EDUCATION DISTRICT BOUNDARIES

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2584, 5 October 1915, Page 8

EDUCATION DISTRICT BOUNDARIES

SEVEN DIVISIONS

REPORT OP THE COMMISSION

WELLINGTON TERRITORY ENLARGED

Tlio report of tlio Education Boundaries Commission was presented to the Housoiof Representatives yestorday. Tho report recommends tho division of New Zealand into seven districts—Auckland, Wnnganui, Hawko's Bay, Wellington,' Canterbury, Otago, and Southland. Tlio instruction to tho commission was to recommend division into seven, eight, or nine districts. Following are the important sections of tho. report, and tho portions of local interest Objects Aimed At. "In determining tho number of education. districts and delimiting ; their, boundaries, we'have kept in view the following principal, considerations :— "(I) Tlio provision of a sound financial position for the Eovoral education districts, so that the various activities of tho boards can be carried on without undue strain.

"(2) Convenience of local administration from the centre, in such matters as the provision, maintenance, and supervision of buildings and other school properties. '

"(3) Making the districts laigeenough to allow of full provision for the various branches of technical education bearing on the industries predominantly carried on in the several parts' of each district, more especially for those bearing on such: rural industries. as dairying, fruit-cul-ture, and general mixed farming.; v ■ "(4) Associating with tiie most populous centres—which have numerous urban and suburban schools of the highest grades—correspondingly large. rural ■areas. • •' ■

'(5) The provision, as far as possible, of an equally favourable'unbroken ladder of promotion for the teachers in ill'the education, districts, the effect.of which would bo to give increased efficiency of teaching with consequent benefit to the pupils. ,

"There are districts in which some one or other of the objects set forth above cannot be as fully realised as wo' couhl wish, but even in these cases the remaining advantages, in our opinion," amply compensate for the defects.

Districts Should be Large. . "Various 'suggestions for 'improving the smaller existing .education districts by extending their several areas were laid before us by the . boards. "While involving encroachment on adjoining districts by. taking in counties that .were obviously more closely connected " with the centres to which they are now attached, in no instance would these proposed changes of area secure the main objects tliev Commission has kept' in . view. as adequately or "conveniently as do the districts delimited by us.. The/ Education Act of 191<l provides, for a Dominion grading or classification of all 'public school ;teachers, w£ich is obviously intended to remove as far as possible the ..well-known difficulties that now prevent the ready transfer of .meritorious teachers from- ono, district. to an.pother in accordance with ( their recognised deserts. The appointment of teachers is stillj however, in the. hands of the Education Boards, and much I weighty., evidence:submitted, to us,, ren.derts it"' Highly,probable' that' transfers, of teachers withm single education districts (which boards arc. entitled to make, with little or no restriction) will; :for. a; long time continue to be tiie main" mode of promotion available for teachers. In view of this difficulty we have considered it, advisable to attach very considerable weight' to the principle that : the .new education districts, should' be large enough, and should 'afford' sufficient ; variety in the grades of schools within their borders, to secure ,for their: teachers prospects' of continuous promo* tiona's good as would be offered were •the whole Dominion treated as a single education district.' . The Ladder of Promotion. . "It is evidont that a .district in which existed' a good .ladder of' promotion would be attractive to good teachers; snch a district, therefore, would in the, main secure a better teaching staff: than one leas favoured, and the children in the schools would .gain the' benefit • of the bettor teaching thus afforded: In other words, what benefits the teach- 1 ers confers also a very solid benefit on the pupils for whom the schools really exist. This ideal of a reasonably complete laddtor of promotion it has not, indeed, been possible to realise in every case; but we have strken'to approximate to it as closely as possible, and we> believe' that a great measure of success -.in'this direction will be> secured within tlie; districts.herein recommended." ; , Small Districts Incorporated. The recommendation involves the ini corporation in the larger districts of Westland, Grey, Marlborough, Taranaki, Nelson, and South Canterbury. With regard to the first three of these it is not considered that any explajfttion is necessary j.'each. of them is -too small to warrant retention as one of seven, eight, or nine districts in the Dominion: South Canterbury, Nelson, and Taranaki are,- roughly, equal '..m- school, population? Under the 'Act one of them must disappear. In our opinion each of them is too small to afford a reasonable field for the promotion of teachers or to form a satisfactory administrative and economic unit; r.or is it possible to add! adjacent territory m such, a way as to overcome these diniculties without introducing others equally, serious" The Case of Nelson. "As regards Nelson, no suggestion that was offered for the extension of its area showed a satisfactory district from the point of view of .population,. or of administration (including finance), or of the promotion of ' teachers. The abscrption of Mari'aorbusli, would only ! accentuate tie 'flxisting' more would this ho the case if Grey I and Westland wereiadded.. The organ- | isation of technical education (including agricultural eduction) in such a district as Nelson, . enlarged 111; the manner just indicated, would_ be exi tromely difficult. Tho local industries I seem to call for the training, of workersI in fruit culture, dairying,, general agriculture, and, mining, as well as in the. I ordinary branches of mechanical engineering, carpentry, building, .- etc. Only by its attachment to ,a' large and comparatively wealthy district could ! tlio West Coast expect to kive those | wants supplied in even a moderate de-, ! gree. To a less extent similar difficulties would present" themselves -in the organisation of the manual instruction in" tho schools, which form 3 an important- introduction to tho -subsequent technical' course. , ' ; . Taranaki. "As to' Taranaki, the extension of territory suggested by the board did not commend itself to'the Commission: It involved the transference of certain counties—namely, - , Awakino,: Ohura, West' Taupo, Waitonio, and. Kawhia— from the south of the, Auckland: dis-. trict; and, in addition, the taking of four: counties—namely, Eltkani, Waimate West, Harfera, and Patea—from ■tins Wan«Snui district, the latter being compensated, by taking, from Hawke's Bay a largo area oast of tho Mann*u.tuGoxsfr including the counties gf

Woodville, Weber, Dannevirko, Pataiignta, Wainuluirau, and Waipawa, winch could nave no community of intoroafc with Wanganiii, Ilawko's Bay in its turn was to receive compensation from fclio Auckland district by tlio addition of certain counties, including Opotiki, Whakntane, East Taupo, Rot'«. ma, and even I'iako, Tauranga,, and Matamata. Only in this way could a Taranaki, district 'of reasonable isizo no obtained. It appears to us that such an arrangement would crcato grpatly increased difficulties of administration in all threo districts without any compensating advantages. ■ Weak Districts. '"J ho weakest of the proposed districts, as measured by the school population and the number of teachers employed, 1 are Southland and Hawke's Bay; theso must be retained, as their incorporation in other districts would iiivolvg 1310 reduction of the total number. of education districts below seven, the. minimum fixed by the Statute."The Enlarged Dlstrlots, Thfi Commission Tecommends that the Wellington'district should bo enlarged by the absorption into it of Nelson, Marlborough, and part of Grey districts, that >Vanganui' should absorb Taranaki and part of Auckland, and that Hawke's" Bay should take in part of , Auckland.