Manawatu Herald SATURDAY, DECEMB. 10, 1921. LOYALTY OF TEACHERS.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XLIII, Issue 2366, 10 December 1921, Page 2

Manawatu Herald SATURDAY, DECEMB. 10, 1921. LOYALTY OF TEACHERS.

THE views of the executive of the Yew Zealand Educational Institute on the proposal in the Education Bill that teachers should be required to lake the oath of allegiance have been communicated to the Chairman of the Education Committee of,the House of Representative’s: —“The executive desires to •'-a.v, on behalf of ihe public-school teachers of New Zealand, no objection is altered lo the clause. Teachers, as loyal servants of the Sla.tr>, have l , anel can have*, no hesi-

tation in giving any assurance of continued loyalty that those in authority may ask for. On the contrary, they fully agree that all individual cases of disaffection should be dealt with, for tlmy recognise that, regard being had to Ihe great influence the l teacher wields in the moulding of character, the teaching service ought to be l above suspicion. The exermlive, however, feels and claims that the clause is unnecessary; anel it cannot avoid the feeling that the 1 edause casts a slur on the service that, taken as a whole, it has not deserved. Granted that there have come to light individual instances of a contrary kind, the e'.xccnlive respectfully submits that these could have been eleall with individually, and the* genera! body of teachers thus spared the indigri'ity of a public rebuke, with Ihe consequent injury lei its prestige and influence. The executive further points eml that from the nature of tilings Ihe clause can have very little effect. Those who are loyal to the State and to their service will not object to giving the assurance asked for; but those of the other kind will not proclaim their disloyalty by refusing the oath. An oath taken under compulsion is of small value. If, however, the imposing of the oath is deemed expedient, the executive urges strongly that it should not be imposed only on publicschool teachers, but on all those who are engaged in (be training of the State’s future citizens. The children in private schools are just as much the concern of the State as those in public schools, and the same precautions should be taken lf> guard them against injurious in-' fluenees.”