SCHOOLS CONTROL.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1445, 21 May 1912, Page 5

SCHOOLS CONTROL.

lOCAL GOVERNMENT BILL. EDUCATION BOARDS MENACED. A CONFERENCE. THE MEASURE CONDEMNED, " " Under the provisions of the Local Go\n eminent Bill, which is to bo Ilia subject of an important confereneo to-day, it i« . proposed to transfer to tho Provisional Councils, as part of their responsibilities, the administrative control of district education at. present vested in the thirteen, education bonrds of (he Dominion. To ' this part of the measure each of tho thirteen education boards have taken strong exception, and in order to crystallise their separate views into a unanimous expres, sum ot ouinion for presentation to tho . .1 iluster iov L'dueation (the Hon. J. \ llnnan), and the Minister for Internal ' Allairs ((he Hon. G. W. Russell), who is lo preside at tile conference to be held to-day, representatives from eaeli of tho boards met in conference in Wellington.'' yo.-tcrday, at tho office of tho Wellington hdncadon Board.. Thoro were present: Messrs E. Lee, J. CI. W. Ailkoii,'And Win.illau (.Wellington); G. G. Garland Uuekland); A. Morton (Taranaki); IVlirani nVanganui); W. Morgan (Hawke'o - Bay);JUajor Franklyn and A. T. -Matin, nitv (Jvebon); H. J. Bignoll (Grevl; ' N. Dalwell aim H. Langford (North Canterbury); ,T. Mitchell and D. T. Plenum? •.-. (Otagp); and Wm. M'.Uistor and -- Fisher iboutnland). The education districts "of •Soiith Canterbury and Marlborough,- and \\ostland were not represented.

Preliminary Remarks, . Mr. Dalaiell, as chairman of the North Canterbury Board, which' organised''tho conference, was elected to preside over th« proceedings. In opening the discussion Mr. Darnell explained the motives which prompted the action of his .board in.sng- ■ (resting- the holding of a conference prior to the opening of the conference on tlio Local Government Bill. His board held strongly the opinion that education, should, administratively, bs kept apart from local polities,-and that the cosf should, os at present, be paid out. of.. - the Consolidated I'und of the Dominion, ' " and not paid from a direct charge by way of local rates. The effect of the Bill would bo to sever that close and intimate relationship which at present existed between. ■~ parents and, the schools, per -medium", ai ■■•" the school committees and district"boards" " l "" v Ao arguments had been put forward in .support of a change from the existing system of school control, and he felt con- • vinccd that She efficiency of national cdu- ' cation would suffer by such a chnnifoas was proposed in- the Bill.- -For example, it was felt'that'(he"systcm of rating pro- . - posed would result m educational star- ' yation when new districts were brought into existence. Again, representatives . would bo on the basis of property, which would be a retrograde step. It. was'essential in a national scheme of education that the interest of the public should bo centred in (he schools, and the present system of local control was admirably designed to achieve that object. (Hear, hear,)

Should the Minister be Present? Mr. G. L. Stewart (secretary of lh« . Wellington Education Board) was appoint* ' ed to act as secretary to the conference. Mr. Wm. Allan at this- stage inquired ' whether the Education Department, as represented by the Minister in charge, or one of his responsible officials, had been invited to be present, and was - informed ' thnt.no invitation had been'sent. He suggested an adjournment until such time as . the Minister or his representative could have an opportunity of being present. Mr. Mitchell thought that in the mean- : time they might go into committee for the purpose, of framing .draft resolutions, but ', objection was taken to in camera proceed- ; ingsi it being the..!desire of the majority ', that ail the business should bo taken in ' open conference. " Mr. l'irani seconded Mr: Allan's pro- . posal pro forma, but argued in opposition. He stated that nobody was more opposed to the Bill than Mr. llnnaii himself. Why; should the conference, then, attempt to" use the Minister as a bludgeon ? This Bill was not the business of, the Education Department, but of the''Government',"'Per:' sonally he felt that'there had been too much "bossing" by the Education Depart-'- *' meat, and though v he could understand the anxiety of 'Wellington, members to have the Department at their heels, he would like to say that in Wangaimi they wero not accustomed to this kind of "bossing."

