THE LOCAL SCHOOL COMMITTEE ELECTION.

Kumara Times, Issue 1659, 23 January 1882, Page 2

THE LOCAL SCHOOL COMMITTEE ELECTION.

[to the editor.] Siu —Seeing that the annual election ot o’ur Local School Committee is so near at hand, I think it behoves and guardians to embrace the present opportunity, and see if they cannot strain a nerve, and drag our public school out of the scandalous condition into which it has been allowed to' dwindle Under the present committee. Sir, at the last distribution of prices they imported their new idea in the recommendation of teachers to supersede the inspector’s reports, so as to’ enable them to give special prizes to' committee-men’s children who failed to' pass their standards, - while pupils who passed and others who obtained more' marks got none, and a glance at the prise list will show that com'rafttee-men’a children took the lions’ shaie of the prizes. The chairman admits that he ordered twelve children to be turned out of school, thereby outraging the feelings of as many families. Will he admit that, knowing the state the school was in at the time, he sent a telegram to the committee telling them not to' appoint another head-teacher until liis return 1 and at the same time, he might not return for months. He also admits that he is ashamed to publish a! balance-sheet of prize money after’ being repeatedly publicly asked to dp so. What can we expect from a com-mittee-man who will stoop to have a resolution passed in committee that bis ’ child be granted a good attendance cer- | tificate, knowing that another child had j honestly woo and recovered a piize fot ■ good attendance, but had received no | certificate? Rumor is rife that the' percentage of passes at the late exami- | nation is infinitesimally small; that j there is great weeping, «kc., among tire ( pupils; that the pupils who have been I temporarily raised to higher standards J in anticipation of the inspector’s report \ have been ruthlessly swept back to w \ their old seats, and another year’s j! drudging through the same old lessons. [ Another twelve months for poor parents I to scrape and scheme so as to keep their i offspring at school to begin again, and twelve months’ service say of a son or | a daughter 15 or 16- years old clean I lost (for that is’ what it means) is a great loss and a Scandalous shame. Oar children are not born fools that it takes twenty-four months to raise them one standard. Why, at that rate we shall have to give them twelve years' schooling to pass them in the 6th standard, what any ordinary, child with fair teaching will pass at 12 years' old.

Who are we to blame for such a state .of things? lam sure we cannot blame Ihe teachers j We must either blame tbe committee or we must blame burselves for allowing such a committee to be elected. Ignorance Would say blame the committee ; reason would say blame yourselves'. If you cahiiqt answer this question', perhaps the chairman will answer it,on Monday evening. Apologising for trespassing on So much of your space.—Yours truly, ( Pater Family. Kumara, jah. 20; 1882.