AT last the long overdue process of tailoring the system of technical education to meet the requirements of industry and commerce has begun. The proposals for a major reconstruction of the present system of courses for technicians, craftsmen and operatives are outlined in the White Paper ‘Better Opportunities in Technical Education’, which was presented to Parliament by the Minister of Education, Sir David Eccles, on January 5. The main objects of this ‘technicians’ charter' are: to broaden the education received by students and to provide the maximum continuity between school and technical college education, to adapt the system more closely to the needs of the industry, to increase the variety of courses available to the students according to their aptitudes and career requirements, and finally, to reduce substantially the high wastage rate which now occurs as a result of the failure of so many students to complete their courses successfully.