SECONDARY SCHOOL TEACHERS

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 225, 17 June 1919, Page 6

SECONDARY SCHOOL TEACHERS

A CAMPAIGN FOR BETTER TREATMENT

CHARGE OF " SWEATING "

The New Zealand Secondary Schools Assistants' Association has embarked on a vigorous campaign for better conditions as regards salaries, grading, and opportunities for promotion. For the general enlightenment of the community a lengthy statement has been prepared setting forth the present conditions under which, to quote from the prefatory remarks, this branch of tho teaching profession "has been shamefully sweated." , The statement goes on to say that the secondary teacher's position in the whole profession of teaching is unfair and 'peculiar. He is debarred from taking a reasonably good position in the primary schools because education boards naturally give positions in primary schools to nrimary men—realising that these have the first claim. For the secondary, teacher there is very little room further up in the universities, as long as the choice, as it very often is, is limited to men with English, Scottish, or Irish university degrees or diplomas. He is therefore compelled to look for advancement in his own circumscribed sphere, and finds very little progress possible. The positions at the top of his own department are 6ome twentyfour in number—we are speaking of male assistants now; the condition of female assistants is much worse. There are two inspectors of secondary schools and fewer than twenty male principals in the secondary service. There are numbers of efficient and capable .assistants who could, given' the chance, fill those positions admirably. But, says the association, they never get the chance.

Out of a total of 323 secondary school teachers in 1916, approximately 75 per cent, had a university degree. Further, only 11 of the total wore uncertificated, which means that 85 per cent, of the secondary school teachers were either graduates or certificated men or women. The average salarjes paid to secondary assistants in New Zealand, as ouoied in the official report, were over a period from 1912-17:-. 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 £££ £ £ £ Male ..... 241 249 248 266 266 2*4 Female . 158 161 163 187 186 193 But with tlie cost of living taken into account the actual value of the salaries paid in the years 1910-11-12-13. bear to their value on paper the ratio of 7 to 8. the actual value of the average salarv of £248-in 1914 was only .£2ll/ The following table gives .the comparative values for successive years:— Value Actual ■on paper, value. £ £ 1915 2GS 212 1916 266 199.5 1917' 284 198.8 1918 290' 199.4 In other words, tho average salary paid to secondary assistants (male) approximates in purchasing power to uomething like ,£3 15s. per week. To make a living most of these teachers have to .take private coaching after hours. In the case of out board this is foVbiddeo. "A certain technical school board pays the magnificent suin of .£2O per annum for a course of 40 lessons of two hours each to each of some eight or nine secondary school teachers, who aro forced to amplify their incomes by taking evening continuation classes." . 'The remedy, the association points out, is in an increased capitation grant, a Dominion grading scheme, and a Dominion scale of salaries. Allowing for an increase in the secondary school nopulntion estimated at 8' per cent., it •is considered that the cost of meeting the demands of the teachers would work out as follow:—

Under present Under new couditions. conditions. Inc. ■£ & A 1918 ... 84,852 1918 ... 130,254 43,402 1919 ... 91,640 1919 ... 140,678 49,036 11)20 ... 98,971 1920 ... 152,926 53,955 1921 106.889 1921 ... 164,082 57,193 The proposed grading is in three groups, baaed on academic status, inspectors' reports, and teaching ability. It is suggested that salaries should proceed from a fixed minimum by JBIO annual increments over a period of 15 years in the case of men, and £% in the easo of women, viz.: Men., Women Maximum Maximum Mini- after Mini- after mum. 15 years, mum. 15 years. Grade C ... 250 400 200 320 Grade B ... 400 550 ' 320 440 Grade A ... 550 700 440 500 "We have listened too long," concludes the statement, "to flattering tributes to our work, unaccompanied by tangible recognition of its importance. We see in every department of professional life, and even in Parliament, men who owe their success to our teaching and training—men who would be the first to recognise their indebtedness to us, and do recognise it in 6cores of instance.?, while a callous State denies us the pay and tlie status which would enable us to take our position side by side with them. The time has passed, for the sneer that we view our so-called' profession more from its monetary value to ourselves than from an idealistic standpoint. The disparity between what others say we are and what we really feel we are, .is now so, great that we must have some means of'bridging the gulf."