E.—IB

6

age, I fear that the knowledge retained by them will prove very superficial, because so much is required to be taught by the regulations, and sufficient time cannot be allotted to all the subjects. I regret that an aticieut practice is abandoned of employing the Friday for repetition lessons taken from the week's work. More time should be devoted to composition in some shape or other, for I find very few can write the most ordinary letter, or express themselves well in writing on the simplest topic. The want of a spirit of adventure and observation combined surprises me One of my questions for composition was, " Give a description of the country twenty miles round New Plymouth." In one of the town schools, out of a class of sixteen, eight knew absolutely nothing of the Sugar Loaves; with few exceptions the answers were poor and unsatisfactory. I wish more attention was paid to drawing tradesmen's bills, and writing out receipts in a proper form, and the necessity of dates impressed on the minds of the pupils. Also I wish a simple form of book-keeping formed part of the instruction in arithmetic. During some of my visits to some of the schools I tried to introduce it; but most unintentionally my questions have given offence in some quarters. My questions were, " Make out a debtor and creditor account, showing how much you cost your parents in a year, and the value of what you do for them in return." " Make out an account showing the cost price of a cow, and the cost of her keep for a year, and the profit derived from the sale of butter, &c, during the same period." I wish, further, that more time was allowed for the recitation of poetry and pieces of prose, with the view of teaching deportment and ease in speaking and expression of thought. The contrast between English and French boys in these last-mentioned matters of polish is very striking. Some of your teachers cannot give instruction in music or drawing. I have therefore recommended such teachers to devote the time allotted by the time table to those subjects, to dictation, writing, and arithmetic. The halftime schools, I assume, do some good, but at best they are unsatisfactory. I have endeavoured, by an alteration of the time-table, and the omission of singing and drawing, to give more time to writing, arithmetic, and dictation for the future. Mr. Pope reduced the study of history to a minimum, especially in some of the country schools, where it is only used as a reading lesson once a week. In the town schools, however, I obtained some very good papers. I.am glad to report a visible improvement in the writing since the introduction of Vere Foster's copy-books, though it is still unsatisfactory. The Board must take some decisive steps as to the supply of copy-books. Some parents still supply their children with such miserable rubbish in the form of books and pens that it is impossible for the master to teach them. Other children go without books for days, and even weeks, because the parents will not give them three halfpence or twopence necessary to buy them. I would suggest that the teachers should be forbidden to allow any copy-books to be used in the schools except those mentioned in the regulations ; and when a child wants a book, and does not bring one the next day, or the money to purchase one from the teacher, that the teacher send a note to inform the parents that their child will not be taught writing until he has the necessary articles with him. Only one other course is open, and that is for the Board to charge each child Is. 6d. a quarter, and recover it from the parents, and supply what is wanted on requisition from the master. I have discovered that it will not be advisable in some cases to leave the masters to carry out this last suggestion, for it will either entail a loss on them or cause disputes of a most objectionable nature between teachers and the parents. More than once already I have been called on to settle such disputes. I have some satisfaction in informing the Board that a recent visitor to this place, who, for seven years, has been employed as a teacher under the English Government, states that English is more purely spoken in Taranaki than in similar districts in England. The teachers, almost without exception, have done their best in their lessons on objects, but all want more method in the mode of teaching. It would be far better for them if they would prepare themselves as directed by the regulations, especially in writing out a syllabus. A knowledge of geography of New Zealand and Australia, and in many cases of England and Europe, has been very carefully inculcated. The power of drawing maps is greatly increased, and often very satisfactorily. Everywhere great pains have been taken in teaching arithmetic, especially mental arithmetic. But the work on paper submitted to me showed defects, which I in every case pointed out to the teachers, other than those caused by the novelty of doing work on paper, where errors could not be obliterated by a wet finger. I have paid two surprise visits to all the schools except three, which I could only visit once, as other schools required more attention. I have also examined all the schools except those of Midhurst and Stratford, which have been so recently opened that I could only classify the pupils. Unlooked-for circumstances prevented me completing the examination of the Waitara West School, and also two pupils in the Manutahi School. The registers are better kept, but still there is much room for improvement. No teacher should leave the school-room in the afternoon before he has filled in all the items required by the regulations, nor should he ever forget that every moment spent in school must be accounted for. The time-tables point out how ; and there is no time allowed for taking things easily, nor do they allow of taking part of the time allotted to one study to finish up another. ¥m. Ckompton, The Chairman of the Board of Education. Inspector.

Note. —The following is a summary of the Inspector's record of the total passes in the schools of the Taranaki Education District, 1880: — Presented. Passed. Number on roll, 30th September ... 1,382 Standard 1 174 ... 100 Average attendance, September quarter 1,001 „ 11. ... ... 234 ... 143 Total presented 062 „ 111 150 ... 56 Total passed 377 „ IV 83 ... 62 Total percentage 57 „ V 21 ... 16 The temporary school at the Barracks, Marsland Hill, for the employed immigrants, had 45 pupils on the roll, and an average attendance of 37. It was not examined in the standards.