STRATFORD SCHOOL COMMITTEE

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVI, Issue 203, 25 February 1914, Page 3

STRATFORD SCHOOL COMMITTEE

CHAIRMAN'S REPORT. At the School Committee meeting last night, the headmaster stated, inter alia, that when the school closed at the end of last year there were on the register the names of 5U3 children in the primary department and 112 in the secondary department, a total of 70."). Of these 58 and 2") respectively had left and 50 and 50 had been admitted, so that at present there were 585 and 143, i.e., T2S children attending school, Of pupils, however. 114 do' not belonrr to Stratford. They either come in daily by train or board in the town for school purposes. It was proposed to hold the school sports on Thursday, March 5. An open championship race of 220 yds,

: - which all Taranaki secondary school boys may compete, is included in the programme. For this race, Mr J. B. lline, M.P.. has kindly provided the prize—a gold medal suitably inscribed. The published results of the annual examinations show that the Stratford pupils did good work last year. They succeeded in winning, in addition to a number of the Board's scholarships, a national, a Bayly Memorial, and a Taranaki scholarship, and the marks gained, as published, in connection with the Hoard's senior scholarships, show the pupils to have achieved a very satisfactory standard of proficiency. The report continued: -Of the annual examinations, that set for senior free nlaces is based on the work that ought to be done in a .secondary school in a course of two years' work. I have made, it a rule that all pupils who liavc been that time in this school shall sit for this examination, and last year, of those that sat 00 per cent, -isscd. This result is very gratifying, as it proves that the general standard of the school's work is efficient. Senior free places were gained by 4S of our pupils.

"The matriculation examination is based on the work that should be clone in a secondary school in a course of four years' work. Pupils who pass this examination, taking Latin as a subject, pass also the required standard for solicitor's general knowledge, and those who take another language in addition to Latin, mss also what is called the medical preliminary. Of those of our pupils who passed these examinations this year, six, all of whom are under l(i years of.age, had been but three years doing secondary work. '

The Education Board recently appoiutI'll special instructors in engineering, commercial work, anil a«ric*ultiir-j. The gentlemen appointed are to assist in the special work of our science classes, which must he !>really benefited therein-. Mr. Kirkpatrick. the engineer, will he in Stratford each Monday, and Mr. Dull' the commercial instructor. imicli Wednesday. Other dates will he fixed later. Both the gentlemen named are highly i|iialified in their respective subjects, and their assistance must materially aid the school's progress. ".Mr Kirkpatrick will, ii sufficient inducement oilers, open a technical class in Stratford on Monday evening-, taking machine-drawing, niechaniee-1 or elecli'ical engineering.

"A new syllabus of selioo' work cam« into ioivi! in Now Xealiiml primary schools at Hie heffimiiiitr of this year. Tu connection with it a conference of I'aranaki teachers and inspectors was held in New Plymouth on Saturday last, and it was then agreed that 110 drastic changes would at onw he insisted on. Children are to use during til'.' year the books already in their possession. These school hooks are a continual source of worrv to teachers and of expense to parents, wid it seems a pity that some of them —arithmetic, for instance—arc not published by the liovcniincnt in the Education Journal's oil ice. in Wellington."