NEW COMMITTEE

Rotorua Morning Post, Volume 2, Issue 515, 26 April 1933, Page 4

NEW COMMITTEE

ROTORUA SCMQOL • i. X * — HOUSEHOLDERS DISCUSS SEYERAL IMPORTANT iREMITS VOTES OF APPRECIATION # - ; \ The aiinual meeting of householders td' elect a school committee for the riext- twelve months wta.s held .in the Rotorua Primary School on Monday evening, Mr. C. A. Clarke presiding over a s'mall attendance. The annual report and balance sh'eet disclosdng a credit of) £40 9s 3d was read and' adopted on the motion of tbe chairman seconded by Mr. L. Ewert: Of ten nominations the following wdre elected to constitute a committee 'for the year. Messrs C. A. Clarke, A'. T. Butt, L. Ewert, M. B. Hunt, N. M. Keane, W. J. Kurney, H. Wilkinsoii, H. C. Smith and R. Griffiths. It was decided to forward the foll'owing remits to the conference of Public School Committees: — (1) "That it is the opinion of this annual meeting of householders that the exclusion of ehildrep. of five years of age from attendance; at the State sehools is a igrave mistake ' for th'e following reasons : — (a) Thiat it excludes the children at ' what is perhaps the most impressionable age, and retards their progress. (b) By lowering the roll numbers it lo'wers the staffing and efficiency of the sch'ools at a time when greatcr efficiency ds sorely needed. (c) It increases unemployment. (d) It is -unn.ecessa.ry as savings could be made in other directions. (2) That the time has arrived whejn all primary sehools should be staffed on the average roll number (40 pupils per teacher of average roll, not average attendance) as is being dona in intermediate sehools. (8) "That the time has arrived when the holidays of all sehools should be of th'e same duration. At present the attendance at primary sehools ds ladversely affected owing to parents keeping children away until the secondary and intermediate sehools re-open. Discussion on Remits In discussing -the first remit a circular asking for support in this aim was received from the ' Auckland Primary Sehools' Committee, which sta.ted that English educational authorities had recently refused to make such a saving, the proposal being con•sidered unfair insofar that it would be penalising children by reason of the temporary financial depression. It ■vyould also disorganise staffing and would result in loss of efficiency in sehools. T|he circular further pointed out that primary sehools ara essentially peoples' sehools and that no advantages should be withdrawn. An important point in the recent declsion of the Government was that with reduced capitation grants, school committees would have to maintain their sehools as previously. The meeting decided to support the agltation with its own remit as above. Motions of Appreciation Appreciation of the services rendered by the Rotorua Dental Clinic Committee to. the public by its eare •of the child's teeth was expressed in a motion moved by Mr. M. B. Hunt, seconded by Mr. Kurney and carried. Motions of thanfcs were also passed to 'Mr. N. M. Keane for the use of his office for committee meetings and to Mrs. B. M. Green for the domation of a flag to the school. At the conclusion of the meeting a short committee meeting was h'eld, Mr. C. A. Clarke being re-elected chairman and Mr. A. T. Butt, secret-ary-treasurer. It was decided that future meetings of the committee would be held on the first Tuesday of each month, commencing at 7.45 p.m.