The Daily News THURSDAY, JANUARY 10. EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTE CONFERENCE.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XLVIII, Issue 81916, 10 January 1907, Page 2

The Daily News THURSDAY, JANUARY 10. EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTE CONFERENCE.

The Educational Institute which has recently conferred at Uiristcliureh passed some very important resolutions. Many of the resolutions are old friends, and it is to he supposed that on the principal of "constant dgippiljg wears awav stones" that they in time have' the effect desired oa the Government. For the nationalisation of the system of primary education it is suggested that school inspectors shall he under the direct control of the Education Department. This of course means the lessoning of control by the Education Boards, and is an acknowledgment that the sys tern of examination throughout the colony should be uniform and incapable of variation by the vagaries of Education Boards or individuals. The proposed centralisation of the inspectorate would mean that any inspector might be sent by the same power to any district, that all inspectors and all" scholars had equal facilities, and that the administration of this branch would be cheapened, better concentrated and more clfectivc.

Of great importance to children attending remote schools that have, to be reached by various methods of conveyance, is the resolution which proposes to ask the Minister of Kducation to make the facilities more clastic. The city child is the child who has absolutely free education. llis country cousin is not always so fortunate, although the whole of the primary education of the country is usually believed to be "free, secular and compulsory." Many parents have to keep a number of horses exclusively for school work. This of course is a tax and at present appears unavoidable.. Tile question of driven conveyances supplied by the Government in the districts not served by the railways is one that must in fairness occupy Parliament as soon as possible. As it is and with many disadvantages, the children of the country show a very creditable progress and a great desire to take advantage of the education provided.

The resolution of ilio Conference making it clear that inspectors do not at present examine the nature of the teaching, but satisfy therasi'lvcs merely of the amount of parrot knowledge tiu- pupiis have attained, should have tile effect of doing away with the machine-made "pass" pupil. It is possible for a child who has successfully got through all the standards to be a very dull person at the finish. Inspectors, under the present system, have little knowledge of the individual capabilities of either the teachers or the taught. Of still greater imporuaii;2C is the resolution that the Institute is strongly in favour of a colonial system of toucher-promotion. Promotion is at present a matter of opportunity, an opportunity that varies with the particular Board under which the teacher happens to work. It is feasible that a teacher at Invercargill who has the qualification of a teacher in Auckland and who docs the same quality of work should have equal advantages and pay despite any Board whatever. Kqual opportunity to all teachers in the colony is desirable because such a system is the only fair one ami would do away with the heart-lmrning and bitterness which is reasonably the outcome of the present irolair system of promotion.

A very old friend conies up in the Institute's resolution relating to the abolition of the system of varying a, teacher's salary according to the avei'-j a;jc attendance. This is, as we have, so often said before, gambling, pure ami siujple. If the Government would undertake to yet all the. children who were not ill to all the schools no matter what the state of the roads, rivers, etc.. happened to be the average attendance would not appreciably vary except by removals, epidemics or other unavoidable causes. But ai. present remotely situated teachers lire dependent for the size of their sak'O <>>-' the weather, the lack- of facilities to reach the schools, ami by a hundreu and one causes that effect the nl feudaiit';' of tlio children. The paying of salaries' by average is a ganib!.' pure anil and should have been abolished long ago. One hundred and fen pounds a ye.tr is not

■a large salary and the Institute have resohed to ask I hat no sole teacher shall earn less than this. In most walks of life the person who lias put in the study and hard work necessary to qualify for a sole teachersliip, would earn considerable more than that. It may be presumed that the man or woman who has (he necessary irrliHiV to become a sole teacher does so because he or she is dow.ted to the teaching for the sake of a profession which is only fascinating to those fitted to it. it is a shanielhat born teachers should be penalised for their devotion.

Another old story about which the Teachers' ('ouferonce.had a resolution is tic residence business. Hundreds of teachers in New Zealand have to take very "pot-luck." Many of the dwellings ot married teachers are beneath contempt, and the teachers put up with conditions that arc a disgrace to the country. ,ij. is a young country and no one can expect to have all the conveniences of a palace, but the point is that the Government has .tens of thousands of borrowed money i"o spend on magnificent adminisl rath !'. buildings in the cities while many t,'.''fliers have to g„ to bed with a raisct.' umbrella to keep Hie rain oil' them. .j"ho new railway station at .Dunr-din mj<v M t furnish a millionaire with a, palace, ;i,„d the men) a plan for spendins.' -, ercat *„.'„,. 'l'OUSauds Of niO„ey ,„',' ~ I rust otbee at, Wellineton Several other improvement,, of city Covvrnincnt buildings are lo be ell'cc-IH it gve,a cost. Let the teachers e/o 'to the cities and gay.,. ilt t | u , Government buildings where every favoured servant has apparentlv | m it "ii acre ot space to ,i„ | lis „.,„.,: in _

«'«■««■ struck will, „„. r , i1(i ,.„,,, !-n:l- an.l moderate,,. „f [1,,. teachers id -Ni'w Zealand. \\i,ii,. ii„. (:, )V1 ,,. n . "»'i.l has done a v ,n- .;,•,,,[ deal !',„■ ;il«™l'«» ;.!«! Whin- the SVslc,,, „„ " Uu ' v MTt.-:,!,, ili,. i,, :1( .|„.,. ils ~,, N 11 >' "ix-nn,,-,!,.,,,! ,„.,•<„„. |, W<Ml |,. M „. don if I!,, (cad,.rs went out on sirik.. soim- <,i these i„.i, r i, t Jllur , nil „. s Tll ;, v «!"'«>!- tovn. ~ anion .„„, ;m , n< • «'W«' .t<> l;nn» a case 1,,f,„,. t | U! A| ._ )>ilmli«ii (milt. Xj„. v j,. IVL . t|a , ~,,,_ invnoiiaj institute ami thcv pass vch","t!,";"; ""me iii .these revolutions for years'. \ -i Imp., the (i0vcr,,,,,,;;;., 11U1 / j lml tliu resolutions this year. V,..