"FREE PLACES."

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 566, 22 July 1909, Page 5

"FREE PLACES."

ACTION BY SCHOOL COMMITTEES. A REPRESENTATIVE MEETING. DISABILITIES OF THE ,GIRLS. Largely attended, representative, and, _ in. tho mam issue, unanimous, was tho meeting of school CLmmittoe-mcn which was held at the Education Board offico bet evening to ' disousß mousuros for taking united action ' in tho direction of arriving at somo definite settlement of tho frco-placo difficulty at tho Wellington. Girls' lligh School Tho mooting was convened at tho instance of the Mount Cook School Committee, tho chairman of which, Mr. T. S. Lambert, pro-' i sided. I Tho Position Reviewed. J Introducing tho business of the mooting, tho ' chairman said that collected statistics showed that nearly 4;7 of tho total roll number of '■; tho i schools qualified for certificates of proficiency I in 1908 'lhp approximate figures wcro, in-1 eluding the Hutt Valley, from'24o to 250. - Twenty-soven girls who held scholarships' wcro provided for at tho Gjrls' Collego. whilo i Vi) woro attending other schools That tho admission of girls to free places was ui tho best interests of the girls woe shown by tbo fact that nine tonior, and twentyseven junior free place girl-pupils passed th«ir examinations. Further, thoro wore ~ from 16 to 20 girls with proficiency certificatee attending tho Catholic schools, .jriiile thcro woro 58 at Ncwtown District School, and 89 at tho Training Collego. Absolution. I The chairman, then called upon tho Rot. W. J. Conine to move tho first resolution, which was as follows :— "That this mooting of 6chool committees m Wellington and suburbs affirms < tho right of girls who qualify for froo ' places to admission m tho State-endowed ' Wellington Girls' High School, 'oe boy» ' are admitted to tho Wellington Boys' College, and as both boys and girls aro * admitted to secondary echools in other parts of tho Dominion. Wβ protest % ' against the unreasonable delay which ihae taken placo in making due provision for ' our girls, and wo call upon tho Board of Govornors of the Collego and tho Minister for Education to tako such action as shall speedily remove the disability j and injustice nnder which our girls at present suffer." j Speaking to tho motion, Mr. Comrio said that as -chairman of tho Terrace School Committoo ho was heartily m accord with the object of tho meeting. They wanted higher education for tboiir girls, and wero unable to ' avail themselves "d the privileges—tho rights, in fact—which Parliament had provided by Btatute He had nothing to say against thoir district high schools, but those institutions could not bo expected to afford tho sanio scope as tho secondary colleges. Wellington end Christchurch >vere tho only • v two towns in the Dominion which had refused to come into lino with the arrange- I wonts made by tho Government for tho frco education of tlioso of their children who were! duh qualified by their certificates of proficiency for entry to tho secondary colleges - in thoso towns. "Class Feeling." | The disabilities under which, they in Wei-1 nngton wero at present labouring with regard to this question were created oy the attitude which had been taken up by tho Board of Governors, on attitude which suggested somo elate fooling in the matter/"" (Hear, hear.) One man. wee as good as an-1 other hero, and he assorted his belief tha* the brainiest and most dikgent pupils were thoso , who came from tho primary schools. Too Government had affirmed the democratic ' principle that there should be no distinctione whatever. It had,been, suggested that the parents should voto on the question of turnmg tho present Governors out of offico, but ' it hod to bo rcmomibcred totat 'parents whose children wero debarred from .attending the college woro also debarred from voting. Ho Bid not think that the pnnciplo required emphasis by aigumcnts or figures. Their rights wero clearly defined, and to obtain them they must take- united action to move the Board "" of Governors and Minister for Education in tie matter. If that failed, they would appeal to the pcoplo, whoso representatives in Parhamont would bring pressure to boar in fcuo desired direction. ' ' , Further Discussion. ' ] Mr. A. J.' Rand seconded the' motion, emphasising the fnct that since tho required accommodation had been found, after somo agitation, for tho free-place boys, thoy had a right to expect that a similar offor't would be made on behalf of tho girls Mr II S Rounthwaite believed that tho difficulty vi Inch confronted tho Governors was one of finance. Tbo Governors had settled tho difficulty as concenwd tho boys by making a grant of £10,000 Many years ago, '' tho Government promised a sum of money for tho Girls' College, but nothing more had been heard of thn matter. ' 1 The Rev. A Thomson urged that every effort should be made to compel the Board |of Governors to give effect to the provisions 'of the Act Air. J H Helliwcll put tho position na " stated in an editorial note on the subject which k (as an appendix to a report of a meeting of tho board) appeared in Tn« Dominion, quoting — , .. i "There wcro three clemonte i>l the/-' situation First, the lack of sufficient > , accommodation, and the reluctance of the Government to remedy it, second, Mi. Leo's determination that tho Government shall end the difficulty bv the only course open to it, and third, tho corporate policy of the Boird of Govornors to v 'sit tight' and do nothing, leaving tbo difficulty entirely in tho Hands or the Government to solve, or not, as it < ploascs. Tho board snv9, in effect, 'Wo do not waut free pupils. ' Hie Government does Then lot tho Government do something—if it feels inclined: we, as a - board, aro not at all embarrassed by tho reluctance of the Government to act in' this matter It is the pupils and their parents who aro embarrassed, ergo, lot the pupils and the parents fight tho Government' " Ho said that when tho Governors agreed to place the Boys' College within the provisions of Section 93 of tho Act (which entitles secondary schools admitting free-place students to capitntion allowances, tho Government came forward with a grant of £10,000 Why did not the Governors act , similarly with tho Girls' High SchoolP Ho consideied that the Board of Govornors wore following up a "dog-m-thc-manger" policy. Another speaker said that thcro was' plenty of room at the Girls' Hie)) School for those who were willing to pay. Ho complained that there wero over 100 pupils at I tho Girls' Collogo who wore under twelve ' years of ago, a number of theso wcro very voung. He failed to seo why tho Girls' ' I Collego should_ bo nllowed to teach infante to the exclusion of qualified students for . tho higher classes Ono of the speakers euggested that clase distinctions wero made »s between tho paying pupils and tho frco pupils at tho Boys , College. A slur was cast upon them After fuithor discussion, tho motion wa» put, and earned unanimously, amid applauso. Executive' Gommlttoo Appointed. Mr J H Helhwell then moved, and it was seconded and carried — "That nn oxecutivo bo appointed by this mooting, with power to arrange for deputations to thn Board of Governors of the Wellington Girls' High School and tho Minister for Education in support of the foregoing resolution " It was fuithor resolved — "That tho Executive Committee consist of. tho.chairman, of the School Committees." n During tho debate on this motion, tin meeting became involved m a nmo of conflicting issues, and tho proceedings heoanu ruthor mixed. Tho following resolution was also carried :-< "That tho executive bo ompowcrod to sook the co-operation of tho local v members' of Pailiament and monibora td the Legislative Council, and to Slw each other steps as may bo doomed <icsv»W« in pressing tho claim on lefaitf «f Uμ i girls of our public tcheels*"-