MASTERTON DISTRICT HIGH SCHOOL.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXII, Issue 10220, 22 April 1911, Page 7

MASTERTON DISTRICT HIGH SCHOOL.

ANNUAL REPORT.

Following is the Mastei'ton District High School Committee's annual report to be presented at the householders' meeting on Monday evening next:—

Your Committee has very great pleasure in being able to.report that during the year just passed your school, under the very capable management of Mr W. H. Jackson (the Headmaster) and liis able staff, has fully maintained the very high state of efficiency of past years. At the recent examinations every pupil presented by Masterton School gained a pass. Five pupils passed the Matriculation examination, and also gained a pass in Solicitors' General Knowledge, and live pupils passed the Junior Civil Service Examination and qualified for Senior Board Scholarships, two of the candidates being awarded scholarships of the maximum value of £4O a year each. The attendance for the past year lias been remarkably good. With an average roll of 861, there has been an average percentage of 93. On the Ist of January last the new School Attendance Act came into force, and under that all children are required to attend: school every time the school is open. The alteration is of very great benefit to school children in general, and the result of \it is showing by the attendance for the past quarter, which reached the average of 96. Last year your committee' reported that the new Rural Course of Instruction for pupils in the Secondary Department had been commenced. This course has now been in operation for a year, and is being taken by 58 | pupils out of the 67 on the Secondary j roll, the remaining 9 forming the I Matriculation and Junior Civil Serv-' ice class. This new Rural Course appears to be of very great value, and the following table shows the various subjects and the number of children taking them : Agriculture, Botany, and; the Chemistry of Every-day Life, 28 boys, 31 boys; Physic of Agriculture, 26 boys; Dressmaking, Domestic Economy, Physiology, Hygiene, 31 girls; Applied drawing and woodwork, 27 .boys. Various causes have operated to delay the official opening of the Museum and Miniature Rifle Range, but all difficulties have been overcome and arrangements are now being made to hold the official opening on Thursday, the 4th of May, when it is hoped that the Minister of Education and; Defence will be present. The Museum has been fitted up with the necessary glass cases for the proper display of the exhibits, all of which have been arranged and labelled, and altogether make a very interesting display; while the Rifle Range has been described by a competent authority as perhaps the most complete and well finished Rifle Range in the Dominion.

During the year the footpaths and surroundings of the side school have 'been graded and asphalted, and at the main school the asphalted area has 'been considerably extended. This will add much to the comfort of the children in wet weather. As funds permit, your Committe intends to continue the work until the main school playground is also asphalted. The adjuncts to your school are now fairly complete, comprising as they do, school gardens, the Museum, the Eifle Range, and the Wood-work room, but they leave a long-felt and urgent want, and that is an Assembly Room. At present the school cannot be assembled as a whole except in the open air, and occasions arise not infrequently when it is most desirable to adress all the children at

once. Your Committee lias represented very frequently to both the Board j and the Department the urgent need of an Assembly Room, but it has been put off on the plea of want of money. Your Committee intends to I continue pressing for this very nee- j essary room which is now added to all I modern school buildings. Xiast year the Keystone Picture Company gave an, entertainment in the Town Hall in aid.of the school funds, which resulted in the sum of | £34 'being available, and this was expended in the purchase of stereoscopes and views. This year the Keystone Company again gave a picture show, which, with subsidy, will produce about £7O for the purchase of microscopes and other scientific instruments. Your Committee is very much indebted to Mr J. C. Ewing-

ton, who very kindly lent his traction engine to provide power for the picture show, and also to the Thomp-son-Payne Picture Company of this town, who not only lent the cable and other electrical appliances, but very generously paid freight on these things to and from Napier. duo to the kindly help of these "gentlemen, and others who assisted, that the entertainment proved so successful.

Your Committee wishes again to place oa record its very high appreciation of the generous and wholehearted support that is given to your school by the Trust Lands Trustees. The results attained by the school show that you are singularly favoured in having very competent Headmaster, and a very capable staff, but the teachers with all tlieir skill and ability would be unable to at- ■ tain their very high standard of efficiency were it not fox* the appliances and conveniences . that the Trust Lands Trustees so generously enable j your Committee to provide. Your hearty thanks, as well as those of the Committee, are due to the Trust Lands Trustees. In August last the Rev. C. Porter resigned liis seat on the Committee, and Mr J. L. Hughes was appointed to the vacancy. Your Committee has held 13 meetings, at whicb the attendance has been : Mr Brown 13, Mr Heridry 11, (Mr Thompson 11, Mi- Chapman 10, iMr Townsend 10, Mi* Heyhoe 8, Mr Waddington 7, Mr Hughes 7, Mr Perry 6, Rev. Porter 1.