Sir. Magimiily said (hot common courtesy demanded (hat (ho presence of the minister ov his- representative should 1m invited. (Hear, hear.) If ilicy hopo'd'fo proceed any distance towards •• the expulsion from the Local Government Biif e-i that section which threatened their administrative existence, tltey would l>a vri?e to have thoMinistor for Education in close touch with their views, and the tossons. for their objections to tho. Bill.- (Hear, hear.) After further debate, the conference ivdjounieil for n brief irttorvsl' jic-ncling the transmission of a message to the Minister and the receipt of his reply. On resuming, it was explained (hat tho .Minister, would ha,nimble to attend, and the conference proceeded to businuss,

~ Tentative Resolutions. Mr. JlaginnilT said that with the ideA nf facilitating t'he business of the confermice an informal .discussion - had -taken place the previous evening, and as the result of winch oerlain tentative resolutions, ■• merely suggestions, would be submitted as a basis for discussion. A careful examination of the Bill had revealed, curious anomalies and legal crudities. The Miff gesied resolutions were:— That this conference of tneEduea*''" tion Board? of (lie Dominion, while' refraining from any expression of opinion upon the general provisions of ■'. the Local Govonrmcnt, Bill, 'respect- ' .'fully urges that the inclusion of i'ilu*--catiou within the scope of the measure ' is fraught with serious danger to the education system' for 'the "foliow'injj reasons:— •■'.■■•

That (ha administration of primary •• education is so widely divergent in character from, ail the other sub-,..., jeets embraced in the Bill, and is of itself of such' importance as' to ; ' eiili for separate administration-by boards specially chosen for lite im.portant worl;;'' "• Th'ot no demand litis been made for «)»>■'■■ alteration of the. existing'. 'method' " by the abolition of Education ■ . Boards, nor any canst- shown for such ftTwohitioiiaryeten.' ••.•-•■ That the increase in the number of. .> bodies charged with the arimmistra- - : tjon of education-will lend to> ■■ in-■.'■>■ creased cost without securing greater efficiency. • That the proposal to cast n part of the cost of primary education upon local rates is destructive of the national character of our education nysiem, and entails now burdens' upon the taxpayers without lirnvidins any compensatory advantage, while, exposim; schools, to the danger of hcing stnrvftd. That '.he transfer of the admini'tration of nrima.Ty education from boards closely in touch with par- > out? and specially elected for the , important work, fo councils chnrg- ' ' e.l with a v-.ivioty of oi'aer and widely divoi;jen< functions, would lend io dimisiishod etiicioncy without seourins ■"■t'y economy of cost. ' Tt was dee'ded to take 'he clauses sen's* lim. and '.hat tJie preamble he debated aa mi independent, moiion. The Bill Criticised. In niovin;; the first resolution i the'preamble), Mr. Ma;;innity ssid that tiio'iiibjeel of education >vi>-s so widely'divw-pon-t-, from any other branch of Iceal ndminisiralion that it would Iv inimical lo'ilis etlieieney if it were mixed up with ;reneial ■ local politics, lie had been unable to <>is-. cover one single reason lor the. proposal fo change tiio .system of education administration. He could adduce'lo! reasons why '. it; .should stand unaltered. Tin. lirovWcr's of the Hill contained no spooificaSmi as, to (he number of persons who were in ■ form the committee or schools manage-" incut under the provincial t'uunciK A council, it was proposed, would appoint three of the members oCllicJlajiaefiuoiit Committee, but.these men mml'it conoei-v-'"" ably have nn Interest.whatever tti edma- ' tion. One oi the strongest points to. bs put .. jguWio under' the pro-'-

sent system the government of tho schools was in the hands of the people. Had anything : transpired to show.that tho,system was a bad one, and should bo '■repealed?. And what "was to tnko its place?— Tho Provincial Councils. They all knew tho personnel of such bodies, and drawing n bow alt a' venture, he would say that not on« of these gentlemen would be particularly interested in the question of education. '..Was it,.then, .wise that the services; of 'gentlemen with 'years of exporionce in the- arlminisfra'tion" of education should, thus,bo dispensed.'with? He admitted the'need for some'improvement in the "system ..of local government, but he could not seo why this improvement should intrude upon the sphere of education. Without reflecting in the least Upon tho men who were likely to interest themselves in questions of local government as members of Provincial Councils, he thought that'to these men questions of road and bridge construction would be of more interest than questions of education.

