EDUCATION BOARD.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XXXIII, Issue 80, 25 April 1901, Page 2

EDUCATION BOARD.

The Board met on Wednesday Present- Mr. McAllum (chairman), Mies Hey wor d, Messrs Hignett, Faull. Kennedy, Mackay, Wade, Allswprtb, and Adlam.

The architect reported that plans] had been prepared for a new school ati Durham road, and for altering the present school to a residence. The chimneys bad been inspected at Upper Kent road and Ngaire. The cost of ventilators for the Toko school would i be about £5.

Mr. Fau'l, speaking on the queati n of repairs, etc., si id the Board had been in the habit of voting sums away for seemingly necessary works, and then when really pressing works were required tbey had had to be shelved for want of funds. He also thought that from what he could learn the Board would have to consider the question of moving either the TJprer Kent road scho 'l or the Albert iwd s ho 1 neirer to the Mountain Reserve.

Mr. Mackay said be understood that the new Committee at Toko was likely to approach the Board to have the school moved.

The Chairman's action in granting leave of absence to Mrs. Bowling, and appointing Miss B. Miller cadet at No folk roid, Miss Jordan temporary assis'ant at West Infants' for one week, and Mr. J. Brownlee pupil teacher at Dudley road, was confirmed. Re painting the Norfolk road school, the Ingleweod Committee was referred to its letter of 31st January, and the Board will expect the CommitUe to carry out its promises. Plate racks (applied for by the Inglewood tsacher) are not provided by the Board. A grant of £ for £, up to £l2 lQs, wag made for a shelter shed at West Infants' school.

A letter was read from the New Plymouth School Committee re sewiag committea'a repoit. Mr, Fanll suggested that if the Board could appoint some one to f.o round and point out defects in the sewing, it wquH atsiufc teachers and lessen the work of tha txaminiug c-m „ i mittee, Alexander Patterson. 1

Mr. Allsworth asked if Mr. Faull was in favour of applying tLi>i system to all the schools in Taranaki. Mr. Faull: Yes. Mr. Allsworth : Wei', I'm not.

Mr. Fflull said he wes afraid the finances would cot admit of such a propesition, although ha thought it would be workable.

Mr. Hignett said several teachers fyad pomphifled to him that they were handicapped by the manner in which sewing was examined. In one case hp knew of a teacher having to put in 12 and 13 hours a week ex'ra work in preparing tewing for cbiidron. Mr. Wade thought a small paid sewing committee of say three ladies would be more satisfactory, and it would be impog'ible iq appoint (:ne competent person to go ronnd the district. In his opinion the present system of conducting the sawing examination met with general favour, though he agreed with the sewing committee's suggestions given in its report. I Mr. Allsworth said he had at the last meeting voted to f xpre3B confidence in the sewing committee. But he would not support adopting tha committee's suggestions. Sewing was not a p»s» subject, The sewing committee judged between school and schaol, and if the school committees wanted to ascertain individual merit in sewing they should appoint their own examiners. Hp could not agree with Mr. Fault's suggestion of one paid s&wing examiner for the whole district, After some further disowsion the letter was acknowledged. Mifs M. M. Moore's resignation r.s teacher of the Albert Road Fchool was accepted. A letter of sympathy wi h Miss Moore will ba sent, and stops taken to fill the vacancy. Oonsideration of the proposed ha'ftime school at Matau was deferred. The Mangorei Committee wrote in reference to the grounds.—Acknowledged. The Crown Lands office wro'e in reference to a school reserve on section 7, block 4, Ngatimaru. The let'er was referred to the School Commissioners. fhe Harbour Board wro l e string! that the question of a site for the Education offices had be>n referred to th committee.

A letter from Mr Burns, in reference to music in schools was read, he is to be informed that the Boaid Ins

no money to spond for music. The Finance Committee reported that they agreed with the recommendation of t.fop Sub-G»irimittro (frj>psvs Mnckay and Kennedy) on the application of Mr Tyrcr for a "bonus to th« teachers on Recount rf extra work at the S'aatfo d District Hish Snhool. namely, tlmt Mr Tyrerbe pnid a bin in of £ls, Mr Boyle ;£ls,and M ; rs Campbell .£lO. They had gone fu'ly iri'o the report of the Sub Committee as to f he Inspector-General's circular relating to District High School. This report a'ated that the Committed beine of opini.m that bonns.es should paid to giving secondary instruction on soma definite sohemp, they recommended-1. Thit application be made to the Department for the extrs grants specified in the I> spectorGoneral's circular to be districted as salaries to the secondary school teachers or in the salaries o,f an thp Board may determine. This on present numbers would sjive £6O, but as a number of free pupils I may be expected to attend, the amount may be considerably increased. 2. That ha'f (estimated at ,£4O) the capitation for increased al'ow»no« b« distributed among the teachers piving secondary instruction, and tlio 'emainder used from time to time in purohai-ing scieooa apparatus, becks, etc, 3, That the

