SCHOOL INSPECTORS' CONFERENCE.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XLVIII, Issue 81918, 8 February 1907, Page 2

SCHOOL INSPECTORS' CONFERENCE.

IX'i'KKKSTINC ADDKLiSSI-iS. Per I'rcss Association. Wellington. February 7. A dccpblea thing demonstration wa< given before Hi,, Conference „r Schoo. Inspectors and Training Colic..',, piin oipals today. Tin. Chief ll«i,th Of IiCV (l)r Mason) was ipiv.-ciijt/. Audi briclly slattfd 1 , tilr CXerci-c n M.OWII «vr;- i||i,«i. wind, i 1 (. had suggested should 1.,' iiitr,„liHT,l into public scliooU, Ju ins opinion, 111;, injury which rcsii'toil I'roni many kinds of spoil nn,l cxeo,sivc exercises was due in a large measure to Iho fail tint Ihos.. who i.u.i to |,.||(.|| tii,. children diil no! know anything of (lie va'uu of deep l)i-i-ntliiiifr. Answering a (pios lion about th,. danger which soma aulihorilics yonlcnded wont . hand j:n Land villi deep breathing. l)r Ma-011 said tlir only i.l .j-.'tLion lo it. was wli.'ii it wit, carried 'too far. E we-sivo deep breathing would certainly r, -11 i• in liariu. lint if pruprrn rouulateu. ii the ens,, of healthy ohildr.i'. Iho only risk they run \va.,' thai of becoming stronger.

Tudav. Mr I). .1. Cooper, y-nior , .Inspector of New Sou,;h Wales, ad dres.e.l tin- School Inspector.,' Confer , ence. lie said his iuiuicdiate duties had been connected wi Hi the Exhi , liilion, hut he had found time lo study at lirsl iiand the position of education in the colony. lie knew a good ilea of the Xcw'Zealand system, hut wa's nol prepared for the advanced state of thing's he New South WaliM had done, a good deal for national education, but they were stili far from perfection. They had just passed through a period of very severe criticism, ami that criticism had done good. To elfeci improvement had been their chief endeavor. In Christ church he had the good fortune to attend the meeting of teachers, and he had been very much struck by certain points which were very prominent. 110 ,\vas ,|],ii|e 'cominceU' from M']ia|L he heard Unit the educational interests onirusted lo these people were in v.tv sale hand's. To promote the moral and spiritual welfare of the youth of the colony was the goal which all appeared ilo si spire to!. The general syllabus in New South Wales and New Zealand was much the same. The teacher was the most important qiies-' lion to be dealt with; as the teacher was. so the school would be. In N'ew South Wales, the pupil teachers ipics tion had been a burning one for years, and they had now decided that the pupil teacher was no longer to be rej cognised. (Hoar, hear). Speaking of summer schools in New South Wales, he said they were convinced that the 'teachers most deserving ot help were the country school teachers.' l!y far the large proportion of Now South Wale's schools were situated in the country, and presided over by one teacher. Accordingly, it had been arranged .'that school camps for teachers should be held at convenient centres, where (hey would be addressed by inspectors 'on various subjects. This haw been productive of great flood. Summer schools had been held in Sydney. Jiy far the greatest ell'orts had be,«ni made, however, with their agricultural colleges., of which (hey were very proud. Large numbers of teachers were sent 'there at periods for instruction, and this also had been productive of great good. In order lo aci|iiaint city hoys with country life, they had school camps established in Hunter llivoi' country] ,11 wiv.v generally arranged that they should eami) on n model farm, the idea being to induce the boys to go out and settle in the country. (Applause). The Conference expressed cordial thanks lo .Mr Cooper for his address.

A RADICAL FUOPOSA.L. Wellington, February 7. The question of grading school children according to their degree of mental alerlness, was brought before the School Inspectors' Conference to-day by Mr K. E. Purdie, of Auckland, who moved that all pupils m classes above Standard :1 should be taught in the same school. Explaining his proposals, he said that in Auckland city and suburbs, where there were nineteen schools, ho wouhl have all the pupils of Standards 1, a and (1 collected respectively into three central schools. This would afford greater facilities for teaching, and lessen the cost. for example, if Standard (i pupils were found t? number 2iII), they could be divided into four classes of tlfly each, and they could then be graded to'a nicety. I'nder the present system, teachers never could do justice to the bright or to the dull pupils. The project was supported by Messrs Mulgan (Canterbury) ami Harkness (Nelson) and carried by a large majority. The motion has the e fleet of a recommendation to the Education Department.