EDUCATION BOARD

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIII, Issue 289, 26 April 1911, Page 8

EDUCATION BOARD

MONTHLY MEETING. | The monthly meeting of the Taranaki Education Board was held last night. 1 There were present: Messrs Jas. Wade, (chairman), G. Adlam, Jas. Young, W. C. Cargill, H. Trimble, G. Rogers, A. H. Halcombe, W. McL. Kennedy, and A. Morton. TRUANT INSPECTOR'S REPORT. Mr. A. Hooker, Truant Inspector, reported that during the quarter ending March 31st he had issued 65 final notices for non-attendance. He had also called on a large number of parents and explained the amendments to the Act, making attendance compulsory. Six summonses had been issuedj five had been convicted, and one case withdrawn through a mistake on his part. Fines amounted to 13s. A number of summonses for all parts of the district were in course of preparation. He also drew the attention of the Board to the large amount of sickness in several schools in the district as shown on the defaulters' returns, and he suggested that the health officer should be asked to make an inspection of the schools and surToimdings in order to get at the cause. The report was adopted, and it was resolved that the Health Officer be requested to pay a visit to the Cardiff School when he next visits that district. CHAIRMAN'S REPORT. The chairman reported that the following appointments had been made. Mr. F. J. Morgan had been appointed first assistant in the secondary depart- 1 ment of the Stratford D.H.S. Miss J. M. Butler had been appointed assistant' in the secondary department of the Stratford D.H.S., in place of Miss C. Taylor, who was unable to take up the! appointment. Miss M. Fowler had been] appointed temporarily to Uruti, vice Miss Bicheno, who was ill. Mrs. Gibson had been appointed temporary assistant at' Kaimiro, and Mrs. A. Smith at Mahoe. Temporary teachers had been appointed as follows: Pukeho, Mrs. Farnham; Hurford, Miss B. Black; Rowan, Mr. Ritchie. The report was adopted. TECHNICAL EDUCATION. Mr. W. A. Ballantyne, director, reporting on the New Plymouth Technical .School said he had apllied to the Department for a set of Cusson's models, costing £ls, and for an electric motor costing £4O. The application for the former had been granted, but the second application had been held over pending the receipi of particulars of the machine, tools, etc., for which the power was required. This information had now been forwarded to the Department, and the director was awaiting a reply before proceeding further in the matter. Some thirty schools had applied for recognition of agriculture and dairying for the current year, and many of the committees had shown great enthusiasm in the Work, and had collected funds foi the purchase of the necessary equip-, ment for carrying on the scientific side of the work. The teachers' Saturday classes established at New Plymouth and Stratford were proving very successful, and the attendance of teachers, both as regards numbers and regularity, had been so far very satisfactory. Mr. F. J. Heatley, organiser of technical classes, reported at length with regard to the organising work he had done during the past month. Progress in technical education in Stratford and the surrounding district was shown to he good. A wool-classing class would sl'irt at Te Wera on May 5, and such classes wore practically ready at Kohu-j tahi, Tulutuwa and Toko! Dealing with technical education in New Ply-| mouth, Mr. Heatley stated that some, 77 students, of whom 28 were free pupils, had enrolled. The attendance at classes generally was rather disappointing. The lack of enthusiasm would almost indicate that the compulsory attendance clause would be well enforced. The compulsory classes for free pupilsEnglish and arithmetic-—had a roll ofj 19 and 17 respectively, but he thought' that New Plymouth should muster more, than that. The commercial classes—; bookkeeping and shorthand—had 14 and 10 respectively. Typewriting had not' yet properly started, the sanction of the! Board for typewriters being not yet o\y\ tained. The science classes—chemistryi and electricity—were poorly attended, partly because the college was not yet well enough equipped, especially with regard to electrical apparatus, to give much individual practical work. An-I other disappointing feature was the lack' of support given by teachers to such classes as elocution, agriculture, etc., which had been arranged chiefly to suit them. The junior mechanical engineering class had made a fair start, but awaited the arrival of the Cusson's models recently sanctioned. A senior class had been organised and was ready when power could be introduced.

The reports were adopted and the director was empowered to procure a portable forge and anvil and tools neccs-i sary for si class in metal work for the one-day-a-week class for farmers' sons. , ALLEGED OVERCROWDING.

