The educational impact of the institutes declined as educational opportunities became more widely available, but Schools of Arts in Queensland were key players in the provision of technical education from the 1880s until the 1920s. The government did not have the resources to deliver the service, and depended on schools of arts in local areas to provide classes.

The Department of Public Instruction issued a list of 134 schools of arts and mechanics’ institutes in the state in December 1901.[i] In this year attendances at technical classes had reached their peak. It was the North Brisbane School of Arts which established the first technical college in 1882 as a natural progression from the classes already offered. When the facilities of the school of arts building proved inadequate, alternative accommodation and special equipment were provided, and as soon as funds were available a new building was erected. After seven years the administration proved too demanding for the school of arts committee and a separate sub-committee with separate financial accounts was established. A similar process was followed in large regional centres where schools of arts established technical colleges in the decade to 1890: – Bundaberg, Maryborough, and Townsville in 1889, and Rockhampton in 1890.

In the 1890 annual report of the Brisbane Technical College the secretary, D. R. McConnel, paid tribute to the fine achievements in technical education in Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide made possible with government support, and expressed the hope that the Queensland government would recognise the plans of the North Brisbane School of Arts and give financial assistance. The report went on to say:

The experience of Europe and America, amply supported by our own, shows that trade schools are becoming a necessity. “The old apprenticeship system is dead”. Modern conditions of manufacture and skilled labour no longer allow of the satisfactory education of apprentices in their trade. The one remedy is the trade school; the thorough combination of theoretical and practical instruction. If the people of Queensland are to have any share of the industrial supremacy of their race, it is time they realised what is being done elsewhere and commenced a system of education which should make of “the industries, arts, and of their artisans, artists”.[ii]

 It was fortunate that there were other men of the calibre and education of McConnel who championed the cause of technical education through schools of arts.

Initially the government provided a fixed annual grant for technical colleges, but replaced this in 1892 with a system of endowment calculated in proportion to the fees and donations received annually by schools of arts. In following years the government exercised the right to nominate those subjects eligible for endowment. A forward budget was placed in the estimates, and emergency funds could be allocated if additional unforseen claims were made. It was this grant which made it possible for numerous small schools of arts to offer technical classes under the designation of ‘technical college’ which they added to their name.

A memo circulated in November and December 1900 between the Department of Public Instruction, Public Works Department, Government Architect’s office, and the Treasury explained the arrangements which applied to buildings for technical colleges. The governing body of the school of arts, which had already obtained the site, applied to the Department of Public Works for a grant and submitted plans, specifications and estimates. If approved, a grant of £2 for each £1 was calculated and the total grant specified. The tender process and construction of the building was then the responsibility of the school of arts. The committee was expected to expend one third of the cost before approaching the department for the money, which was issued only as progress payments after inspection.

The same memo explained the procedure for the grants for operational expenses; at that time it was calculated on a £1 for £1 basis. The estimate for 1900-01 included claims ranging from £100 to £3,000, and the total amount was £11,400. Before payment could be made the school of arts was required to submit a return within two months after the end of the quarter. This set out all fees and contributions received for the relevant period, and was verified by the treasurer and the bank-manager as being received and banked to the credit of the claimant. A statement of expenses was also required. The most significant statement was added to the end of the memo:

The education department has no real control over technical colleges; they are not subject to inspection by the officers of the Department and it has no voice in the administration of the colleges, the appointment of the teachers, subjects to be taught, etc.

The accounts of the colleges are audited annually by the Audit Department and a copy of the auditor’s report is sent to this Dept. for review. The report is then returned to the Audit Office.[iii]

It could be interpreted that the government was sub-contracting the business of technical education to the schools of arts. Correspondence of the Department in relation to schools of arts and technical colleges in 1900/1902 is mainly concerned with returns from local committees of technical colleges, and payment of endowment. There had been 33 technical colleges established by 1902,[iv] but some closed within a few years, and 24 colleges are listed in the DPI correspondence concerning syllabus returns for 1903.[v]

There was growing concern by 1901 that some schools of arts had been misappropriating endowment granted to their technical colleges, and that claims were being made for classes which did not meet the expectations for adult technical training. A memorandum of the DPI in March 1902 stated:

At this present time the state has no control over technical colleges; it has no voice in their administration, the determination of subjects to be taught, fees to be charged, and the like. [vi]

Regulations of 1902 enabled the Department to exert more control over the colleges. They required government approval for the establishment and continuation of technical colleges which  could operate only in centres with a population of more than 3000. This clause was probably the death knell for the technical colleges in small towns such as Beenleigh, Charleville, Childers, Dalby, Hughendon, and Ravenswood all of which closed in 1902/3. With the exception of Hughendon, they had opened within the prior three years. The regulations required all technical colleges to be inspected, and denied endowments for subjects which were non-technical or directed towards public examination.[vii]  By 1905 more technical colleges had closed their doors.

The larger technical colleges went from strength to strength. The Maryborough School of Arts, established in 1861, opened its college in 1889. In its document Rules and By-Laws of the Maryborough School of Arts, Museum, Technical College and Recreation Club, 1906, clause 29 explaining the duties of the committee states:

The committee may themselves exercise all powers and deal with all the matters relating to the Technical School or College in connection with the institution, or may from time to time appoint from among their number a Sub-Committee consisting of not fewer than seven members to exercise and perform the duties relating to the said Technical School or College.

The sub-Committee, if and when so appointed, shall periodically report their proceedings to the Committee, which shall be an Advisory Board, but notwithstanding anything hereinbefore contained, such sub-committee shall per se be executive, and need not necessarily conduct their business in accordance with the advice or direction of the committee.

In response to agitation by the Brisbane Technical College, a Board of Technical Education was formed in 1902 to advise the Secretary of Public Instruction on matters relating to technical education. Its members, drawn mainly from the committees of the Brisbane and Ipswich colleges, acted in an honorary capacity. The board provided syllabi, conducted examinations and annual inspections of the colleges, and determined which subjects were eligible for endowment. As an example of the courses offered by the larger schools of arts, the Bundaberg college in 1902 was offering Art and Design which included freehand, model, geometrical and perspective drawing; Engineering, Science and Trades which included workshop arithmetic, mathematics, mechanical drawing, machine construction, applied mechanics. electricity, chemistry, botany, animal anatomy and physiology, sanitary science, carpentry and joinery, and wood carving; Business Studies which included book keeping, shorthand and typing; and Domestic Science and Arts which included dressmaking, cooking and ironing. All of these subjects were eligible for endowment.[viii] Languages, singing and music, and photography were not considered eligible, but they proved popular in many colleges. Because some students had not mastered basic maths, reading and writing at primary level, several colleges also offered revisal classes. The level of endowment for these was a contentious issue for many years.[ix]

Teachers were attending evening and Saturday classes such as maths and drawing at the larger technical colleges because of the lack of teacher training facilities. Those living at a distance were not always compensated for their necessary travel; there was no assistance with overnight accommodation; and the college received no endowment for their attendance. ¹⁰ The conference of Technical Colleges in 1904 proposed that the Minister for Railways restore the Free Railway Passes to teachers of the Department of Public Instruction. When the proposals were presented to the Minister of Education, Mr. Wearne of the Ipswich College commented that a large percentage of the students attending drawing classes at the colleges were state school teachers, and that  when free passes were not available, teachers did not attend classes. ‘They had lost the tuition, and the Conference held that the instruction they had received previously was of benefit to the state. They paid their own fees: all the Department gave them was the opportunity of gaining the instruction for which they paid’.[x]

The Board was abandoned in 1905 and a Technical Branch of the Department created. The branch distinguished subjects by different rates of endowment from 1st January 1906, and the following year increased the subsidy on equipment and apparatus to four pounds for every pound contributed by the school. There were 3892 students in technical colleges in 1905, a major achievement for schools of arts.[xi] The colleges were also providing teachers to visit primary schools to conduct practical classes in domestic science, manual arts and technical drawing. A growing number of metropolitan primary schools were sending their students to classes at the schools of arts. There were to be 1397 such students by 1911.[xii]

