EXEMPTING TEACHERS

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 109, 25 January 1918, Page 9

EXEMPTING TEACHERS

-* APPEALS BY EDUCATION BOARDS

QUESTION HELD OVER

Following on a decision arrived at by the Wellington Education Board at its meeting on Wednesday, appeals wero made to tho Third Wellington Military Service Board yesterday for exemption for three of its teachers who had been drawn in the ballot. The secretary of the Education Board (Mr. G. L. Stewart) attended in support of the appeals, and handed in the following statement:— "I am directed to make application to your board for exemption of the whole of the members of its staff classified in the Second Division, numbering 62. Tho application is based solely on grounds of efficiency. Hitherto the board has afforded all those in its service the greatest possible facility for enlistment and military service. At the ond of last year there wero engaged on the teaching staff of the board 173 men out of a total staff of 724, including in botli cases pupil teachers and probationers. This gives a percentage of 23.9 of males. In 1913, the year before the war, there were 208 males out of a. total staff of 645, cr 32.2 per cent, of males. Concurrently with this reduction of 35 in number and 9.3 in percentage, the attendance has increased from 18,829 (1913) to 21,600 (1917). Since tho outbreak of war up to the end of 1917, 111 teachers have undertaken military service, including:— Teachers' _• 63 Pupil teachers and probationers 14 Students 31 Other officers 3 "It will thus be clear that the board has done its very best to encourage military service in the Expeditionary Forces. The Second_ Divisioii men are naturally those holding the more responsible positions in the service. Thirty-three are headmasters of schools having a staff of two or more; five have sole-teacher schools, 17 are first assistants in schools of 200 or more pupils, and the remainder occupy other assistantships. These we cannot replace by efficients, and the statistics above given show that the percentage of males has been greatly reduced. Several of the very largest of our schools have now only one male assistant in addition to the headmaster, and in quite a number of instances it has been necessary to substitute women for men in positions always hitherto occupied by men. In country schools of two or threeteacher staffs, the usual arrangement has been master and lady-assistant. In several of these the board has lately had to substitute ladies in charge, and also in sole-teacher schools in remote parts of the country, where the living conditions are more suitable for' men. It is to bo added that the dearth of teachers has been such as to compel the board to appoint teachers of very slight experience to the charge of small country schools. The above remarks outline the immediate necessities, but in addition it is to be said that the board is concerned by the great reduction in the number of men coming forward with a view to entry into tho profession, these numbers being not nearly sufficient to meet the very barest requirements .of the service. At tho meeting on Wednesday only three out of 42 pupil teachers and probationers were available for these. vacant positions. In 1917 the.Training College began with 13 men, reduced to eight by enlistments by the end of tho year, and to the honour.of. the college it_should be recorded that over two-thirds- of all.the men who have passed through it since its opening have undertaken military service. "Tho abevo statement my board trusts will carry conviction as to the reasonableness of its present request. I attach analysis of the staff in December, 1913, the year preceding the outbreak of war, and December, 1917, and also list of teachers in the Second Division. The classification of the Efficiency Board is cited in support of the present application." : The teaohers concerned yesterday were: Henry George Hall, Nireaha; Ernest W. Russell, Waipne; and bergeant Stuart Duncan, Waikanae. In the case of Mr. Hall, exemption sine die was granted, conditional on his remaining in his present occupation, and it was explained that Mr. Russell has been unfit for service abroad. . ~ An unusual position was disclosed in the case of Sergeant Duncan. Mr. Stewart said he had enlisted, gone to the front, and subsequently became unfit for active service. At present it is understood that Sergeant Duncan is doing clerical work in London, and the request of the Education Board was that, in view of the shortage of teachers, he should be brought back to New Zealand and given leave to take up his teaching work again. ■ Reference was made to the probable gazetting of regulations dealing with such cases, and the matter was allowed to stand over for one week.