EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTE.

Auckland Star, Volume XXIII, Issue 296, 13 December 1892, Page 2

EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTE.

The Auckland branch of tho New Zealand Educational Institute held its ordinary monthly meeting in the Wellesley-streeb School on Saturday last. The business was of a more than usually interesting character.

j The New Syllabus.—The Committee appointed to reporb on bhe working of the new syllabus broughb up their report. Ib stated thab a circular had been senb to all tho headmasters asking definite questions with regard to the new syllabus, and tbab replies had been received from about one hundred headmasters. There was a generally expressed opinion thab the syllabus was crowded with too many subjects, and thab in our primary schools we are attempting to do too much and are too ambitioua. The opinion was almosb unanimous tbab the demands in drawing are excessive and unreasonable. Ib was widely pointed out that the arrangements in our schools for model drawing are quite unsuitable. It was agreed bo forward the reporb to the Council meeting at Wellington in January. The Wellington Conference.— W. T. Grundy, Esq., the Secretary to the Council of the New Zealand Educational Institute, forwarded the lisb of subjects which would be discussed at the meeting of the Council in Wellington, in January next. These subjects showed clearly the renewed interesb baken in the work of tho Institute, and proved thab the Institute was never in a more flourishing condition than ab present. Anew branch of the Institute has been established ab Waimea, in Eelson, bhe Hawke's Bay district is rejoining the Institute, after being without a branch for some years, and the Wanganui branch has taken a new lease of life under the direction of Mr E; M. C. Harrison, who was for many years one of the pillars of the Auckland branch. Messrs Ralph D. Stewarb (Onehunga) and John L. Scotb (Avondale) were elected representatives of the Auckland branch ab the forbheoming conference at Wellington. Teachers' Library;—lt was decided on the suggestion of the Board of Education, that steps be taken to have the teachers' library incorporated under the Public Libraries' Powers' Acb. Salaries Affected by the Weather.— Owing to bhe excessively web weather, a large number, of teachers, have suffered, a reduction of salary lately, and it was poinbed oub how unjusb this was, and what a particular hardship ib would be to a number of headmasters receiving aboub £120 a year wibh families depending on them. A reduction of £10 or more in their salaries would mean that they would be tied to their homes during the Christmaß holidays and could nob afford the expense of taking the change so much needed by teachers. —16 was resolved to bring the matter under the notice of the Board, and to poinb out the injustice of paying teachers on the strict average.