EDUCATION ACT.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XII, Issue 185, 7 August 1877, Page 2

EDUCATION ACT.

To the Editor of the 'Evening Mail.' Sir,— Considering that the Education Bill is now before the Assembly, a measure probably of as great importance to the country as any which could be brought before the Legislature, I think it becomes us to study its principles, and to canvass its merits and demerits, in order that we may be able to suggest any alterations and improvements before it finally becomes the law of the country. If you will permit me I shall frankly give my ideas of the principle on which, I think, such a measure should be based. The duty of a Government inaquestionof general education, to my mind, is clearly and distinctly defined to be a purely secular one, and any departure from that is a departure beyond the prerogative of a legisla ture. The aim and scope of a national system of education is to secure to every child born and living in the country such an education as will intellectually and morally fit it for its future duties in life, and nothing beyond this. Now let us see if the present measure will stand this test. I find in Part IV. of the Act, clause 85 recites these word3 " That the school shall be opened every morning with the reading of the Lord's Prayer and a portion of the Holy Scriptures, with this exception, the teaching shall be entirely of a secular character; and no child shall attend at the reading herein provided for if his or her parents or guardians inform the committee or teacher in writing that they object to such attendance." The clause above recited is admitted by the Government to be an exception to the secularity of the Bill, and this I consider to be a mistake, which will have the effect of inciting an animus and discontent among all who hold different theological views, as already evident from the number of petitions which are got up and sigued for presentation to the House. I am very pleased to see that from any meetings of the teachers themselves, so far as I have observed, the resolutions passed at such meetings imply that their duties in school are purely secular ones, aqd we must not forget that the Bible text teaches us a system of astronomy and {geology, and also furnishes us with a well defined chronological | table of the age of the world. Now it is quite possible, or I might say highly probable, when the secular schoolmaster is instructing his pupils in elementary science iu accordance with proved fact, the Bible text may not agree with his illustrations, and, if asked by the pupil the reason of this conflict, what is the master to say? I don't knowj Sir, what he would reply, but I know what the pupil will believe. He will take hold at once of that which is verified by experiment and research. These are some of the reasons why, I think, the two systems should be kept apart, and I believe it would be much wiser if the religious branch of the subject were left to the parent and his theological adviser and the State to its defined duty of secular instruction,— l am, &c, A Friend to Education.