BOARD OF EDUCATION INSPECTOR’S REPORT.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXII, Issue 4959, 13 February 1877, Page 3

BOARD OF EDUCATION INSPECTOR’S REPORT.

SCHOOLS IN THE FEATHERSTON ELECTORAL DISTRICT.'

This district includes that portion of the Wairarapa West County lying south of the Waiohine. ’ All the six schools are full-time schools, and in good working condition. Greytown and Featherston are large schools, the remaining five are small schools. No other school is required in the district. Except, perhaps, Tauherenikau, they are all vested in the Board, and all are provided with ah acre of land each. During the past year the attendance has increased from 283 to 351, the number of schools remaining the same. At ray -first visit 181 were examined ; at my last 326. The comparative passes in the Standards were aa follow:—Standard 1., first visit 89, last 202; Standard 11., -first visit 24,-last 76. Sixteen pupils have how passed Standard-III.; and two Standard - IV. The percentage . results have increased from 49 and 13! to 57 and 22 in Standards I. and 11. respectively. The Education Board ; bas built ,or rebuilt all, tbe properties except - Tauherenikau, which has been painted and repaired; . A teacher’s residence is' needed at Wharekaka; and an additional wing to the school at Featherston, which has again, become overcrowded. The state of education throughout this district is satisfactory. . 1. Greytown' school "la, the., largest in the Wairarapa;: and has considerably improved in average attendance during the year. The results, as 'a whole, are satisfactory ; and in the higher Standards better worfe ihas been done than in any other school is'the I should, however, like' to see such improvements.- effected in the general system of work" as I have pointed out; principally with a view to greater uniformity in the .work dene, and an .even distribution of the teaching powers. Ten per - cent, better passed are required in St'an--dards I. and -11. the school up to a very .good- standard. 'cPifty-fiyS good/passes wetemade at the. late examination ; but, sixteen is rather a.large number classed as unsatisfactory. There is good teaching power in the. school. ; : r \ . . ... j -' l 2; Featherston.; —Under [the excellent feacV’, ing of Mr. Everiss, this; school has {pen well' established. - It has Increased more rapidly than any other school finder your Board—the' increase being from 46 to , 1p,5 in j one;year.' One-half the scholars passed a standard at, the examination, 40 passing Standard I. and 12 Standard TI. There ( were two or three', boys' of good age candidates' for Standard 111.,' who failed to pass, owing to want of good previous teaching./ The written bxerciseß were" all on the same model, and might have been produced from the ..Reading was much improved for the time, Although Mr. Everiss' has been promoted‘to a large field of work, every effort will be made to keep up the efficiency of the school, ‘tog-book entries made In the time of Mr. Gulliver, .the late master, have'disappeared: . They were of very condemnatory character. : j 3. Kaiwaiwai school, under Mr. Johnson, has done very good work. There is ap tipper. class of pupils, who (have been some years sit school. I was glad- to pass-five of thik dlass in Standard 111., although the reading for this class was hot good-except 1 .in one case. , Peder Pedersen, a S'andinaviah hoyof twelve years of age; passed two Stahdards’ih one year’s work. -' - ‘ f '.

4.’ Wharekaka school; Is in a high state of effioienisy as to the work done in the first cwb Standards. There were two good candidatcis for Standard 111., one of whom failed in reading-only. Mr. -Badland la ‘a most p'ainstaking teacher. : | _5. Kaitara school is a new school'at Morrison’s Bush, :Mr. Christie is a very promising teacher, of ’good ability and painstaking. The school is fairly established. Two families living within a xnue and a-half are withheld, owing- to local differences/ j

