Science.
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REPORT ON THE TEACHING OF GEOGRAPHY.
Thanks to the grant made by the University at the begin- ning of 1931, a certain amount of equipment was added to the material for the study and the teaching of Geography. Some of this material should prove to be of great value to students following the Education course as it will provide opportunities for practical demonstrations. A fairly good selection of maps of modern date illustrating the important factors of the geography of the Continents is now available. However, in making a collection of maps, one may never call a halt, for they, the very tools of the geographer, are ever being perfected in their accuracy and range, and outside some central and highly endowed institute one cannot expect to find more than some typical samples. In- deed it is even now desirable to procure some atlases, an import- ant variety of material at present wholly lacking except for the small school" kind.
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The lectures are now being given in the new room on the top-floor of the Tang Chi Ngong Building. This is a consider- able advantage because of the lighting and facilities for display of material, More blackboard space will doubtless be secured later. It is hoped that before the end of the year lantern lectures will be a regular part of the course and then the experiment will be tried of sharing the activities in these lectures with the students. A practical difficulty that will always beset the present geography course is the impossibility of selecting one aspect for fuller treatment: at present the course attempts to cover too wide a ground in one year and that for the benefit of too many separate groups. Probably those following the Economics course find more points of contact between their work and the Geography lectures than do those whose interests lie in History or general culture. For this reason it is the more general aspects of Geography, the linking of geographical causes and effects that are treated in the hope that students will find out for themselves particular applications.
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D. J. FINN, Lecturer in Geography.
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