COUNTRY SCHOOLS

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 209, 29 May 1919, Page 6

COUNTRY SCHOOLS

Sir,—ln your report, in last Friday's issue of an interview with the chairman of the Wellington Education Board ho is reported as saying in reference to the difficulty of obtaining, teachers for country schools, "men simply will not go to country schools." If the education boards made it compulsory for every teacher to serve a certain number _of , years in a country school before getting a town appointment the difficulty could be got over. What do Government Departments do? They transfer men to out-districte, and those mtfl have to go unless they can show very good reason why they should not. But, of course, transfer'expenses are paid. But with the teachers once a man gets a oity, or even a provincial town, appointment be hangs on like grim death, and no country teacher gets a chance at his job till he dies or superannuates. There are other reasons besides tho, fascination of city life which prevent a, man going into the country. The chair-man-points out the disabilities under A which many of the girl teachers labour in tho country. What about the menmarried men? I know of-a school some miles from a township and railway sta-, tion, in the middle of a dairying district, where the teacher could hardly get milk for his household. There was not enough ground in the school glebe to run a horse or cow, let alone both. Tho settlers were mostly small fanners with no gracing to spare, and the only (big" mau—one with plenty of spare land— wanted 2s. Ud. a week to graze a horse. And all this in a y district where thereare many school reserves scattered about and all lei to settlers, at absurdly email rents. They could surely be sold and the money applied to purchasing a few acres adjoining a school. In many country districts it is almost impossible to get milk except as a great favour. Another thing is that country teachers are too much iu contact with parents ■ and committee. Many a man gets on to a school committee to air his petty, personal grievances against n teach&r, and unpleasantness ensues. It is not the sanio in town schools. I havo lived iu both city and country, • and would not take a city appointment for double my present salary, unless it were for twelve mouths for the sake of ' expei'ijnce in teaching in a big school. But perhaps lam fortunate. I have had good committees; the s'chqol ground is a fair sizo, and I havo been lucky enough to be able to lease another email piece so that I can keep a horse, a cow, and a pig; and therein to my mind lira the crux of the question. - If every school house had attached to it enough land to support a horse aDd cow, and thus prevent teachers having the humiliation of begging almost on bended knees for a little drop of milk, or a ride to town, there would be more likelihood of male teachers (married at any rattf applying for positions in country schools. The city has many attractions, but if steps wore taken to imako country life more attractive wo would not have so many men refusing to go.—l am, etc, COUNTRY FOB CHOICE.