PRIMARY SCHOOLS

Evening Post, Volume CXXXVIII, Issue 57, 5 September 1944, Page 7

PRIMARY SCHOOLS

SIZE OF CLASSES

REFORM MUCH NEEDED

O.C.* NAPIER, This Day. Speaking to a group of teachers yesterday on the New Zealand Educational Institute's pamphlet, "Educational Reconstruction," the president of the institute, Mr. J. Barnett, said that it could be quite specifically asserted that no reform was more urgently needed in the primary school service than a reduction in the size of classes. Education today could not be conceived in terms of instruction alone. The evils of mass instruction had long been generally admitted, and every.year of delay meant another year of mass instruction as opposed to individual education. For years the institute had consistently advocated this reform, and for years Minister after Minister had admitted the justice of the claims made Last week, said Mr. Barnett, the executive discussed the question with the Minister of Education, and was informed that a reduction in the size of classes was a matter of Government policy. The war had absorbed the teachers who had been trained for this purpose and materials for new school buildings had gone into war channels. MORE THAN A POLICY NEEDED. | With this statement the institute would agree, said Mr. Barnett. A total of ! 2500 primary school teachers had answered the country's call, and at the I present time there were still more than a thousand institute members on military service. But something more' than having a policy was required. If positions were to be available for these returning soldier teachers, action would have to be taken now. The staffing schedule adopted by the Government in 1938 should be put into operation to become effective as teachers became available. No class should be over 35 pupils and no infant class should exceed 30 pupils.. The secondary departments of- district high schools should..be staffed on at least as generous a basis as post-primary schools and the capitation allowance should be greatly increased. Mr. Barnett said that, apart from a reduction in the size of classes, there was no reform that had been so insistently and universally demanded over a period of years by primary school teachers than the issue of good text books. The executive could not believe that the shortage of paper was iso acute that the present slow progress could not be. accelerated. There was almost daily evidence of paper being used for purposes much less important. Surely it was time that education- was placed on the high priority list. ■In conclusion, Mr. Barnett said that Educational Reconstruction" was being circulated widely free of charge among home and school associations, libraries/ editors of newspapers, education board members, and others interested m education, and that he hoped the booklet would be widely discussed and used as a handbook of information on primary education.