5

E.—3

allowance or have a residence provided. The total expenditure on salaries and allowances for the year ended 31st March, 1021, was £53,712, as compared with £40,032 in 1919 and £29,148 in 1914. Expenditure. The total net expenditure on Native schools during the year ended the 31st March, 1921, was £71,430. The chief items of expenditure were teachers' salaries and allowances, £53,712 ; new buildings and. additions, £4,284 ; maintenance of buildings, repairs, &c, £4,746 ; secondary education, £2,512 ; books and school requisites, £1,907.

No. 2. REPORT OF THE SENIOR INSPECTOR OF NATIVE SCHOOLS. Snv--1 have the honour to submit herewith the following report upon the general condition of the Native village schools, Mission schools, and Maori secondary schools during the year 1920. New Schools, etc. At the end of the year under review 119 Native village schools were in operation, the same number as at the end of the previous year, in the early part of the year two schools which had been temporarily closed — Taharoa and Kakaunui. .both in the Kawhia district—were reopened. The Rakaumanga Native School, Waikato, which, owing to the apathy of the people, had remained closed, for several years, was again reopened with a, very satisfactory attendance. The necessary school buildings at Manutahi, Ruatorea, East Coast, were completed early in the year, and the new school began work with a very large enrolment. At Kaitaha (Whakawhitira), East Coast, the erection of the school and residence was postponed on account of the large expenditure involved, and towards the end of the year the school which had been conducted in the Maori meeting-house was closed on account of the resignation of the teacher, owing to ill health. Arrangements, however, were made for the erection of the buildings during the current year, and as they are now well on the way towards completion the school will be reopened under m re satisfactory conditions. As an illustration of the interest shown by the Maoris in the education of their children, and as an example of willingness to help the Government in a time of financial difficulty, it is worthy of special mention that, in addition to providing a valuable site in each case, the people at Manutahi contributed £200 towards the cost of the buildings, and the people at Whakawhitira have contributed £225. Decreased attendance at Ohautira School, Raglan, necessitated the closing of the school ; and Poroti Native School, Whangarei, where the pupils in attendance were predominantly European, was transferred, in accordance with the policy of the Department, to the Auckland Education Board. The Native school at Karioi, Ruapehu, was closed towards the end of the year on account of the difficulty of obtaining a suitable teacher. Applications for the establishment of Native schools were made by the Maori people at Otakou, Tongariro district, and by the people at Karakanui, Kaipara, and as the result of the investigations made it has been decided to establish schools in the places mentioned. It is not proposed to erect buildings at the present time, however, as fairly suitable buildings are being placed by the Maoris at the disposal of the Department. In regard to Awanta, Bay of Islands, authority has been obtained to proceed with the erection of a school and residence on a site to which a title has now been obtained. In the case of Waimahana, Hot Lakes District, no reasonable tender for the erection of a teacher s cottage could be obtained, and consecjuently it was not possible to reopen the school. The proposal to establish a Native school at Tihiomanono, East Coast, was abandoned, as it was not considered that the prospects of the success of a school in that locality were sufficiently encouraging, At Waiohau, Galatea country, where the erection of school buildings has boon approved, very little progress has been made, a difficulty having arisen in getting the work put in hand. During the past year additional accommodation rendered necessary by increased attendance has been provided at the following schools: Wharekahika, Hicks Bay; Rangitukia, East Coast; and Ohaeawai, Bay of Islands. The erection of two-roomed schools at Pukepolo, Mangonui district, and at Matata, Bay of Plenty, to replace the old schools which had become unsuitable through age and faultiness of design, was put in hand towards the end of the year, and should, be completed early during the current year. The need for more suitable: school buildings at Waiohau, Waikeri, Whangaruru, and Huiarau is very pressing, and these should be put in hand as soon as financial conditions and ci re urns tances permit. Attendance, etc. (1.) Native Village Schools. A substantial increase was shown in the attendance at the village schools during the past year, at the end of which the total number of children on the school rolls was 5,508. This number represents an increase of 310 on the corresponding number of the previous year. The average weekly roil number was 5,404, the average attendance 4,789, and the average percentage of regularity 88-6, as against 86-4 for the previous year. A reference to Table. H2, in which information regarding