CANTERBURY EDUCATION BOARD

Hokitika Guardian, 6 September 1920, Page 4

CANTERBURY EDUCATION BOARD

The Board met at Christchurch on Friday. Present:—Messrs E. H. Andrews (chairman), W. A .Banks, H. J. Bignell, J. G. Gow, J. Maze, E. W. Armitage, C. S. Thompson, A. Reverill, T. Hughes and W. P. Spencer. The Manual and Technical Committee reported that at its meeting some discussion took place with regard to the suggestions made at last meeting of tho board that local examinations be substituted for the annual examinations now conducted in the colonies by the City and Guilds of London Institute. It had been agreed to take no action in the matter. AGRICULTURE. ‘ A letter was received from the Otago jEducation Board endorsing the resolution of the board passed on May 6th protesting against the noii-recognition in the. syllabus of agriculture as a hand work subject. A letter was received from the Education Department stating that no official date had been set ajside for the observance of Arbor Day, but education hoards were expected to make their own arrangements. FINANCIAL; The financial statement for the past month was read and adopted. The Chairman was authorised to release fixed deposits, if necessary, to meet overdraft on current account. Accounts amounting to £3llO 7s 10d were passed for payment.

The School Committees’ Association wrote asking the board that the matter of salaries paid to caretakers of public schools might be given careful eon-; sideration, and brought under the notice of the Education Department with a view to the Department taking immediate measures to overcome the difficulty. It was decided that a sub-com-mittee, consisting of Messrs E. H. Andrews, A. Peverill, C. S. Thompson and E. W. Armitage, should go into the ( matter of caretakers and caretakers’ houses, with power to approach the Department, Sid in the event of satisfaction not being obtained to devise a scheme for erecting these houses, and report to the board. The Appointments Committee reported that it had discussed with Mr W. H. Hamilton, the Board’s representative on tho Council of Education, the question as to whether the constitution of Education Boards could he altered to advantage, and,, after hearing his views, was of opinion that the present franchise was sufficiently open for anyone who wished to stand for election. The committee, however, felt that the teachers might very well be directly represented on the Board, and it therefore recommended that Mr Hamilton be asked to support that view before the Council of Education. Mr W. A. Banks and other speakers spoke strongly in favour of the direct representa-j iion of teachers oil the Board, and the report was unanimously adopted.