SECONDARY TEACHERS.

Taranaki Daily News, 19 May 1922, Page 5

SECONDARY TEACHERS.

IMPROVED CONDITIONS. VALUE OF CLASSIFICATION. By Telegraph.—Press Association. Wellington, Last Night. The Hon. C. J. Parr (Minister -for Education), addressing the secondary schools’ conference to-day, said he was glad to have this opportunity of congratulating the secondary school teachers of New Zealand upon the improvement made in their conditions during the past two years. Soon after taking office as Minister he recognised that secondary teachers were hardly de alt with, considering the importance of their work. Their pay and conditions were, in his opinion, inadequate, and the Government had succeeded in passing legislation which now provided for a Dominion service. Formerly there was no classification of secondary teachers and no uniformity with regard to their salaries. Teachers were under some thirty different boards. In some instances he thought boards had acted fairly,- whilst in other cases he hardly thought such was the case. Ho had noticed that two teachers under different boards, but doing the same work, received in salary a difference of a considerable amount, and he felt it to be 3)is duty to try and put such a state of things right by means of classification and a uniform rate of pay. “The result has been. I believe,” he added, “a substantial increase ;n emolument. Ido not say tne classification system is perfect, but T think I can claim your agreement with me that conditions are now much better than they weTe.” Mr. Parr gave high praise to the teachers of secondary schools, and congratulated them on the fine spirit inculcated into the pupils. He spoke of the efforts made to bridge the gap between the elementary and the secondary schools, saying that he thought we did not experiment enough, and that it might be better if they established separate schools. The Minister expressed the opinion that secondary education was not so far advanced in New Zealand as in England. Regarding this point, Mr. F. H. Campbell (Dunedin) thought that data should be supplied, as there was just as good material in New Zealand. If the Minister’s statement were true, there must be something wrong in our system of education. It was a serious statement to make, and he would like to see the matter discussed. Mr. F. Milner said the whole matter would be gone into when the subject of junior high schools was considered. Mr. A. R. Grossweil (Wellington), president, said that the teachers were fully aware of the desirability of experimenting, but it was difficult to do so when reconstruction was taking place. Mr. Tibbs (Auckland) congratulated the Minister on the improvements made.