Major Franklyn seconded tho motion, ■nnd remarked that, this Local Government Bill was in accordance with the spirit of innovation which seemed to possess certain politicians. The Government was attempting to force upon the householders of the Dominion something they had "•never.asked for. It was hardly right to .jblame the present Government which had 'inherited the Bill as a legacy from the jPrcvions Government, in the person of Sir Joseph Ward, "a rank Conservative to start .with," and whose ideas of government suggested a. repetition of the ,Rtav 'Chamber. They appeared to be on "the way to 1 Hussin," and the tendency was to centralise all the authority and control in. Wellington: "A Mere Experiment."

■Mr. Langford vregarded the proposal as ;an attempt to put aside, a national sys'tcm ,of; education for a mere experiment. 'As members of education boards, they had iiotu.ing.ro lose or gain by whatever happened, and they approached this matter irom purely patriotic motives, in the .■interests of what seemed to them to be for ;the' highest good to the nation. Ono of the dangers to be apprehended from the proposed system would be a tendency to '.increase the number of private schools, particularly in districts where funds would not "permit of the establishment of new Etihools as increase in population demanded. The Bill also implied it transfer of nathority to the Minister for Internal Affairs. ........

Mr. Morton . (Taranaki) declared that • .nothing good coitld be said of ,the eduoa'tion proposals in. the Bill. ■ 3lr. Fisher (Southland) raised a difficulty. Since all the boards had"not dis'cussed the Bill, tho resolutions of the conference now in session could hardly bo received by thoso in authority as representing the deliberate conclusions of tho 1 hoards. 1 "Did your board not get a'copy of the ;£ill?" Mr. Fisher: "Yes." "Then-why didn't you consider it?" Mr. Maginnity said that the Nelson delegates were -not suffering under the difficulty raised by Mr. Fisher. If tho latter wcro in doubt he could abstain from .voting. ■ ■ Mr. Fisher did not pursue tho point. Mr. Bignell rend a series of resolutions "wherin the Grey Education Board uiiequi!Tocally condemned the education pro:posals in tiie Bill.. Jlr. Garland characterised the Bill as a ,-Gilbert and Sullivan farce. After thirtyfive years' experience of the present sys•tem of education, tho public knew its value, and would prefer, he opined, to ftick to what it had in that connection than go to something it knew nothing about. He read a condemnatory resolution which had been passed by the Auckland Education Board. A Rift In the Lute. At this stage tho even tenor of the pro- ; ceedings was broken by a question raised 'by.Jfr. M'Alister (Southland), who arrived late. He explained that he was present as a.delegate to the conference of (board representatives, and also" as a local ('■bodies' delegate to the general conference on tho following day. He did not wish to bo placed in an invidious position, he Eaid, and it semed to him that to prejudice the Bill now would force him into such a position. Ho preferred to go to ! tho-general conference with a-perfectly open mind. '-'I assnme you wnut to see the Bill passed in its present form?" suggested-Mr, Garland.

"I don't know-who-you are," retorted Mr. JTAlister, with somo warmth, "but ■your assumption is quite unwarranted." Mr.- Magiunity intervened. Delegates would;be in no way pledged by this conference, lie said.' If Mr.■ M'Alister regarded "his position as a delicate one, ho couhprefruiu from voting. Major Franlclyn interjected some'thing.to the effect that Mr. M'Alister had fio right to'bo there at all. Mr. M'A lister replied that it, might be is well if he took the hint and left. He was not opposed to the views of the conference on this question, bnttooEit that.he 'should go to the. general conference with a perfectly open mind. Some of those present were not iirhis position. .They were. Dot delegates to tho general conference. ; Mr. Mitchell said that the' principal reason lor the holding of their conference was the fact that the whole of the boards I would .not be represented at the general j conference. Only four of those present i would-attend the general conference, and !+.hese four represented only two or three jboards. ■■ ■ ' "Letting the Cat Out." Mr. Piran.i, at this stage, said that he knew for a fact that a very large proportion of the delegates tit the general conference were opposed to the inclusion of education administration within the scope of the Bill. "The Minister for Internal Affairs (old me himself that he did inot intend lo persevere with the educa|tion,clauses of the Bill." said Mr. Pirani. "Tie also said'that the chairman of the would be invited to ntjtend the conference." - *

