MINISTER COULD SPEND EIGHT MILLIONS

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 373, 6 June 1928, Page 1

MINISTER COULD SPEND EIGHT MILLIONS

AGAINST ORNATE SCHOOLS LARGE FAMILIES AND VITAMINS Press Association WELLINGTON, To-day. The Council of Education met today. The Minister of Education, the Hon. R. A. Wright, in. opening his address, referred to- the -incessant demand for money. If Parliament voted him eight millions instead of four he could spend it wel-l, but there was no hope of that. -The department had concentrated on rebuilding, but this was a long and costly work. The trouble was that, the boards wanted ornate and costly buildings as a credit to the town, but that was not his idea. He was also opposed to the desire for new schools to become the centre of education. He did not care where the children went, as long as they were educated. ,

HALF A MILLION INSUFFICIENT Half a million annually, he continued, was being spent on buildings, but this was not sufficient to overtake the arrears of work. Very properly there had then been an outcry against large classes, and two teachers taking classes in one room. The only remedy was more buildings. His object was to have children educated under the best poasibl-e conditions.

POSITION OF MARRIED TEACHERS Touching- •on the employment of married tvomen teachers, the Minister said the position would have to be handled carefully, so as to cause no injustice. Mr. Wright said h© could not see the use of making home science a compulsory subject for junior free places. NO MONEY FOR FRILLS

What was the use of making chemists of children? the Minister asked. It was all right to teach them plain cooking, but for frills they had no money, and ta teach them about value of foods seemed to be going too far. Seventy-five per cent, of girls learning home science would marry men earning five pounds weekly or less, and with a large family would not worry about the relative vitamin value of peas and beans.