CO537-5142 — Page 171

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Weekly broadcasts for each of the first three years of the Anglo-Chinese Schools, and for each of the last three years of the Vernacular Primary Schools appear to be widely desired, and take less time to prepare.than, for example, history or geography broadcasts, and require few voices for their presentation.

62.

Opinions may differ as to whether broadcasts should be once or twice a week at each level, and also whether it is possible to broadcast usefully for the first year of learning a language. Broadcasts may also be desired for some of the higher classes of the Anglo-Chinese Schools, and for the Vernacular junior and senior middle schools. Decision on these matters must be made at a later date, but I recommend as a general principle that emphasis should be laid on the earlier years of study, and that only a very few series should be attempted while the necessary technique is being delivered. developed.

63. It would be useful if further research could be undertaken on the teaching of English to Chinese, and I suggest that an approach might be made to the British Council if it has not already been done, for help in this matter.

64. It is desirable that broadcasts on Hygiene and Civics and Current Affrirs should also start as soon as possible. They are required particularly in the upper classes of Vernacular Primary Schools, since many children receive no schooling beyond the primary stage; but Civics and Current Affairs are also needed in the Middle School, and in the top classes of the Anglo-Chinese School, Broadcasts on these subjects are more difficult to handle than language broad- casts, and on the whole take more labour and more money.

65. Broadcasting on Current Affairs is easiest to handle at the highest level, and I recommend that a series should be aimed in the first instance at the top two classes of the Anglo-Chinese School, and a translation of this series at the top two classes of the Vernacular Middle School.

66. A form of broadcast used by the B.B.C. and Radio Malaya might well be followed. The main speaker, the expert, always introduces two additional voices representing two sides of the question being discussed. For example in a broadcast on the relations between Pakistan and India, the voice of an imaginary citizen of each country is introduced, giving not only a point of view, but also some personal detail about himself and how be lives. This is a simple and effective technique which has the advantage of forcing the script writer to present current problems in human and easily intelligible terms.

67. Current Affairs scripts need particularly careful editing, both to eradicate bias and to ensure that the writer has not assumed too much background of knowledge in his listeners.

68. I do not recommend that broadcasts on Current Affairs should be attempted for the Vernacular Primary Schools until experience has been gained at the higher level. It is likely that difficulty in understanding English and the vocabulary of an unfamiliar subject will make Current Affairs broadcasts for the middle or lower classes of the Anglo-Chinese School not worth attempting.

69.

The teaching of singing is a type of broadcast which is relatively easy to produce if the right broadcaster is available. The Education Department now has specialist musicians on its staff, and these will no doubt wish to make use of broadcasting in order to further their work with Anglo-Chinese schools. The preparation of broadcasts to teach songs, once the broadcaster has found his feet, is not a very lengthy matter; that is to say, it is nearer to half a day's work than the three days' work which may be necessary for a history broadcast. Similar broadcasts for the vernacular schools should cause little difficulty, although in this case it may be necessary to have some of the songs composed locally as is done in Malaya.

70. The programme therefore to begin with should consist, I suggest, of three language broadcasts, one Current Affairs and one Singing. The staff should also be able to handle one broadcast on either Hygiene or Civics. Both of these subjects are difficult to handle well, and I advise that no