The motion was then put, and in an jhiucndcd form suggested by' Mr. Lee, passled as follows-.— "That this,conference of the educa- • Hon boards of the Dominion, while refraining from any expression of opinion upon the general provisions of the . Local Government Bill, respectfully HTges that the inclusion 'of education' within the scope of the measure is fraught with serious danger to, and is inimical to the hest interests of our sfa'o system of education." Mr. Langford then moved the second jlause, which was seconded by Mr. Maginnily'. Mr. Pirani moved the following addition:—"And that any amendment of tho Act/be in the direction of establishing a Central Council of Education (with the Minister, as president), and to which shall be entrusted the functions at present carried : out -by the Department."

' After discussion. Mr. Pinuii n?reed tn ,defpr bis propo=tl till Hip resolutions had 'beendisposed iif. Clause 2. with tlie deiletirtn nf Mil' word "primary," was Hipd adopted, and a I » Infer since nf Hip proceedings ATi. l'ir.mi's motion. "lisliHv : Amended In ri'fi'i - it In education boards jfnr-consideration, wis ruled out bv Hip [cTi.iij.iiinn, as being outside Hip nrilpr of ■reference. ' Clause ■'! ua'i dropped, and the remainder slightly rearranged and amended, as ■shown below. • Ton Much "Department." Mr. Ma"ini'Jlv nuned —- "Xl'nt Hip transfer of Hip administration''of education from hoards closely in touch with p.ni'pnlf and speeinllv elected for tlip important work to councils ohar"Pd with a variety nf r>fli«r and widolv <TiT'Tir'il fmictions would lead tn diminished pflicipncy without securing any eeor.cni'.v of post." Mr. Pirnni percMvert in Hip whole conFlniclinn nf Hip Bill o" ettemnf-to con-ri-nlratp in Hip Central Department the Wger nnnf.e of education cnntrnl. . All tint would h? lpff for Hip provincial, counrils. to do would ho somewhat =imifer to what cclipnl committees were doing at present. (Hear, hear.) What li» objected to was, not so much control by the provinrM councils, as control by the permanent offcials. The motion was parried. Facts and Figures, Aft-"-r the luncheon adjournment, Mr. Mitchell moved: "That the increase in the number of bodies charged with Hip administration of education will lead In increasrd cost without "purine grpatpr pffiriency; and that the proposal tn cist n'part. nf the cost nf primary education upoa local rates is d&structiro of

tho national character of our education system, and entails new burdens ■upon the .taxpayers without providing any 'compensatory advantage, while exposing schools to the danger of being starved." Speaking' to the motion, Mr. Mitchell said that under the Bill it was proposed to create a new district in Otago (Vincent and -Miiuatotu Counties), with only thirtyeight schools; not one of which averaged over 300,. in attendance, and to merge Grey and Westlaiid (with 35 schools each). It. was well known that the average cost of small schools ivns high, and in districts such as those he had mentioned the burden cast on the local rates would be relatively higher than in the larger districts. A proposal involving representation on a basis of properly value was In be condemned. At present no part of <in education district exerted greater influence | upon tho local governing body than any other, but under the Bill the rural parts of a district, of less rateable value would he jeopardised with regard to their interests on the board. The imposing of a direct tax involved, inevitably, the starvation of the schools. The strength of the present system lay in the fact that the. cost was paid out of the Consolidated Funds, to which all contributed indirectly. The direct tax on the rates meant that some—the property-owners—would pay, and others would not. The speaker quoted figures to show that three-sevenths of the total cost of education would .fall on the ratepayers. That meaiit ,£lll,f>!)n. It was an insidious design upon the pockets of the ratepayers—a cunningly-de-viled method of exhorting more money.

After further discussion, flip motion was carried, this concluding the business. The resolutions of the conference are to lie presented to the Minister for Education at 9.30 a.m. to-day.