SCHOOL COMMITTEES

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 48, Issue 164, 23 April 1928, Page 2

SCHOOL COMMITTEES

ANNUAL ELECTION TO-NIGHT.

REPORTS OF YEAR’S ACTIVITIES'. Th© annual election of school_ committees in the Ashburton County will be held this evening, when meetings of householders will be held. In the case of the Borough and East Ashburton schools, nominations closed last Monday, and as tlie number of candidates does not exceed the number required, an election is not necessaiy in these instances. The outgoing committees will submit reports on the activities of the last year, and the following reports are available for publication to-day EAST ASHBURTON. The report of the East Ashburton Committee states that the roll number is 504 (243 boys and 261 girls), compared with 463 (223 boys and 240 girsl) at the corresponding time last year', the average attendance for the last two quarters being 466. The only change on the permanent staff has been the appointment of Miss G. Nolan in place of Miss F. M. Kerr. With the increase in attendance, a temporary assistant was appointed, the position to be permanently filled at the end of the year. The year commenced with a debit balance of £ll 10s 6d, and closed with an increased debit of £l9 8s sd. A-dental clinic in connection with the school lias at last been formed, the surgery being opened by the Mayor. Nurse Armstrong had proved herself a capable and efficient'operator. Altogether 2882 operations have been made. The committee expresses deep regret at the death of the Rev. J. F. Wiseman, whose zeal and regular attendance at the school had been responsible for the conduct and standard of the Scripture classes.

THE BOROUGH SCHOOL. In its report the committee said it was pleasing to note that th© work of the school continued to proceed on sound and proper lines with gratifying results to, all concerned. Gratification was expressed at the establishment of a dental clinic at East Ashburton, the Borough representative on the committee being Mr L. J. Watt. As the result of .a lecture by Mr H. M. Jones the sum of £5 lVas gained by the committee’s funds. The cost of establishing the clinic amounted to £ll2 4s 10d, the Borough School quota being £lB 13s, or 30 per cent. It was estimated that the total annual cost of working would be £25. The .report continued: We regret to record that so far the Borough School has been unable to benefit from the establishment of the Clinic. This is attributed to tlie Bnpartment’s inability to provide sum-c-ient staffing, and as a result, up to the present none of the Borough School children have been charted. The committee has agreed to place a suitable room at the disposal of the Clinic, and it is likely that this will assist most materially in the saving of time in the charting of the scholars.” The committee during the year purchased a piano for the use of the school, contributing £3O to the cost, the Education Department providing the remainder. The teachers were to be congratulated on the success of the concert in aid of the Prize and 1 Sports Fund, the net proceeds being £3l 6s 6d. At the beginning of summer, as an experiment, the hour was extended to 1.15 p.m. and the position will be reviewed by the jiew committee. At the request of tne committee the Education Board 1 has undertaken to repaint the woodwork of the school buildings and the headmaster’s residence. Tlie committee lias considered the inauguration of a savings bank for the encouragement of thrift among the children The report stated that tlie roll number of the school was at present: Bovs, 219; girls, 247; a total of 466. The average for the year 1927 was 428, while that of 1926 was 423. 1 or the quarter ended March 31 last the aveiago was 443, equal to about 95 pei cent It was pleasing to note that on the whole the children- attend with commendable regularity, and the eo-op-eration of tlie parents in obtaining this satisfactory result merited the highest praise.' The personnel of the stall was practically the same as last year, the only change being among the junior teachers, in accordance with the Department’s regulations. Miss P. A. McClurg left to take up a position in Christchurch, and Miss N. Percy whs transferred to Allenton, the vacancies being filled by the appointment of Miss E. Higgin's and Mr E. Loach. The members of the staff attended to then duties punctually and conscientiously and worked harmoniously together, so that a good tone was in evidence throughout the school, with the result that the work was proceeding pleasantly and efficiently. The Inspector’s report for 1927, it was stated, was very gratifying. In their opinion the school is well organised and in an efficient state. The results of the Standard VI. proficiency examination were as follows: —Of 54 presented 45 qualified for proficiency certificate, 3 for endorsed competency and five for competency. In addition Phil. Anderson gained a Junior National Scholarship, while John Bell Memorial Scholarships were awarded to Alan Bray and Bert. Coker. While such marked devotion to duty in connection with the highest aspects ■of the education of the scholars is most commendable, continued the report, it was pleasing to note that, as in previous years, the teachers had voluntarily taken a very live interest in the outside activities of the school, giving np ft great deal of their time and attention to the physical welfare of the children. As regards swimming, much progress was made in this important branch of education, and parents and others must be pleas'ed with the resuits of their efforts in assisting to provide the School Baths, winch aie proving a most valuable asset. Distance certificates were gained as follows:—17 pupils qualified for 880yds, 22 for 220 to 440yds, and 45 for the learners* distance of 50 yards. I lie School w r as again successful in competitions for the Gala Cups and County Primary School Championships the winners being Doreen Smith andßmce Knox. Teams in basketball and rounders for girls and cricket and’ football for boys took part in the inter-school competitions with a fair amount of success winning the senior seven-a-side basketball and the junior seven-a-side football. In the Mid-Canterbury Annual Sports the School was again very successful and retained the girls and boys’ banners for most points, while the championship cups for sir s and tor boys were won by Olive Speddmg and |

