The sixth decade 1950-1959
| Post war industrial and agricultural boom impacts upon training. |
| A shortage of facilities |
| Restructuring the Technical Division |
| Women and training in the post-war years. |
| A new premises |
Student Profiles Industries Profiles
The post war industrial and agricultural boom continued
through the 1950's, demanding a rapid growth in technical education.
Factors influencing the decade included the establishment of the State’s new
industrial complex at Kwinana, the record price for wool, and the explosion of
the building industry as returned servicemen settled into family life. Manufacturing and Transport Industries, which had been greatly boosted by
advances in technology during the war, made quantum leaps in the post war years.
Facilities set up for war-time industries changed focus. 
The
Welshpool Munitions Factory, for example, which had been set up by employees at the Midland Workshops with
‘state of the art’ hydraulic machinery began producing world class
Chamberlain tractors. Manufacturing in Western Australia jumped four-fold.
Qantas Airlines began its Kangaroo service from Sydney, via Singapore to London
in association with British Overseas Airways Corporation, laying the foundation
for a whole new industry. Railways continued to support the opening up of areas
for rural expansion, and at Midland Junction the Workshops returned to their
original business, constructing and maintaining locomotives - processes that
required a wide range of skilled tradesman and support staff. Photo courtesy Battye Library 225664P.
The pressure of enrolments in technical education affected technical schools throughout the State. At Midland Junction the 1951 records show there were 406 apprentices in 21 day classes and 346 students in 48 evening classes. Overcrowding and a lack of facilities soon became a major problem. It was necessary to make use of classrooms at the Midland Junction High School to accommodate additional evening classes. Sharing facilities with the High School however was not always ideal. The next year’s Annual Report notes:
"Owing to the Manual Training of the high school taking over half of the trades block building, the motor mechanics equipment had to be accommodated in the same room as the woodworking machines and has caused an amount of congestion. The dust from the machines constitutes a nuisance to the motor engines and it is a pity that a better arrangement cannot be made in the interest of all concerned."
This lack of building facilities was not only being experienced at Midland Junction Technical School. Courses were being transferred from one technical centre to another as a means of juggling limited resources. Buildings at Perth Technical College and Fremantle Technical School were now very old and in need of extensive work, and there was a general shortage of space available to all three of the original technical schools. This was particularly so at Midland Junction which had to share a building with the Railways Institute. The Boilermaker Grade IV class at Midland Junction was transferred to the West Perth Centre, and with the introduction of trade classes in Wood Machining at Leederville Technical School in 1951, it was suggested that local apprentices becoming eligible attend there the following year. Small classes were joined together across the different technical schools. In 1951 the Moulding class was transferred to Perth Technical College due to the low number of apprentice moulders. It was also recommended that suitable Western Australian Government Railway apprentice blacksmiths attend classes at Fremantle Technical School, and in 1956 some painting apprentices were transferred to Leederville. By the mid fifties it was anticipated that the opening of the new Heavy Metals Trades School at Wembley would have some limited effect in relieving pressure, and in 1956 Midland Junction’s Boiler-making Grade III class was moved there.
But despite the opening up of other centres for technical education, student numbers continued to rapidly rise. In 1956, the same year as the Olympic Games in Melbourne, Midland Junction Technical School was reclassified and upgraded to a Class 1 Technical School. For the first time a Deputy Principal was appointed. This restructuring was part of the general reorganisation of the Technical Education Division, which now played a greater role in overseeing apprenticeship training.
Decisions at the Commonwealth level of Government continued to have a great effect on technical education during the fifties. Commonwealth financial support, which was initially for training of military personnel and repatriation purposes, remained an aspect of technical education. Compulsory military training and service, which had ended with World War II, was reintroduced in 1950 due to fears arising from Communism and the outbreak of war in Korea. Those who advocated compulsory military training saw it as a way of not only strengthening Australia’s defences, but helping to raise standards of physical fitness amongst young men. However, just as the time requirements of military training had competed with other types of training in past eras, the same occurred in the 1950's. By 1953 National Service Training was affecting evening class attendances of males.
Females, who by the end of the decade represented half
of the student population (other than railway apprentices) were not required to
register for military training. 
Although there was an overall trend for women to
leave war-time employment and concentrate on home duties, a day-time Commercial
Course introduced in 1957 and consisting of Shorthand, Typewriting, Bookkeeping,
English and Arithmetic, became very popular with female students. Of the 17
students who started the course only 5 remained at the end because of entering
employment. By 1959 enrolments had doubled from the previous year. In addition
two Home Furnishing day classes proved very popular with female students. After
the war ideas on male and female roles had become more flexible and an evening
class in Woodworking for women was also very popular.
A new premisesIn 1958 the High School finally moved to new premises (Governor Stirling High School) and on the 6th of October the Technical School moved into its original building on Great Eastern Highway. By the next year the school had had extensive renovations made and 10 new evening subjects were introduced providing the greatest expansion in any one year of the school’s history.
