THE KING COUNTRY CHRONICLE. THURSDAY, JAN. 28, 1909 BACKBLOCK SCHOOLS.

King Country Chronicle, Volume III, Issue 126, 28 January 1909, Page 2

THE KING COUNTRY CHRONICLE. THURSDAY, JAN. 28, 1909 BACKBLOCK SCHOOLS.

There has been considerable attention drawn of late to the difficulties under j which backblock children have to I labour with regard to education. That ! the complaints in this direction are ] well founded there can be no doubt j whatever. Compared with the lot of j the town children, the backblockers : j are not to be envied. It is a well es- j : tablished principle in these times that < education for all should be as free as \ the air we breathe, and from primary ! school to university, every encouragej ment should be extended to our youth j to equip themselves for the future. | Thus, only, can we hope to keep our ! race in the forefront, and thus only i will the great social and spiritual prob--1 lems, with which the world is now bei ing confronted, be solved. Each suc- " cecding age brings with it its own . special set of conditions and problems, ! and the higher the plane achieved by j man, the more anxious is mankind to j ascend to still broader fields of knowi ledge and action. Education is the : primary agent which enables man to I ascend by broadening his outlook, cultivating his powers, and inspiring him with higher, and healthier ideals, and aspirations. In individual measure, and on a more immediately practical scale, education provides the means, and ! equips the individual to work to the I best advantage, and lessens the "white man's burden" in every conceivable direction. It is therefore with no I spirit of envy that we draw a compari- ! son between the city schools and those ! of the backblocks. Every facility at

present provided for city schools is 1 thoroughly justified, and more should Ibe added as opportunity offers. However, it is not to be wondered that the picture of a city school equipped on the best lines, coupled with the easliy obtained additional advantages of secondary, and tcchinical education which exist in cities and towns, should make the backblock parent somewhat envious, and mentally add another serious item to the list of disabilities which their pioneer is heir to. The system of education established in the Dominion is admittedly good, and on c the broadest lines, and we have aci quired an enviable reputation in con- \ nection therewith. It must be adj mmitted however that such reputation | has not been built on the state of our : ' backblock schools, and this branch of ! the system undoubtedly merits greater J and more sympathetic attention on the | part of the authorities. A journey I through the backblocks of our own district reveals a state of affairs which j badly requires alteration. Possibly the 1 Department, or Board, which is reponsible for establishing the schools considers that sufficient has been done by i providing the barest means for the j elementary schooling of the backblock | children, without considering in any j way the comfort or health of the childj ren. The smallest of buildings, as long as they are weather proof arc deemed I sufficient. In the case of Aria and Kaeaea schools, as well as those of J other districts, no provision is made for sheltering children outside the school building in bad weather, and notwithstanding that the majority of pupils have to ride to school, no provision is made for an enclosure into which the children's horses can be turned during school hours. Considering the many advantages which are denied country pupils, there is every reason why a little additional attention to their particular requirements in the directions indicated should be extended. Moreover, requirements which seem j

small to town-living members of an Education Board, are of considerable importance to backblock children, who, in any ca.se, have many disabilities to overcome, which arc entirely aPsent in the case of town pupils. It i- to be hoped our settler.- will not fail to agitate, and exert their whole inufience in the endeavour to impro-.-.- the conditions under which nackhiock school

children labour at the present time.