E.—9

15

"object-lessons" of a very real kind are given to the youngest pupils. This school is the only secondary school in New Zealand in which boys and girls are taught in the same classes. Ido not see any defect in discipline due to this cause, nor do I hear of any difficulty arising from it.

NEW PLYMOUTH HIGH SCHOOL. 1. Statement of Receipts and Expenditure for the Year ending 31st December, 1886. Receipts. £ s. d. Expenditure. £ s. d. To Grant from vote of the General Assembly 200 0 0 By Dr. balance at beginning of year .. 156 19 4 Current income from reserves.. .. 334 2 7 Management .. .. .. 65 910 Paid by School Commissioners .. 165 0 0 Teachers' salaries and allowances .. 751 5 0 School fees .. .. .. .. 295 12 6 Printing, stationery, and advertising .. 22 5 2 Balance at ond of year .. .. 80 411 Cleaning, fuel, light, &c. .. .. 24 8 8 Fencing, repairs, &c. .. .. 39 19 6 Rents, insurance, and taxes .. .. 10 0 0 Interest on current account .. .. 4 12 6 £1,075 0 0 £1,075 0 0 Thomas Kelly, Chairman, E. Veale, Secretary and Treasurer. Examined and passed.—C. Eennell, Auditor.

2. Work done by Highest and Lowest Classes. Algebra. —Highest: Todhunter, to end of quadratics. Lowest: None. Arithmetic. —Highest: The subject generally. Lowest: Four first rules, reduction, and easy fractions. Euclid. —Highest: Books I. to VI. and exercises. Lowest: None. Latin. —Highest: Smith's Principia and Caesar, Book I. Lowest: Smith's Principia. French. —Highest: Ahn's course and tables. Lowest: Ahn's course, Exercises 1-80; and verb (regular). Geography. —Highest: Physical features of world in outline, New Zealand and British Isles in detail; outlines of physical geography. Lowest: Same as highest, but less complete grasp of the subject expected. History. —Highest: Accession of Sovereigns; principal wars, treaties, and constitutional changes; biographies; special period, Tudors. Lowest: Outlines of history, with a few of the important events of each reign. Grammar. —Highest: Morell (except structure of words), Morris's Historical Grammar. Lowest: Parsing of sentences and easy analysis. Science. —Highest: Mensuration of solids (more strictly mathematics). Lowest: Outlines of botany. Beading. —Highest: Shakespeare's Tempest. Lowest: Royal Reader No. IV.

3. Scholarships held at the School during Last Quarter op the Year. Education Board Scholarships. —At £15, 3 ; at £10, 4. Hon. H. Scotland's Scholarships. —At £15, 1; at £10, 1.

4. Report of the Inspector-General of Schools to the Hon. the Minister op Education. New Plymouth High School (14th and 15th October, 1886). —On this occasion I spent two days in the school, and examined the several classes, instead of observing the ordinary processes of instruction from the point of view of an Inspector. The senior Latin class consists of eight boys. Three of them were absent —an indication of irregularity of attendance that must prove a great hindrance to the progress of individual boys and of the school. The class was decidedly more proficient in construing and showed much more power in dealing with complex sentences than on former occasions; but the parsing (except in the case of Olson) was weak. In Euclid one boy (Rawson) is in the Sixth Book, and I was well pleased with his knowledge of it; the rest of the Euclid class, except one dull boy, knew the First Book very well. In history and geography most of the boys answered very fairly. The progress of the boys in algebra is satisfactory, and they are working intelligently at mensuration. I was sorry to see that some of the pupils spend part of their school time in book-keeping, in deference, I believe, to the wishes of their parents. lam of opinion that their time could be much better spent. The girls are doing well in algebra. Both boys and girls read part of "The Tempest," and answered well the questions I put to them on obscure and difficult constructions, the girls especially showing a very satisfactory degree of intelligence and power of comprehension. The pronunciation of French, on the part of both boys and girls, was very failindeed ; and the translation of French fables was well done. The girls answered elementary questions in physiology and botany very creditably. Two days is not a sufficient allowance of time for an exhaustive examination, but I saw enough to justify me in saying that there is abundant evidence of able, careful, and conscientious teaching. I have before called attention to the fact that few pupils remain long in the school; and I observe that some, having long distances to travel, lose a part of the school-hours of each day. It must be borne in mind that there are only three teachers, although the girls are taught separately, and the pupils have to be divided into as many classes as would be required if their number were doubled. In these circumstances results of the highest order are not to be expected, but very good results are obtained. Ido not see how the girls' school is to go on wdthout cither an increase of the staff or an arrangement for teaching boys and girls together.