ADMINISTRATION OF EDUCATION

Dominion, Volume 14, Issue 277, 17 August 1921, Page 9

ADMINISTRATION OF EDUCATION

MR. FORSYTH REPLIES TO DIRECTOR OF EDUCATION > The chairman of the Wellington Education Board has made the following reply to the criticism of the Director of Education: — “In educational matters, 'centralisation’ has become a fetish of the present Director of Education, and it was only to be expected that the suggestion of decentralisation contained in the annual report of tho board would bo attacked by him. It wa.s hoped, however, that the Director's recent visit to Australia to investigate the working of tho centralised systems of Australia would have convinced him, that his pet theory, when put into actual practice, was not altogether an unqualified success. It is to bo regretted tliut in attempting to defend his Department against the suggestion of some weakness in administration ho first of all accuses mo of 'serious misrepresentation,’ and ini the next sentence quotes from the Department s regulations—but in part only, carefully omitting from his quotation the clause which was referred to.

“Tho two statements in the board’s report, which are" criticised by the Director, are as follow:— For instance, under existing regulations the senior inspector cannot direct the organising teacher to any school for necessary organising service without the previous sanction of tho Department. Similarly, the board cannot appoint a. temporary teacher to tho staff of the Training College or Normal School without the ■ previous sanction of tho Department. These statemente aro undoubtedly oor- • rect, raid are confirmed absolutely by tho Department’s regulations. No one knows this better than Mr. Caughley. "If. is unnecessary for me to reply to his statement of the board's dilatoriness, as the Director has simply used this as a smoke-screen, and in this connection it is not unfair to point out that the ' Department is sometimes very unreasonable in its demands for returns, and in this particular instance practically all the essential information had been supplied to the Department month by month in another form. Actually, the regulations do not require the board to send in the return which the Director of Education has referred to as being five months late in reaching him, and it is necessary to emphasise the fact that no action of tho board was undertaken without tho precedent approval of one of the senior officers of Mr. Caughley s Department. “Mr. Caughley states:— Recently delay has been caused through the action of board in endeavouring to make appointments under a system of its own whidh makes it very difficult for a teacher from another district to apply for a position in tho Wellington district. •’ This is a direct contravention of the intention of recent legislation Is Mr. Caughley aware of the fact that on May 19 the executive of the A.Z.E.I. waited on the Hon. C. J. Parr, Minister of Education, when it was stated that: ‘Wo have reason to congratulate the Wellington Education Board upon the honest attempt it has made to administer this portion of the Act? I don t know whether you have seen this form of application sent out by the board to its own teachers and any others who may wish to apply for positions in the Wellington district. It amounts to this: General applications have been called tor from all the teachers in the employ of tho board for any position for which the teacher is eligible. Every applicant is graded in a card index system and by this means tho board hopes without any delay to bo able to offer any vacancy to the teacher highest on th? list. Hint is the position we are anxious to bring about. We want to see measures taken to ensure a uniform system being adopted throughout the Dominion, so that teachers everywhere will have equal opportunities for applying: for positions in any district to which they may desire to transfer. Wo don’t think it will take long for the Wellington system to permeate the Dominion as a whole. We certainly think the Wellington Board is deserving of the thanks of the teachers for the straightforward and honest attempts it has made to bring into force the new system, and thereby promote the wellbeing of the teachers.’ "As the executive of the N.Z.E.I. speaks for the whole of the certificated teachers in the Dominion, their opinion as above expressed is the most effective reply that could be given to the Director’s allegation that the Wellington Board is .in any way seeking to contravene the intention of recent legislation. "At the beginning of June the board Inserted in 'National Education,’ the official organ of the N.Z.E.1., an advertisement inviting applications from all qualified teachers throughout New Zealand who desire an appointment in the Wellington district. A full explanation, of the scheme was given in the June and July issues of the same journal. “From tho foregoing it will be seen that the board’s system, instead of confining appointments to Wellington teachers, has actually thrown evary position open to the whole profession. "One instance of the benefit to be derived by teachers located in isolated parts is the fact that a New Zealand teacher engaged in Rarotonga was at the last meeting selected for a responsible position. Had the position been advertised in tho ordinary way there would have been no possibility of his even seeing ths advertisement before the filling of the vacancy. "The board’s application form enables a candidate to indicate either specifically or generally the towns or localities in which ho is prepared to accept appointment, and one of the main virtues of tho schomp is that a teacher who has filled in one of tho forms knows that ho has no need to watch the newspaper for vacancies. “If it were permissible to publish a list of some of tho oxtraonfinary actions of tho Education Department, I feel sure tho public, ‘who have to pay the piper,' would feol surprised and rather uneasy. "Det me quote a recent example of the Department’s methodi. A vacancy occurred on. the staff of the Normal School requiring special qualifications, and in euch cases, under recent legislation, a certain discretion is allowed tho board, with the approval of the senior inspector, who is an officer of thq Department, to make such appointment by transfer. In this case tho senior inspector selected the most suitable and best qualified teacher for the position, and the board. In accordance with its usual custom,, unanimously approved of the senior inspector’s selection. The Department, however, now stepped in and refused to confirm the appointment, and insisted that tho position should be advertised. It was then found that the senior inspector’s original selection was still the best qualified .f.f all the applicants foi tho position, and the board must submit to the Department its original recommendation. The action cf tho Department undoubtedly caused ueiay and unnecessary expense. "It would be an easy 1 latter to quote other cases of a similar nature, but the above typical example, I think, fully justifies tho following suggestion contained in tho board’s annual report, viz..:—‘The removal of many of the present limitations on administrative notion of boards would result in an appreciable saving of lime and money and involve no sacrifice of efficiency.’ "If the Department finds any hard actin" in contravention to the spirit of tho Education Act or of any of the regulations it should adjust the matter with that particular board rather tl.nn hinder tho administration of education generally by framing regulations i-equir-in" all boards to refer to tho Department trivial matters that any public body can well Iw trusted to manage satisfactorily.”