TOWN EDITION. The Daily Telegraph. FRIDAY, JULY 23, 1881.

Daily Telegraph (Napier), Issue 3141, 22 July 1881, Page 2

TOWN EDITION. The Daily Telegraph. FRIDAY, JULY 23, 1881.

Not the lenst interesting amongst the Parliamentary papers to band is the "Report of the Minister of Education." The number of public schools reported as being io operation during the last quarter of 1880 is There were 44 half time scnoola in chargeof 22 teachers, which have been reckoned as 22 schools, otherwise the total number of schools would have been shown to be 858. The nu*uber for tbe last quarter of 1879 was 807, reckoning every two half-time schools as oDe school, and 831 if the halftime schools be regarded as separate tcoools. The number of teachers employed in tbe public schools during tbe kut qnrrfer oflßßoia returned at 1971 being 198 in excess of the number engaged during the corresponding qoarit-r of the -cevioas year. The retort also otitis that the best information that can be obtained as to the actual stute oi education in tbe schools is supplied by the annual reports made to the several Boards by the Inspectors. Asa rule, the reports for ihe year 1880 record progressive improvement in the efficiency of the schools and the quality of the teaching, but do not deal in indiscriminate praise. There is a general acknowledgement that much needs to be done before all the schools can be said to be well taught. Id some oi the districts there is a considerable 'proportion of teachers that do not thoroughly kuow their work,and most of the Inspectors complain that sufficient pains are not always taken to make pupils understand what they learn and to develop their intelligence. Too many of the teachers set the children to learn lessons instead of actually teaching tbem. Pome of the head teachers do not efficiently supervise the work done by their assistants, or give them practical instruction in the art of teaching. One of the Inspectors, who speaks highly of the efficiency of the majority of the teachers in bis district, attributes the unsatisfactory results in some schools to " unskilful, erroneous teaching, and downright incapability to instruct scholars in tbe higher standards." Another says, "Of course a large proportion of the failures is due to absenteeism and irregular attendance, but in addition to these acknowledged hindrances to successful teaching, there are others, and they are, in my opinion, defective teaching in the preparatory classes, the absurd system of cram pursued in some schools, and tbe disinclination or inability of a few teachers to adapt their raetheds of instruction to standard system. As a body, the teachers are very anxious about the success of their pupils, and spare neither time nor trouble to produce satisfactory results. So far kb I am capsble of judging, it is more often want of skill than want of will that causes failure." From one large district it io reported that in many schools the

subjects that "do not count in the standard examination are well taught, r,nd particularly the teaching m elementary science appears to be of too abstract and general a character, and to take too little account of facta and processes already familiar to the pupils." On the whole it appears that it is highly necessary ttiat the Inspectors devote a considerable proportion of their time to the work of organising some of the schools, and advising the less experienced teachers. As Mr Petrie puts it, " This part of our Inspector's duties is certainly not interior in point of importance to the examinations." It is scarcely possible to put this matter on a proper footing without increasing the number of Inspectors or else re-arranging their districts, which could only be done by concert between the Boards. Until the teachers generally are trained either in the normal schools or by the Inspectors the results of out school machinery will be to some exteni disappointing.