TECHNICAL EDUCATION (Gr. techne, art) means special instruction and training for the industrial arts. This subject has received much attention of late years in conse quence of comparisons drawn between the manufactures of Great Britain and those of other countries shown in the great international exhibitions held in London, Paris, Vienna, and Philadelphia. Some good judges have asserted that owing to the superior training given in continental schools to young persons in the sciences specially bearing on the arts and manufactures, our neighbors are more rapid progress than we are. At all events, so much attention is now given to this kind of instruction abroad, that we can no longer afford to run the risk of falling behind in so important a matter. The subject was taken up by the society of arts in London in 1853, a committee of which body reported, after due inquiry, that the want of the technical element was a serious defect in the education of the country. In 1868 a select committee of the house of com mons (Mr. Samuelson's) took much evidence, and made a report on this subject recom mending that the state aid given to the teaching of science as applied to industry should be increased. Another parliamentary inquiry in the form of a royal commission on the advancement of science took place in 1870, 1871, and 1872, at which a great mass of evi dence was given by most of the prominent men of science in the country, and the com mission has made several reports on the subject. This inquiry was not specially directed to what we may call the practical sciences, nevertheless much of the evidence bore upon these.
Government aid for the teaching of science to the industrial classes is now given through the science and art department of the committee of council on education, which, ;n 1859, established a system by which payments on results are given to certified teach ers, and prizes to successful pupils. The examination questions are framed by a staff of eminent scientific men, and examinations are held all over the country in May. For a number of years past the subjects have been as follow, with exception of No. 24, which has been recently added: 1, practical plane and solid geometry; 2, machine construction and drawing; 3, building construction; 4, naval architecture and drawing; 5, pure mathematics; 6, theoretical mechanics; 7, applied mechanics; 8, acoustics, light, and beat; 9, magnetism and electricity; 10, in organic chemistry; 11, organicchemistry; 12, geology; 13, mineralogy; 14, animal physiology; 15, elementary botany; 16 and 17, biology, including animal and vegetable morphology and physiology; 18, principles of mining; 19, metallurgy; 20, navigation; 21, nautical astronomy; 22, steam; 23, physical geography; 24, principles of agriculture. Since 1878 a new subject called physiography has taken the place of physical geography.
The success of this scheme is shown by the great increase (seen in the following table) which has taken place in the number of schools, and pupils that avail themselves of it: No. of Schools. No. of Students.
1860.... .. . 9 500 1866 153 6,835 1873 1,182 48,546 1876 1,484 52,330 The parliamentary grant for payment to teachers on results as respects science, to the above table alone refers, was in the financial year 1876-77 £50,000, besides a sum of £3,500 for prizes to students, and a further sum of £2,500 for examples, books, materials, etc. About an equal sum was voted for the encouragement of art (chiefly free-hand drawing) in night schools for artisans, and in public elementary schools, Besides the government scheme of science instruction for artisans, there are a number of private or semi-private institutions where prelections of a technological nature are given. Among the most successful of the older ones are the 'Watt institu tion (school of arts) at Edinburgh, and the Andersonian university at Glasgow. The former was established in 1821, and for more than 30 years the principal subjects taught were mathematics, natural philosophy, chemistry, and mechanical drawing. Within the last 20 years other subjects have been added, and the total number of students is now between 1000 and 1500 annually. The evening courses of the Andersonian university, much the same subjects are taught, are likewise very largely attended by artisans. Colleges for teaching science with special reference to the useful arts, but science of a more advanced character than can easily be taught during evening hours only, have been quite recently established in several localities, such as that of Newcastle, in connection with the university of Durham, the college of science at Leeds, and the col lege founded and endowed by sir Josiah Mason at Birmingham. Of a high character also is the instruction given in the royal school of mines, London, established in 1851, and the royal college of science in Dublin, both government institutions. The naval and military colleges are essentially of a like nature. At Cirencester there is a fully equipped agricultural college established about 30 years ago. Several of the London corporations are now about to provide technical instruction.
Technical schools have existed for a long time on the continent. Of the more recently organized ones those of Zurich and Carlsruhe are the most extensive. The former is a college and polyteclinie school combined, having about 500 students and fr large staff of professors. At Carlsruhe, which is simply a polytechnic school, there are 600 students and 40 professors and lecturers. Several polytechnic schools of a high class exist in France, and some have lately been founded in the United States.
The journal of the society of arts, the reports of the science and art department, and the reports of select committee and the royal commission above referred to, contain much interesting information on this subject.