. 6. Tauhereiukau.-r i -TlJOUgh formerly a large school, there are 'now. few children. of school age in the neighborhood. ,:Mrs.;»Hanson manages, exceedingly well. The reading is good for a Wairarapa,. school, and the work generally improved. '\ SCHOOLS 'OP THE MASTERION JMSTJIIOT. ' This district includes" that portion of Waiirarapa West County north, of the Waiohine. There are six full-time schools and one .affiliated school in this district. IJuring, the past year the attendance has increased from 314 to 405 ; and the percentage passesnfrom 49 to* 52 in Standard:!., the"Staifd»rd-ll~passes-re-maining the same. Standard increased from 3 to 30. The educational status is; low ;. but this arises from-special causes not ' altogether unsatisfactory, and I think another year will see a marked'change for the better. In 187J, ; 223 .were-examined in this district; at last examination 371 were examined, tl.During_ the... time... the. per} centage, passes baye'increased. from r 37 'and, 6 to 52 and 17 in [Standards I. and. JI. respectfully. The condition.of Clareyille a&d.Carterton schools has largely affected year. All the school?in this .district, ; the small school at Kaipaitangata, are vested in the Board; and) all vested schftcjila possess a<i least an acre of lafld,".,.PuTJ n g the past three years all the buildings of-the six-vested schools have beert built, .except' 'Carterton,;'which been trebled in afee. " ,A> 'new. school .has been completed-.atiiMauficeVille, and tenders have been called"ftr a teacher's residence. - ; t think a small school could rbe maintained on the Opaki Plain.tbut no-definite request has yet come from the'settlem ' Probably some' school accommodation will be required before .long on the main road - from, Master-ton to Eketahuna. Teachers' residences are 'needed at Waingawa, Fernridge; and Clareville. j ,1.- Masterton school has done very good work in the year, 54-new passes having been made,; and 51 of them by candidates who have only! been one year'in school since passing any pre* vibua Standard. ; The school is yet, a very elementary one, only 23 having passed Standard. 11., of which 14 passed, this year ; and. only 4 having paßsed Standard 111., all of whom' passed'this year. The reading, of the Upper classes was not good, many children dropping the aspirate and reading in a humdrum 1 style; The arithmetic -was well done, and,all other work was satisfactory. " . ~ . . '■": I

' 2. . Carterton school has fallen off very much 1 in numbers and efficiency. •" The 'falling off inj numbers, from 118 to 88, is wholly attributa-| ble to the inefficient teaching." The master has failed to take warning by my last yeaV’s' report, and has continued a forcing, system.; The reading was a wretched mumble ; the arithmetic broke down completely in back work; and the copy-book writing ’ was too! difficult. It is a most unsatisfactory school. 1 The discipline is too coercive, and the manage-; ment defective. Seventeen children are classed 1 as unsatisfactory. ; 8, Clareville school has increased from 50 to 81.’ It is one of the best appointed schools! under the Board, possessing a library, desks for [monitors, sayings bank, croquet, ground, water--buckets, sewing-machine, mapstand, pulley for: maps, earth-closets, circular and horizontal! swings, and other appliances not common to schools. Mr. Ross has set himself the task of drilling the whole school into a good style of reading, and has also taught writing and spelling in good form. For this year he has ignored the Standards, by not attempting to touch the arithmetic required. I have satisfied myself that very good work has been done. I confess to a little disappointment, especially as no less than 23 pupils are classed unsatisfactory. I have confidence in the ability, judgment, and system pursued by Mr. Boss, and content to leave the issue to the next examination.

4. Fernridge, formerly known as the West Masterton school, has increased from 19 to 45, chiefly in consequence of larger accommodation and better teaching power. The school is very low in' results, and only 10 new passes were made; but considering the influx of fresh children, and the changes in the school, the work was, on the whole, satisfactory, and the school under good management.

5. Waingawa school succeeded in making no less than, eighteen new passes; but many of them were by pupils who failed at the last examination. Very good work was done in all subjects; even the reading, which is still very bad, being improved. The results are now the highest in the district. The copybooks were unusually neat and well wrhtan. 6. Gladstone.—Only seventeen children are yet attending this school, which was put up under much larger representation from the

settlers. Mr. Watson has done good service; but less expensive teaching power should suffice for so small a school.

7. Kaipaitangata is a new affiliated school in the heart of the- forest near Carterton. Some children travel over, two miles along bush tracks; all are being fairly instructed.