Jack Dickenson respectively. The committee expressed thanks to all who had assisted in any way; also to the Headmaster (Mr C. G. M. Boyce) and his staff for the very live interest they had shown in every branch of the School's activities. The committee congratulated the staff on the abundant success that had been so meritoriously achieved. On behalf of the committee, the chairman tendered hearty thanks to Messrs W. H. Woods, J. McElhinney, and S. J. Graham, who are retiring from the committee after many years of useful service.

ALLENTON SCHOOL. The annual report of the Allenton School states that the past year had been one of steady progress, although th school work was greatly handicapped by a series of epidemics. At the beginning of the year, Mr E. C. Bathurst resigned the position of secretary to the Committee, and the committee desired to place on record its appreciation of the very valuable service rendered by him. The committee were successful in persuading the Upper Ashburton ltoad Board to improve the footpath on the left-hand side of Winter’s Road from the School to the Belt. The Canterbury Education Board had installed a heating apparatus in the shelter shed, making it more comfortable to the children. The committee regretted to report that the school lost a valuable teacher in Mr W. McPherson, who resigned the position of assistant. The school was fortunate in having a teacher of Mr McCurdy’s capabilities appointed to the position. The Dental Clinic at the Bast Ashburton School was got into working order during the year. The Nurse in charge was at present attending to the children of Allenton School. Mr Bathurst was appointed to represent th© committee on the Dental Clinic Committee, and thanks were due to him for the capable manner in which he was looking after the interests of Allenton. A school library was inaugurated, the amount required being raised by a concert and was subsidised by the Education Board. It was with deep regret that the committee had to record the death of one of one of its most valued members, Mr H. McConnell. During the latter part of the year the headmaster (Mr W. S. Pratt) requested the committee to review the position in regard/ to the award of the Dux Prizes. Mr Pratt stated that owing to the very broken attendance during the year, caused by so many epidemics, he considered that the fairest method to award the prize would be on the last term examinations. The committee discussed the matter thoroughly and 1 unanimously decided to leave the matter in Mr Pratt’s bands. I There was very little to report in the matter of the Open-Air Class Room. The Committee had had considerable correspondence with the Minister of Education and the Canterbury Education Board on the subject and were informed that there were other works of a more urgent nature but that the work was listed for attention, also that the alteration of our request for additional accommodation to an OpenAir Class Room and 1 the consequent change in the plans had considerably delayed the matter.

THE TINWALD SCHOOL. The report to be submitted at Tinwald states that the year has been a busy one. The work of the teachers, as disclosed by the inspector’s report, continues to be of a high standard, and the buildings, grounds and fences are in good order. To enable the committee to carry on its work, a considerable sum of money has to be raised each year, and the parents have responded well during the past year. The thanks of the committee are due to those who assisted in these efforts, namelv, Mr H. M. Jones, .who gave two lectures, the Ashburton Male Voice Choir, and the teachers, who provided enjoyable concerts, also Mr Strange, who allowed the committee to hold a hare drive on his property, and to Mr Tarbotton for his usual enthusiastic assistance with school sports. Thanks are also extended to the Anglican Church authorities for the use of the Parish hall as a classroom while the Standard HI. room was being renovated, and to the Presbyterian Church managers for the use of the vestry for a dental room. The various entertainments realised a total of £25 19s 10d. The _ school grounds had been considerably improved as a result of a working bee. The committee has been endeavouring to secure the advantage of free dental treatment for the children, but owing to there being only one nurse, some delay has occurred. Howovei, Nurse Armstrong will he at Tinwald m the near future, when the children of the infant class will he treated at the vestry of the Presbyterian Church. They will thus all secure treatment, and" conveyance to Ashburton East will he avoided,. To date th© Sum of_ £lo 8s lOd has been paid, to the clinic as Tinwald’s share of its maintenance The committee expresses its deep l regret at the protracted illness of Mr James Cow, who has always been a good supporter of the school and a o-ood friend to the children. Sympathy is extended to Mrs Cow, with the hope that Mr Cow will Soon he restored to health.