EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTE.

Oamaru Mail, Volume II, Issue 603, 8 April 1878, Page 2

EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTE.

The meeting of the Waitaki Branch of the Educational Institute was held in the High School on Saturday, Mr. D. Peattie in the chair. There were present Messrs. Fidler, Pirie, Fleming, Rice, Piper, M'Lymont, and Mouteith, After the minutes of preceding meeting ■were read and confirmed, and a vote of thanks returned to out-going office-bearers, election was then made of office-bearers for the ensuing year, which resulted as follows :—Chairman, Mr. Pirie ; Secretary and Treasurer, Mr. Peattie; Librarian, Mr. Fidler. Mr. Fidler was then called upon to read his paper on "Future Prospects of Colonial Teachers." In this paper, the prospects (monetary and social) of Government teachers were chiefly handled. Upon these the paper went to show the new changes would have no good effect with regard to their monetary position. Speaking of the Boards,

he said —"By them teachers are appointed and dismissed, and schools erected; in fact, each Board is responsible for the education of those in its district. Between them and the State, as it were, a contract is made. They are to educate the mass of the people at L 3 15s. per head. On receiving L 3 15s. per child, they are to get crammed, as it were, into each a certain amount of reading, writing, and arithmetic, as (if you will excuse the comparison) one might contract to have so many skins filled with material at so much per skin. L 3 15s. per head ! Let us see how much will be effected by this ; how much the teachers may hope to receive." Fe then showed that, after expenses of buildings, repairs, and institution of scholarships had been made from this, the amount left for the payment of teachers would be considerably less than heretofore, for that though the larger schools might get a surplus, this would be required to make up the deficit in country schools where few attended and a master was kept. He held, then, that fees should be charged in this country, where people could, and therefore ought, to pay for children's education, and where the parents would prefer paying something, however small. The next point touched upon was that this new system was not thoroughly one of Centralisation, but had many of the pernicious effects of Provincialism. Notwithstanding that teaching was proverbially a poor profession, yet the teacher needed long training ; for, said the essayist, " If the doctor of the body needs five years' course of training, what course does not he need who is to be the trainer, doctor, and director of the most subtle part of our existence, our intellectuality." He then dwelt upon the social position of teachers, but spaoe only allows the noticing of one remark made—"What position docs the banker hold who keeps our money ? —ls it not high ? How much higher should be the position of the teacher, who has the mind and morals of future men in his charge." After a vote of thanks had been proposed and accorded to the essayist, the meeting terminated.