GRADUATES VERSUS UNDERGRADUATES.

Temuka Leader, Issue 1194, 21 June 1884, Page 2

GRADUATES VERSUS UNDERGRADUATES.

TO THE EDITOR. Sir, —Our Board of Bdncation has, perhaps, brought itself into desirable notoriety on the District High School business, and, coatrary to the previous experience of the colony, insists on placing graduates over thess school* in preference to our well-tried teachers, who, wisely, have not troubled their head* about the high-toned affix to their names, hut have thrown all their energies into the work of intmcting the young on sound principles, and hare thus gained a high figure after their more humble Cor D certificate. Now, sir, I do not wish to underrate a University degree, but from the Inspector’* Reports just to hand I see that the usual results repeat themselves, and those schools under teachers holdihg C and D certificates once more come to the fore. In the Otago Education District- there are four of these District High Schools and the only one receiving an unfavorable report is that of Oamaru, which for some time has had a Master of Arta for its rector ; two of the others are controlled by undergraduates. In his report ont his school, Mr Petrie says ; “ In Latin the translation of the higher class was weak, and the questions in parsing, syntax and accidence were on the whole badly answered. In French the upper class translated with accuracy and fair readiness, but there was considerable weakness in the knowledge of grammar, and in the translation of English into French ; in the lower class two showed good knowledge of the work done, but on the whole the class made a poor appearance. Only one of the pupils passed a satisfactory examination in geometry. In algebra one gained half marks, and the rest knew nothing about what had been taught.” The reports for the other schools were very satistactory and the work was of a far more advanced character. I might add that the experiences of other districts i* also in favor of the undergraduate, who, if he hold a 0 or D certificate, is surely able to compass all the work required from a District High School. The Board’s fad is to me quite incomprehensible, and I think that its members may well pause before they deprive some r of our best teachers of their livings and at the same time time do injury to ths causa of education. Whether as inspectors or teachers the undergraduate proves himself generally the best man, and the claims of our present New Zealand teachers, who have worked so hard to advance our educational scheme, should not be set aside because they lack a degree which hitherto has failed to make them better teachers, and their places be filled by importations from other colonies where these degrees are more easily obtained than in New Zealand.—l am, etc., ■.

Observer.