Mr. W. A. Ballantyne, chief inspector, reported with regard to the allegea ovei> crowded state of the Inglewood School that at the end of the December ! quarter, 1910, the roll number of all classes was 307, compared with 292 at the end of March, 1911. The roll number of the infant room was 138 and 119 respectively. The roll number -of the whole school showed a decrease of 15, and the infant room 19. The floor space of all the class rooms was 3225 ft., providing accommodation for 322 pupils, or 26 more than are at present in attendance. As far as could be gathered, the attendance was not likely to in-' crease in the near future to any great' extent. The largest room in the school I was occupied by Standards V. and VIJ with a roll number of only 76, and he'i suggested that these classes exchange' rooms with the infant department. I Standards T. and 11. might be re-organ-1 ised. .He could not see his way clear tol recommend additions.

Mr. Ballantyne also reported that he had visited Pungarehu School in connection with the request of the committee for additions. The room in use was 22ft square, providing accommodation for 48 scholars. The roll number was now 40, three of whom were leaving shortly. He was therefore of opinion that the addition was not required. The chief inspector's reports on both applications were adopted, and it was decided that a copy of the report on the Tnglewood School be forwarded to the committee. ;

NEW SCHOOL AT PUKEATU'IIE. Tlie Chief Inspector reported that he had visited the I'ukearuhe district, with Mr. Plak'oinhe, to enquire into the committee's request for the erection of a new school and residence. They were met by the majority of the settlers, to whom the position was explained. They resolved to ask the Board to favorably consider the question of erecting a school and residence on a site opposite the White Cliffs factory, about a mile and a-half from the present school. Mr. Watkins, who owned the site, was will-1 ing to exchange several acres for the seven-acre site at Waittii if the Board could secure a title to the latter. The site near the factory was most central and best suited to the present needs of the district. The Chief Inspector therefore recommended that steps be taken to acquire the land offered, and, in the event of this being obtained, that application be made to the Department for the erection of a school and residence. A letter was received from Mr. W. J. Freeth, conveying a resolution passed by a meeting of settlers in favor of the above site.

The report was adopted. STRATFORD SCHOOL STAFFING,

In connection with the staffing of the Stratford High School, Mr. Tyrer, the headmaster, wrote, again bringing before the Board, "the injustice of the regulation dealing with the staffing of grade Da, that is, schools with an average of 450 to 500, in which grade unfortunately our primary department has been placed for the last two years. The grade, as you knotv, is the only one in the schedule for which no increase in staff is provided. In every other case additional teachers are allowed for every increase of 50, or less, in average attendance. Our daily attendance now is running from 507 to 512. We have, I know, only to maintain this for a year to secure two additional teachers. But, what of our workin the meantime? Column 6 of the second schedule of regulations for staff and salaries provide for additional assistance for schools of grade 9a. This regulation has not, so far,' been gazetted, but the fact that additional assistance is provided by it is an indication that such assistance was considered necessary, and was left out of other regulations oiily by error. Schools of grade 9a are staffed worse than in any other, higher or lower. There can possibly be no reason for this exception. I find it very difficult to carry on the work of the'school as we are now staffed. We are dealing with over 500 children daily, with the same number of teachers as we had years ago, when our average attendance was just over 400."

The Chief Inspector, in referring to I the matter, expressed the opinion that strong recommendations should he male to the Minister of Education, calling his attention to the anomaly, and requesting that regulations with reference to column 8 of the second schedule, which provided for additional assistance, be at once gazetted. It was resolved, on the motion of Mr. Cargill, seconded by Mr. Kennedy, that the Board draw the attention of the Minister of Education to the anomaly in the schedule to the Education Amendment Act, 1908, whereby the staffing of schools in grades 8c and 9a are on exactly the same footing, and that he be strongly urged to make and gazette regulations as prescribed by clause 2, tion 10, of the Education Act, 1908, whereby the appointment of additional assistants as provided for in the Act may be taken advantage of, and that the Chief Inspector write an accompanying letter embodying Mr. TvTer's statement of the difficulties the staff' of the Stratford primary school are laboring under, and enlarging on the importance of the request to that school. GENERAL.

It was resolved that a circular be forwarded to all head teachers, drawing their attention to clauses 11 and 12 of the Education Act regarding the education of blind, deaf, feeble-jninded and epileptic children. Mr. Rogers reported that he had attended the Ackland school committee, when boundaries for the district were drawn up and a committee elected, of which Mr. F. Mackay was appointed chairman.