With regard to the three subjects of reading,
writing, and arithmetic, the degree of attainment
varies considerably in different schools. In the
upper classes of the best schools the reading would
do credit to children similarly placed in the best
national schools in England. The children of the
first class in some cases show more than ordinary
intelligence in the way they write upon a given sub-
ject, and have attained a considerable facility of
expressing themselves in grammatical English. In
the same schools the children have an easy and
natural style of reading. This result would be
more generally obtained if learning by heart good
selections of English poetry were more practised,
care being taken that they were recited with due
regard to proper emphasis and punctuation. The
fault of some of the teachers in schools where the
attainments of the scholars are otherwise above the
average would seem to be, that they lay too much
stress on imparting the greatest possible amount of
what is called "useful knowledge," and cramming
the mind with dry facts, too little on the cultivation
and development of natural intelligence.

In some instances this proceeds from no other motive than a
natural and praiseworthy desire to communicate as
much information as possible in the short time that
children remain at school. In other cases, however,
the Commission found that children were professedly learning subjects which on examination proved
to be far beyond their comprehension, apparently
from a desire on the part of the master to exhibit a
showy programme of his pupils’ attainments.

In one school the teacher complained that the
inspector did not examine his scholars on the subjects
taught; that the children were doing proportion, and
the higher rules of arithmetic, and justice was not
done by the inspector in not examining in those
rules. The Commission found on examination that
the children were entirely deficient in the ordinary
rules of arithmetic.

In another case, Latin, Algebra, and Euclid were
represented to form part of the school course; the
boys, when questioned on these and other subjects,
clearly showed that time had been devoted to these
higher subjects with no good results, and to the
neglect of the more necessary and ordinary branches
of instruction. The reason assigned was that the
same subjects were professed to be taught in a
neighbouring school (which is in connection with
another religious denomination), and that the one
school would suffer in point of numbers if the pro-
gramme put forward by the other were not main-
tained. The case has a special significance in
another point of view.

In some of the best schools the elder children ex-
hibit a considerable proficiency in arithmetic, and
are fairly acquainted with the reasons of the rules
by which they work. In schools that fall below the
standard of those mentioned above, the degrees of
attainment of the scholars are as various as the
qualifications of the teacher. Some of these are
men working with most praiseworthy perseverance
under considerable difficulties, and while the results
of their teaching have fallen short of what ought to
be aimed at in elementary schools, the deficiency has
been in the main the consequence of circumstances
beyond their control, and such as time, improved ap-
pliances, and increased experience will remedy.

On the other hand instances are not wanting in
which teachers have been appointed to schools who
are wholly unfitted for their duties, and whose con-
tinuance in office has been most prejudicial to the
schools in which they have been placed.

It would seem that hitherto far too little attention
has been paid to the observations and suggestions of
the inspector of schools. Frequent representations
on his part have not resulted either in the improve-
ment of the schools on whose management he has
charge, or in the removal of the teachers in
question. The Commission, from the personal inspec-
tion they have made of all the schools in the pro-
vince, are in a position, so far as their observations
went, to testify to the accuracy and justice of the
estimate the inspector has formed of the character
of each individual school.

III.—Religious Aspect of the Educational
Question.

In proceeding to consider the working of the
system hitherto pursued in Canterbury, in respect
to religious teaching, the Commission wish, first of
all, to draw attention to the numbers of children
belonging to each denomination in schools receiving
aid from the Government.

The total number of scholars on the books in all
such schools at the time the Commissioners obtained
their returns was 1,651; of this number 906 were
receiving instruction in schools in connection with
the Church of England, 348 in schools in connection
with the Presbyterian Church, and 397 in schools in
connection with the Wesleyan Church.

In schools in connection with the Church of
England, including Christ’s College Grammar School,
697 scholars, or about 76 per cent., were children of
parents belonging to the Church of England, leaving about 24 per cent. of the scholars in attendance
whose denomination was either unknown or different
from that of the school in which they received in-
struction. In one school in an outlying district the
numbers of other denominations exceed those of the
scholars whose parents belong to the Church of
England.

In schools in connection with the Presbyterian
Church, out of a total number of 348 scholars, 130,
or about 37 per cent., were of parents belonging to
the Presbyterian Church, 5 were unknown, and
213, or more than 61 per cent., belonged to other
denominations than that with which the schools
were connected.

One of these schools numbers 26 scholars, the
teacher is a member of the Church of England, 19
scholars are returned as belonging to the Church of
England, four are Wesleyans, and three are Roman
Catholics. The Shorter Catechism is taught to all
without any objection being raised by the parents.
It is stated, however, that "upwards of 20 scholars
have regularly attended St. Andrew’s Presbyterian