The Secretary of the DPI reported to the Premier on 27 November 1905 concerning the progress made following the abolition of the Board: colleges had been advised of the proposed syllabi and examination system, the relationship between schools of arts and technical colleges had been ascertained, the Lands Office had provided details of technical college sites, a full list of teachers had been obtained, exams for 140 different subjects had been arranged, and the Railways Department had been approached to encourage the use of technical schools for its training.[xiii] The returns from schools of arts in 1905 concerning their relationship with the technical colleges, indicated that most college committees were elected or nominated from members of the committee of the school of arts. Some colleges had bye-laws. Most of them paid rent for the use of schools of arts premises, and some contributed to gas accounts and secretarial services. In some cases there was no written agreement.[xiv]

The Technical Instruction Act, which was passed in 1908, provided that aid and endowment were to be conditional on departmental approval for the rules and regulations, appointment or election of the managing body, appointment of teachers and their salaries, syllabus, methods of examination, awards, and fees, and required the school and its records to be available for inspection at any time.[xv]   Subsequent regulations required at least three ministerial nominees be included in the management committees of non-metropolitan technical colleges. The Act provided for the dissolution of the three technical colleges in Brisbane and the establishment of a Central College: this was effectively the first step by the government to set up a technical education facility.[xvi] Provision was made for the department to assume responsibility for country colleges if they chose to transfer. New technical colleges could be erected on the condition that one-fifth of the cost of establishment was raised by subscription, and were located on sites duly vested in the Minister for Education. This encouraged Schools of Arts such as Mackay to proceed with a new building for its technical college.[xvii]

Delivery of state secondary education commenced in 1910 in regional centres where there were no grammar schools, and created a close link between technical and high schools. The Warwick Technical College was the first to be taken over by the Department to house a day school in addition to the technical classes. Five high schools opened in 1912 in country towns where there were no grammar schools: in Mackay the school was housed in the building previously occupied by the technical college; students from the high schools at Gympie, Bundaberg, and Charters Towers attended classes at the local technical colleges, and the Mount Morgan technical college allowed the high school to conduct classes on its premises.[xviii] At this time eleven major regional technical colleges, which had commenced as a result of initiatives of the schools of arts, remained outside the department’s control. These were Townsville, Rockhampton, Charters Towers, Bowen, Mount Morgan, Ipswich, Toowoomba, Cairns, Bundaberg, Maryborough, Gympie.[xix]

A conference of technical colleges held in 1917 attracted representatives from Ipswich, Maryborough, Mount Morgan, Rockhampton, and Townsville. All of these colleges were still operating under committees which were independent of the Department. They met with the Under Secretary of the Department of Public Instruction and the Superintendent of Technical Education to discuss common issues and concerns. The Superintendent drew attention to the unique problems of Queensland with its area of 670,000 square miles and population of 680,000. He pointed to the need for training to cater for primary industries such as beef, wool and sugar, and secondary industries such as railways, tanning, and coal, and production of steel, tin plate and galvanised iron. A motion was passed that ‘the government accept full financial responsibility for the construction of buildings and extensions to technical colleges, and abolish the one-fifth quota’.[xx]

The problems of distance and cost had deterred the government from accepting its responsibility for technical education; instead local committees which had originated in the schools of arts had been able to provide an acceptable service. However the service was fragmented and depended on the availability of local teachers. Possible solutions were discussed in DPI correspondence. Mr. L. Morris, the Superintendent of Technical Education, suggested in 1916 that the existing regional colleges extend their services to wider districts. Each area served by a major rail line could be identified as a district and divided into two circuits. Itinerant teachers appointed to each district, could work three days a week using the train to travel between four country towns. After six months they could move to the other circuit for the remainder of the year.[xxi] A report issued in 1917 pursued this idea, pointing out that the railway grid accessed thirteen towns with populations of more than 5000, and twelve towns with populations of more than 2000. It explained that fourteen colleges from Cairns in the north to Warwick in the south were already catering to 47 branch centres.[xxii]

The government moved to exert more control over technical education with the passage of the Technical Instruction Amendment Act of 1918. This provided that the Minister for Education could take charge of any technical college which had received endowment, including all its property and assets, If the title to the land were held by Trustees or Local Authorities, the Minister would have no obligations for the land, buildings or improvements. All new colleges would be under the control of the Minister of Education even if they were not built exclusively by state funds.[xxiii] However, it was not the end of the story for some technical colleges operated by local committees in schools of arts. Townsville’s technical classes continued to operate until the high school opened in 1924. The Sandgate technical college, opened by the school of arts in 1898, was not handed over until 1939. The Department had not required metropolitan technical colleges to have independent committees, and the minute books indicate that the same group of people met first as the school of arts committee and then as the technical college committee. Queensland’s system of technical education owes a great debt to the inspired and dedicated people of the local schools of arts.

