(99)

te the children; and I do not consider that this
obstacle can be entirely overcome until the
schools are taught by persons who have had some
previous training. The power of illustrating and
explaining in a simple and forcible manner must
be acquired before a teacher is fit for his work,
and I can find but little evidence in the schools I
visited to show that the teachers here possess this
power to any extent.

The school buildings in town are in a sufficiently
good condition, and are quite large enough, but
I think more attention should be given to roof
ventilation; the same thing may be said of the
new school-room at Bell Block. The room used
for the school at Okurua is far too small and close
to be healthy. The Omata room is large enough
for present requirements. All the schools should
be provided with a black board, without which a
master can scarcely teach a class. The supply of
books is very inadequate, and those in use
do not seem to me to be the best that could be
obtained. The parents are unwilling to buy books
for their children.

To sum up, my opinion of the present condition
of the Government schools is very unfavourable,
and any comparison which may be instituted
between them and the schools for the poorer classes
at home must, according to my judgment, be alte-
gether to the advantage of the latter. The at-
tendance is very bad, and it is the interest of the
teacher not to insist on greater regularity, in
order that there may be a large number of children
on the books, from whom he can get Government
aid, and thus compensate himself for the deficien-
acy in collection of his fees from parents.
The income is so small that it is out of the ques-
tion to expect to obtain good teachers. From
these two causes combined the schools necessarily
suffer—children derive very little good, and the
Government aid is to a great extent wasted.

I find by a return furnished to me by the Assis-
tant Treasurer that the Government is at present
giving aid to the following schools, of which £183 17s. 6d. is given
to schools in the town, as follows:-

The total number of children receiving aid is
174, of whom 66 are above ten years old. I
think it is improbable that the attendance will
ever sink below this number, as the late stagnation
of trade and want of employment for labour are
almost sure to have reduced the number of
children attending school to the minimum. It
may reasonably be expected that the population
will in future increase rather than decrease, and
the numbers at school will consequently be pro-
portionately augmented. But at present I think
the number of town schools is too many for any
to be in a good condition. One teacher should
be able to instruct fifty children, nor could he
get a living from a school at which the attendance
fell far short of this. I understand that Mr. W.
H. Earl and Mr. Hart are likely to give up their
schools at the end of the year. I would re-
commend that the Government should withdraw
its aid from these two schools, whether given up
or not, and that Mr. W. H. Earl should be offered
the first vacancy which may be at the disposal of
the Government. This would reduce the number
of schools to four. In these I would recommend
the following alterations: (1). That Mr. A. R. N.
Earl’s school be considered a boy’s school, and
no Government aid given for any girls attending:
(2). That Miss Shaw’s school be considered a girl’s
school, and no Government aid given for any
boys attending: (3). That Miss Smith’s and Miss
Lynch’s schools be considered infant schools:
(4). That in the two former schools Government
should not aid children under nine years old, and
in the two latter schools above nine years old.
By this means that classification which I look
upon as so necessary to efficiency would be in
some measure introduced, and the teachers
in the upper schools would not have to devote
the greater part of the time which should be
given to more advanced pupils, to the trouble-
some work of teaching the alphabet and figures
to mere beginners. I have made the division of
age between the infant and upper schools at nine
years old, partly for the purpose of equalizing
the numbers in the different schools, but princi-
pally because those who have been in attendance
at the Infant School for two years, should by that
time be sufficiently advanced for the upper
schools; the division would more properly be
made at eight years old, but at present this
would so diminish the numbers at the Infant
schools, as to make it improbable that teachers
would be found to take them.

The difficulties to be encountered in placing
the country schools on a satisfactory footing are
far greater than in the case of the town, where
the numbers are actually sufficient to support
four schools. The only suggestion which I have
to make as to the district schools specially (until
the education fund can be largely increased), is
that there should be a reserve of several acres
set apart in each district for the use of the teacher,
who has a good deal of leisure time under the
existing system, and might by cultivating this
land add considerably to his income.

The recommendations which I have to make
come under the three heads—regularity of
attendance, competence of teachers, and system
of management.

With regard to attendance, before speaking of
means for improving the regularity, I should state
that there are a large number of children in the
Province who are attending no school at all, but
that until the census returns are published, I am
unable to say exactly what this number is. I can
see no means of reaching parents who are in-
different to the education of their children, as
long as the present system continues; but as I
am convinced that the large majority of those
who neglect to send their children do so, not
from apathy but from inability, I believe that
this evil will gradually die out as the country
becomes more populated, and the district schools
more frequent, but until this is the case there
appears to be no remedy.

I believe the regularity of attendance of the
children who are within reach of a school might
be improved by substituting for the present
capitation grant on attendance, a grant according
to the result of an annual examination; the
standards to be carefully devised so as to vary
with the age of the children. This would take
away from the teachers the power of increasing
their schools numerically, and thus obtaining more
Government aid than they are entitled to, by
allowing irregularity of attendance. I think
moreover that if the number of holidays were
largely increased, a great improvement would
result therefrom. The following extract from
the report of the English Education Commission
of 1862, bears upon this subject:—" Before