ALLOWANCES TO SCHOOL COMMITTEES.

Taranaki Daily News, 28 July 1917, Page 4

ALLOWANCES TO SCHOOL COMMITTEES.

Members of school committees have, as n. rule, a very difficult task to make the capitation allowance meet the numerous calls which have to be attended to out of the funds provided by the Government scale. In ordinary times the position was frequently acute, and though those committees who take a lovely interest in the duties falling to their lot make praiseworthy efforts to secure additional money by gifta, entertainments and other means, much workthat would he beneficial to the schools and the scholars has to be left undone for want of sufficient funds, During the war there has been a marked increase in the price of labor and materials so that the position has become even more difficult than formerly. Last week a deputation, representing school committees in nearly every part of the Dominion, waited on the Minister and urged that the Government \ grant to boards' for incidental expenses should be increased. The main argument used in support of the request was that, owing to the increase in the cost of labor and materials, committees could not non' manage to carry on with ipre-war allowances. The duties which these committees arc called upon to carry out necessitate the employment of a caretaker for the daily cleaning, dusting, lire-lighting, etc., and they have to provide for the heating, lighting, water service, sanitary service; keeping in repair fences, hedges, gates, path 9; clearing of gorse, broom, I>rier, and all noxious weeds; minor repairs to buildings, furniture, fixtures, etc.; the cost of all stationery, such as ink, pens, slates, slate-pencils, erasers, chalk, dusters. Besides this is the care of the ground, the erection of shelter «heds, gymnasiums and other conveniences the cost of which is generally subsidised by the Boards. In every school (here is always some want to be met, and though the Boards may .be sympathetic they have to carefully conserve their funds for objects other than those for which BChool committees' allowances arc intended. It is not difficult to see

that committees had a strong case to place before the Minister, but they got very little, if any satisfaction for tfceir pains. It is true the Minister promised to lay the request before Cabinet, but the fact that some of the boards have considerable unexpended balances ap-

pears to obsess him, while It affords a convenient though unjustifiable excuse for refraining from relieving the financial starvation of the committees, who are in no way to blame for the unsatisfactory state of the boards' finances. The present allowances to committees are based on average attendances of the scholars, the scale being arranged under five heads: A school with an average up to 40 receives ten shillings a fcead ■ from 21 to 3t3 £lO plus eight shillings per head over 20; from 36 to 120 £l6 with five shillings a head over 35; from 121 to 400 £3B with rour shillings a head, over 120; over £4OO £©4 with three shillings per child over 400. Some boards are giving a twenty per cent, bonus during the >war, while others make liberal allowances. It has been suggested that increases ranging from £1 10s to £6 13s per school should be mads to committees, but to be of real service the increases should be more

liberal than that. Committees may be relied upon to raise funds for prizes, picnics, Rchool bands, and many other matters, but that, is a. very strong reason why they should be supplied by the Government with adequato grants for those expenses which are rightly chargeable to capitation allowances. We recognise that the cost of education has gone up by leaps and bounds, but it is the most important of all the work of the State for the future of the Dominion depends on the efficiency of its educational system. While justifying lie Minister's very proper objection to education boards' unsatisfactory flnaniaai methods cut evidenced J>£ large credit

balances—the Otago board has over £IO,OOO to its credit on December 31, 1916—that is no reason why committees should <be penalised. School committees should weild the greatest power in the State by reason of the fact that they represent nearly the whole of the parents who form a sufficiently strong section of the community to influence the election of members ; of Parliament. At best the committees have a thankless task and one which involves constant personal contributions. Possibly no satisfactory arrangement will be arrived at until the entire system of administration is altered so that those who do the work ;vi 11 be supplied with a sufficiency oi funds. There is ample scope for a sweeping reform in this direction.