 

 

Abbreviations

QSA: Queensland State Archives.

DPI: Department of Public Instruction.

 

 

Bibliography

Clarke, Eddie, Technical and Further Education in Queensland, A History, 1860-1990, Historical Perspectives in Contemporary Issues in Queensland Education, Department of Education and Bureau of Employment Vocational and Further Education and Training Queensland,1992.

Correspondence of the Department of Public Instruction, papers re Technical Education and Schools of Arts, A/16255, A/16256, A/16263, Queensland State Archives.

Henderson, N.V., Skoien, N.A, eds., Queensland Statutes vol. 4, Butterworth and Co Publishers, 240 Queen Street, Brisbane, 1962, reprinted 1966.

Laurent, John, ‘Continuing Education in History, Queensland Schools of Arts, 1849-1919’, Studies in Continuing Education, Vol. 12, No.2, 1990.

‘Mackay School of Arts, 100 Years of Service’, Daily Mercury 28. 06. 1980.

Rules and By-Laws of the Maryborough School of Arts, Museum, Technical College and Recreation Club, 1906, Maryborough, W.S. Lambert Printer, Wharf Street, 1906, Queensland State Library.

Sandgate Technical College, Commercial Business Papers, Minute Book, 30. 01.1914 – 30. 06. 1939, QSA.

Noscov, George,  ‘History of the Townsville School of Arts’, private research

 

[i] Correspondence of the Department of Public Instruction, papers re Technical Education and Schools of Arts, 21374, December 5th, 1901, A/16255, QSA.

[ii] Henderson, N.V., Skoien, N.A., eds., Queensland Statutes, vol.4, Butterworth and Co Publishers, 240 Queen Street, Brisbane, 1962, reprinted 1966, ‘Report on the Technical College, School of Arts, Brisbane, for the year ending 31^st December 1890.’

[iii] Correspondence of the Department of Public Instruction, 19630, December, 1900, A/16256, QSA.

[iv] Clarke, Eddie, Technical and Further Education in Queensland, A History,  p 25.

[v] A/16256, no.21705 29^th January 1903, QSA.

[vi] DPI correspondence, A/16256, 1902-1905, memorandum respecting Technical Education, 25 March 1902

[vii] Ibid. copy of the regulations: ‘Technical Instruction’. !st July 1902

[viii] DPI correspondence,A16256, 17502, 27 September, 1902

[ix] Ibid. copy of Report on Schools of Arts and Technical Colleges by the Secretary of the Department of Primary Instruction, 1905.

[x] A/16256 2^nd September 1904, copy of ‘Report on the Interview between Hon. Peter Airey, Acting Secretary for the Department of Public Instruction, and representatives of the various technical colleges, at which resolutions passed at a conference on Technical Education were presented to the Minister’.

[xi] E.Clark, op.cit. p.39

[xii] Annual Reports of the Secretary/ Minister for Public Instruction/ Education, 1909, p. 99, 1911, p. 24, quoted E. Clarke, p. 34

[xiii] Copy filed in DPI correspondence, A/16256.

[xiv] DPI correspondence, A/16256, 15358, 15008.14884. 13517, 14699, 14585, 13013, 14538, 14532, 14467, 14466, 14421.

[xv] Queensland Statutes, op. cit .,  pp. 729, 730

[xvi] ¹³ ibid. pp. 726, 727.

[xvii] Mackay School of Arts, 100 Years of Service’, Daily Mercury 28.06.1980

[xviii] E. Clark, op.cit.. p. 37

[xix] E.Clark, op.cit..,p. 29.

[xx] Correspondence of the Department of Public Instruction, Report on the Conference of Technical Colleges held on 16^th August,  1917, A/16263,

[xxi] ¹Correspondence of the Department of Public Instruction, A/16263, No. 11528, QSA.

[xxii] Correspondence of the Department of Public Instruction, A/16263, No. 11528, QSA.

[xxiii]Queensland Statutes, op. cit.,  p. 731.