EDUCATION BOARD.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LV, Issue 238, 27 February 1913, Page 3

EDUCATION BOARD.

MONTHLY MEETING. Yesterday's meeting of the Taranaki Education Hoard was attended by the chairman (Mr. If. Trimble) and Messrs (i. Adlain,,). Young, A. M. .Bradbury, W. \V. L. Kennedy and A. Morton. WEST END SCHOOL-A DEPUTATION

I A deputation from the West End School Committee, introduced by Mr. Morrison, waited 011 the Board with a request for an enlargement of the school. He had visited the school about a week ago and found most of the class-rooms taxed to their utmost, making the suggested increased accommodation an urgent necessity. In the infant departj raent U!» children were crowded in a '] room 24 by 44 feet. The room was fear- ) fillly hot and there was hardly room for itlv teachers to move about. Mrs. Dowling, the headmistress, also spoke in support of the request, pointing out. that .some of the children had to be taught in the gymnasium, which was not bui't for the purpose of a school. The Chief Inspector was instructed to investigate the application, and if his report is favorable, application will be made to the Department for a grant for additional accommodation.

THE TECHNICAL COLLEGE. ; The Director of the Technical College (MY. A. Gray) reported that (luring the re(:ess his attention had been paid chiefly to the day classes. These classes closed last year with a roll number of 21, and would re-open oil Monday next with a roll of over 50. Of these, sixteen would travel by train, and he was making arrangements for a careful supervision of the train students. This large increase in number would necessitate a larger class-room, and he suggested that' thi; woodwork room should bo turned into a doss-room and that another building be erected for woodwork. There wis no necessity to erect an elaborate building for woodwork, and while this building was under consideration it would perhaps be well to note the advisability of making provision for laundry work. This would obviate the neciftsity of interfering with the cooking numi. Before the winter months some attention would have to be paid to the boys' entrance to the college. In rainy weather the water lodged there, and the approach was rapidly reduced to a quagmire. The report was received, and the Director was requested to furnish particular- to the nature of the extensions re i| uired. TUATXIXG COLLEGES. l'lie Assistant Inspector-General of Schools forwarded copies of Orders-in-Conncil relating to (a) t' lining colleges and (1>) probationers, wli r-'bv in different v.-.'p-s the >upply of • -hers was intended to be increased. T!i- latter clause prce! id<d the appointment • ' 'irobation(in : ex-probationers to | -'.Lions as jilipi! te-icliers.

TIU'AXCY WOT!':. The Truant, Inspector (V A. Hooker) sulmiiiicd a report on tin- nancy work for tlic year ending ' t tin' coarse of which In; stated that In had liad occasion to forward 244 final 11 >tioos for irregular attendance. Tie had also visited a number of parents, and in tlie majority of cases he was satisfied that the children had been absent through sickness or stress of weather. The past, year had been an exceptionally wet one, and without exception every school in llie district had suffered from epidemics of measles, influenza and the like, whien tended to make the attendance very erratic. He had summoned a number of parents for failing to send their children regularly, after due warning, and the lines indicted aggregated C 7. Tn (lie case ,i! private schools lie wonlu like to see it made compulsory for the teachers at such institutions to keep proper registers and send in lists of defaulters monthly, as otherwise it was impossible for him to find out the attendance.- Received.

fiEXERAL. The Inspector-General of Schools forwarded (SO copies of "Meteorology in New Zealand," an extract from the New Zealand Year Book. So many teachers bad made application for information that the Department bad considered it expedient to reprint the extract, with suitable maps, and forward copies to the Hoard for distribution to schools in which they would be most appreciated and prove most valuable. .Mr. Rogers tabled a report on the Bird school grounds in which he recommended that at the expiration of the present

I lease the ground slmuld ho leased for a term of five or »rv« p. v-.-r/a. li slum! i Jbo let on an imjiruw :l I ■;•••■>. ;■> ilmt u i could be cleared ;>i. upr.t jh*i 'ml tlnn become n valuable m i!>.- iiiwn;. • The report was i ': i : ■ i It was decii!. -I iln. .'i, ■ ■■ ' >nl- of district sliouii! rt main iu i...: .same ward* as in 1912. The application for a school at Pitone, which was brought under the notice of the Board by .Mr. Ad'.im. was referred to (lie ■CliicT [inspector to enquire into and report on. The Hoard's (secretary (Mr. Wliitcombe) was appointed auditor of .school committees' accounts for the year ending March 31, at the usual remuneration.

| Acting 011 the recommendation of the Chief Inspector, it was decided to secure the services of Mr. R. McK. Morison as instructor of agriculture to the schools under the Board. Advice was received of the total destruction by fire on Friday evening last of the old school residence at Opunake. Besides the building, the school suffered the loss of all its agricultural tools, dummy rilles. cadet uniforms and other material The secretary of the Kaimata Committee asked tlie Board to extend the infants' room at the local -school, which was overcrowded.—Referred to the Chief Inspector for report. The overseer was instructed to report on the state of the buliding at Okato, and to make minor repairs to the residence at the Central School and at the Kaimiro and Marco school buildings.

j MIXOR MATTERS. The Ng.iere School Committee was granted a subsidy of £3 towards the cost of metal screenings. ' A grant will be made for the, erection of a residence at Ruapuha. The subsidy towards the asphalting of the Bell Block school grounds was increased to £l2 10s, The Hillsborough Committee's request for the erection of a folding partition in the school ill place of the wall between the two rooms was referred to the Chief I Inspector for report. The application from the teacher of the Denbigh school for extra land was referred to Mr. Rogers to enquire into. Mr. W. E. Davies* offer of £3 per annum for the lease of the Puniwhakau school grounds was accepted, the lease to be terminated soon as the school was re-opened. The appointments to the undermention- ' ed school committees were confirmed: Puniho: Mr. Pou Tangahui, in place of the late Mr. Stephenson; Piho: Mr. J. F. Kenwood, in place of Mr. C. V. Ekdalil, resigned; Oaonui: Mr. Pat, Fleming. in place of Mr. ,T. Callajrhnn. resigned. Tlie Board approved of the essay competitions for school children which the Taranaki Provincial Scottish | Society is desirous of holding. J OVERSEER'S REPORT.

In his monthly report, the overseer (Mr. C. IT. Moore) stated that at Tikorangi the old porches had been replaced with new ones running the whole length of the school. Several fittings had been put in and painting and general repairs executed. The boys' shelter shed at the Central School was just about completed. The residence, which was in need of repair, was also being attended to. After some delay, the whole of the sawn timber required for the new school at AYaingongora had arrived on the site, and building operations would be commenced early next week. In addition to tlie work asked for by the committee, lie recommended that some small renewals should be put in hand at Kaimiro. The overseer also reported that the outside of the iBel) Block School was being painted and that the paint work at Stratford and Inglewood schools would also shortly he put in band. Other minor requirements at various schools were also detailed.