8.—2.

[Appendix G.

introduction to the advanced cardboard-work and woodwork in the upper standards. These subjects have been well taught in many of the schools. Brushwork in the. hands of a capable teacher has a very great value, and many of our teachers do excellent work in this subject, but very often the teaching is done in a perfunctory manner, with the result that the drawing suffers considerably. In what is known as advanced handwork classes have been recognized all over the district, the principal subjects taken up being cookery, woodwork, agriculture, dressmaking, advanced needlework, botany, chemistry, physical science, swimming and life-saving, &c. Most of the interest centred round the woodwork and cookery classes, as woodwork forms a handwork subject for S5 and S6, and cookery counts both as science and handwork for these standards. A great many centres have been established in different parts of the district, and where practicable pupils have been conveyed by rail, tram, and coach to receive instruction. Much has been done, but much more remains to be done, as not a tenth part of the available pupils in the district is receiving instruction in these, the highest form of handwork. Why should the country pupil be denied the advantages of the town pupil? The work might very well be extended by creating more centres and providing a lighter equipment where instruction could be given in a modified form. In the larger centres much good work has been done on sound principles by competent instructors, but in some of the smaller centres the work was often very mediocre. The trouble lies in the difficulty in securing competent instructors; very often a local artisan, cook, or cabinetmaker is appointed who has to grope in the dark, and is not capable of correlating the work with the other standard subjects. Much of this difficulty might be obviated by the appointment of itinerant instructors who would be thoroughly capable as teachers. Laundry-work has been taught in all the large centres, and it is hoped that equipment will be provided to enable instruction to be given in the smaller centres as well. Advanced dressmaking and needlework have been taught at many of the schools by itinerant instructors. This should prove of great benefit to girls who are unable to travel to convenient centres to take cookery In connection with the above subjects, the needs and wants of our boys at the front have not been forgotten, as many a box of dainty edibles has been filled and sent from the cookery-room by the cookery instructresses and their willing assistants. At the woodwork and dressmaking classes also numbers of useful articles have been manufactured for Red Cross and patriotic purposes. In a country like New Zealand, where there is so much water, it is very important that all boys and girls should be taught the principles and practice of swimming and life-saving, and due attention has been given to this subject during the past year. In all centres where swimmingbaths were available instruction was given in the art of swimming and in the principles and practice of resuscitation. Many of the teachers have devoted a good deal of extra time and trouble to the work of instruction, and in the larger centres it is a very rare thing to find a boy or girl who is unable to swim. . In the country districts, where no swimming-baths are available, it is difficult to know how instruction may be provided. Extract from the Report of the Chief Instructors in Agriculture. North Canterbury. During the year two schools have found it impossible to give the required time to schoolgardening, while three others have taken up the course in the North Canterbury area, making the present number of schools 106. In the South Canterbury area the number of schools is seventy-one, as against sixty-four last year. Four schools on the West Coast had recognized classes. 1915. 1916. Schools. Children. Schools. Children. North Canterbury ... ... ... 105 2,260 106 1,844 South Canterbury ... ... ... 64 1,029 76 1,186 Westland and Grey ... ... ... 4 34 4 36 Totals... ... ... 173 3,323 186 3,066 The adoption of a uniform syllabus of instruction has fully justified the step taken this year. Many teachers have shown much improvement, partly as a result of the knowledge that their work followed accepted lines, and partly because of the spring school of instruction held in September. Once again it is necessary to report that quite a percentage of the teachers fail to appreciate the truth of the axiom " No impression without expression," hence the notebooks are not often what they might be. Many of the schools are continuing to take careful records of soil temperatures, rates of growth, rainfall, &o. During the year playground-improvement schemes were devised and supervised at a number of city and suburban schools. South Canterbury. During this year all of the seventy-six schools in this district taking agriculture as a class subjeot were visited except one. The three district high schools —Waimate, Temuka, and Pleasant Pomt —were visited weekly, and Geraldine District High School once a month. The experimental work at these schools is giving promising results. At Waimate, of the seven varieties of lucerne obtained from the Government Department by the Headmaster and tested here under his supervision, three of them made strong growth during the winter months, while the others were at a standstill. Should this again prove a characteristic, seed will be saved and the varieties further propagated. At Pleasant Point, by means of green-manuring

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