payments to teachers be quarterly an< in equal piv.p>! tioos to each secondar; teacher, 4. That all the teachers ex cept Miss Campbell (.£IOO a yenr) bi paid according to scalo with bonuses a abovu. 5. That to avoid arrears o scholarship payment", tho scholarshi| may be paid cut of the general accoun and refunded when the grant is re ceived. 6, That fees be deductei from echolavship money -when re mitted to the Stratford Committee 7. That the Stratford Committal when forwarding quarterly returns re mit the fees received instead of keeping same in hand. 8, That the head master' forward a return in tl.e form drawß out by the committee. 9. Thai free tuition fc-r pupils who have passuc S andard VL BDd qre attending no Uss than three secondary clashes ii addition to English and Arithmetic, bi granted on the senior sciio'arshi] i xamination and except when not ii accord with the Inspector-General'i circular, the Board's scholarship regula tiom shall apply to those pupila re ceiving free tuition ; exceptional casei to be dealt with by the Board. The Committee considered some sucl plan would give uniformity and i general standard of attainments fo: free tuition. No age qualifications wouli apply to free pupils, the continuation o whose scholarships would depend oi the headmaster's reports. The Is epector will thus be able to recommem Ur free tuition any premising pupil ii a country school who has passed Stan dard VI., but who owing to the schoo being examined early in the year ma; lose the opportunity if required to wai for the school examination at the em 1 f the year. It does not debar a com mittee from making a recommendation but ensures that the Inspector shal have an opportunity of looking up pupil's record in ihe examinatioi schedules and reporting thereon to tbi Board. The Finance Committee witl the above recommendations except Nc 2 relating to increased statutory capita tion, which, although the sub-committa claim is due to the increased attend unca caused by secondary pupils, is par tially ellocitsd alrsady owing to tb< school beiug staffed as a primary s.ihoo on the gross attendance. They suggeitsd that the Beard may from time to time devofa such sums as it maj ileem fit for purchasing science appira tun, books, etc, having a direct bearing oa secondary work in the school. Tho provision of additional accommodation for Durham Road being of an urgent charac'er, the Architect had been instrpcted to prepare plans, and as ono of the schools in the newly 3tttled districts could not be built for some time, it was proposed to devote bho funds allocated for that school to tho mora urgent requirements of Durham itoad, in the meantime an endeavour to be made to obtain special jr*nt from the Department for the Durham Road school, under the head af "Newly Settled Districts." The committee also recommended the appointment of Mr. J. T. Campbell as jntsider examiner, and Mr. Chas. MacKay, 8.A., L.L.8., as examiner for the scholarships. Mr. Spencer would re:aia the papers on school management. Fhey recommended that a committee be Bet up to inquire into the nspeetorial staff with a view of affordng assistance to the Insppcfor. In real ion to the application from theStrat ord Committee for increased capitation ;rant, <h-f Financn Committee ciuM me their way to depart from tha ui i orm fcale of capitation in operation. Ch« Stra'ford CpjOftEftittpe already re:eived 44 Ifts par annum on acconnt if High School pupils.

It was recommended that consider?tiGu of the Departmental circular re free pupita attending High Schools in Taranaki be referred to the committee with power to confer with the High School Board of Governors, They, urge i that step? should be taken to get a site on Poverty Flat for a Manual and Techuic*l School.

Referring to the moneys received for secondary education at the S'ratford District High School, Mr. explained the arrangements made for staffing and payment of teasers, and sta'el that the Stratford Committee recommanded that the school should be staffed on its gross attendance, by which the teachers would receive bonuses on work done in secondary education.

Considerable discussion took place on the Cosom'ttoe's wommendation with regard to Durham Road School during which severnl members expressed an opinion that, it was to anyc*rs funds, and that the Government should be pressed to make a special grant for this school on account of its being in an outlying dis fciict.

Th« Committee's report wax adip'ed Iwi h tbat.ks 'o the member*; it be'ng understood that the Minister fhould lue pressed ' o m.ko a special grant, i !fbe yeprvt qf Messrs Maobay and Kennedy r e*immendin<» tbat the enl'rgement o f Salisbury Rand School b ; hell ovfr, and that the ceiling should be raised to admit of batter * entilation, was adopted. It hm decided to call for fresh tenders for the erection <f a school at Pohukur.i. Mr Allsworth dissented.

Accounts amounting to 41862 Is 8d wera pa- §ed.

Mr Kennedy's r.otico of motion that the Board subsidise Comrrii' te's up t"> £3 10s to pu f . ran?e-i into toichers' rei'denc s and that in future all residences built be provided with ranges, the to'al amount nut to exceed .£25, whs fully discussed and evontuully lost. Mr H'gnett gave notice to move at m-xt meeting, that strong representation be made thi> Department of the total inadequacy of the an ml building grant to mfet the urgent requirements of the Taranaki district; that the Secretary be in*truct"d to prepare a statement showing the urgent neads of the, district wMi respect to (a) new schools; (b) ext. niiors a"d of existing bu'Li- , ings; (<f) new ra-.idences for teachers; (d) p inting, repairs, e f c.; and that the s'a eir.fflt be f rwrded to the Eduoatiin Dep.-yrnaent, with a pressing request For such additional funds as may be e ua'dfTi necessary by the Board in q.'der to (-fflci( n f ly cury out existing requlrem' nts. 'I he Boa'd adjourned.