E.—l

50

The total number of children receiving secondary education at these four classes of schools is shown below. The Department has no statistics of private secondary schools, which are not subject to inspection. Average Weekly Roll. 1913. 191.4. Secondary schools ... ... ... ... 5,803* 6,056* District high schools ... ... ... 2,073 2,100 Day technical schools ... ... ... 1,6641 1,889+ Maori secondary schools ... ... ... 419* 435* Private secondary schools ... ... ... 545 850 Totals ... ... ... 10,504 11,280 * Roll at end of year. t Actual number on roll during year. It will thus be seen that the number receiving secondary education during 1914 shows a slight increase over that for the previous year. Based on the estimated population of New Zealand as at the 31st December last the proportion of persons receiving some form of day secondary education is 98 per 10,000 of population, as compared with 93 for the previous year. Schemes of Control of Secondary Schools. Section 89 of the Education Act, 1914, which secures to Education Boards and parents of pupils representation on the Boards of Governors of certain secondary schools, for which such provision had not previously been made, and section 90, which determines fully the constitution of the governing bodies of certain other secondary schools, necessitated the revision of the schemes of control in these cases or the drawing-up of new schemes where none had existed before. Under section 92 of the Act schemes for nineteen secondary schools in all were submitted to the Council of Education, and, on the recommendation of that body, received Ministerial approval and were gazetted. Provisions were included in the schemes, in accordance with the Act, dealing with courses of study, fees, the respective powers of the governing body and the principal, and other matters. Free Secondary Education. (E.-6, Table X 5.) Under the regulations free places are divided into two classes —junior and senior—both being tenable at secondary schools and district high schools, or, under somewhat different conditions, at technical schools. Generally speaking, junior free places are tenable for two years, with a possible extension in certain cases to three years. In the case of their being held at- district high schools they are tenable to the age of seventeen. The qualifications are a certificate of proficiency, or a junior scholarship, or special Junior Free Place Examination. Senior free places may be obtained on passing the Intermediate Examination, or without external examination after the satisfactory completion of a two-years secondary course, on the recommendation of the principal of the school attended, to which the Director of Education concurs. The latter form of qualification is becoming increasingly applicable, there being 791 cases of complete exemption from examination and 33 cases of partial exemption in 1914. Senior free places in secondary schools, district high schools, and technical high schools are tenable up to the age of nineteen. To technical schools other than technical high schools this age-limit does not apply. The following are some of the figures for 1913 and 1914 in regard to free places in secondary schools : — 1913. 1914. Number of secondary schools giving free tuition 30 30 ♦Total roll number, excluding lower departments .. 5,803 6,056 Number of free-place holders .. .. . . 4,592 5,061 Free-place holders as a percentage of roll number .. 79 per cent. 84 per cent. Total annual payment by Government for free places . . £51,917 £56,1.86 Cost to Government per free pupil .. . . .. £10 15s. lid. £11 2s. Od. * The total roll of all secondary schools is taken, including Wanganui Boys' and Girls' Colleges and Christ's College, but tin se three schools aro not included in the number of secondary schools giving free tuition during 1914. Wanganui Girls' College will be open to free-place holders as from the beginning of the current year.