THE Wairarapa Age MORNING DAILY TUESDAY, JULY 14, 1908. AN UNFAIR SYSTEM.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXI, Issue 9138, 14 July 1908, Page 4

THE Wairarapa Age MORNING DAILY TUESDAY, JULY 14, 1908. AN UNFAIR SYSTEM.

A matter that might be taken up by the Education Conference, which it is proposed to hold in Masterton in the rear future, is one that was referred by the Headmaster of the District High School, Mr w. H. Jackson, in his monthly report to the Masterton School Committee on Thursday evening last. The "question we refer to is that of the Education Board being under the necessity of using r.s a basis for various important purposes the average attendance of scholars at school. The general pub- , lie are not all aware, perhaps, that in those schools —o* necessity small 'ones—where half the full roll number of children do not attend on any day, that day's attendance, is not allowed to count against the school in computing the average attendance for the year, or in other words, all those days where the attendance falls below half, are not counted at all as school days. These are called "excepted" days. It will be seen on further explanation that in small schools the teachers are by this rule placed in a far better position than those in the larger institutions. Where there are, say, twenty to

thirty pupils attending a country school, where scholars come some distance, a very wet day would easily account for ten or fifteen absentees; in fact, we are assured, that it is recognised thing in small schools that on very boisterous days no school will be held. Such a thing is, of course, almost impossible in large schools where access to the school is easier and roads are better. Where the hardships to the large schools comes in is in this, that the salaries of teachers are based on the averaee attendance, j and wet clays have a marked effect on the attendance. To illustrate by

figures the effect of the present basis of capitation —the Masterton School has a roll number of 876 scholars, ' and last year the average attendance was 779. This means that the teaching staff were paid for the tuition of 779 pupils, while actually 876 were taught. This is not the only aspect of the question. The staffing of the school is a'.so based on the average attendance, and likewise the amounts granted to School Committees for maintenance purposes, etc. Then, the Education Hoards themselves are similarly handicapped, their grants being computed on the average attendance of the schools uud'T their jurisdiction, and of course large schools predominate. Obviously the best course which 1 presents itself to remedy this defective method of calculation is to compute the various grants on the roll number. The only likely difficulty is that the attendance roll might be "stuffed" by keeping on it the names of scholars, who have left the school, but this could be checked to a great extent by the heads of schools with low per centages of attendance being required to account for the same by special report. For instance, where a city or town school returned less than, say, 85 per cent, of an average attendance and a country school less than 80 per cent, this should be the subject of a special explanation. Effective inspection generally would assist the checking of attendances, and make the syst.m a workable one. It is certainly tim 3 some alteration was made in the present mode of computing grants ai d salaries, as teachers and committees are being deprived of their just dues, and hardship is inflicted all round. We commend the matter to the con-

sideration of those who are moving for the education conference at Masterton.