EDUCATION COMMISSION.

Auckland Star, Volume XLIII, Issue 145, 18 June 1912, Page 2

EDUCATION COMMISSION.

TO-DAY'S PROCEEDINGS. (By Telegraph.—Press Association.) DUNEDLN, this day. Giving evidence before the Education Commission to-day, Miss Rosa (principal of Girtxm College) declared that there was a- marked deficiency among primary school pupils in the essentials when they came to secondary schools. That was due to the primary schools' syllabus demanding too much, of outside subjects. The teachers in private secondary schools would welcome Oovernrnent inspection so long as their curricula were not interfered with. Mr. Pryde (ex-secretary of the Education Board) defended School committees -having a voice in the selection of teachers, but acknowledged ithat buttonholing and canvassing on the. part of teachers had become a -positive scandal in and around Dunedin. Members of the Edu-cation-Board were the greatest sinners in Dunedin. The electing of boards by wards was a distinctly retrograde sitep, and had been the means of losing to Otago the services of some of its most able educationists. There was no comparison with men who were elected under one large electorate. He complained bitterly of distrust by the Education Department of boards whose testimony in regard to new buildings and additions

to existing ones was rejected or dis- _ counted by their.recommendations .being

reported on by rangers and what not. The returns required by the Department could b? materially simplified with advantage 'to all concerned if powers of co-operation were liberally exercised. There might be advantage in entrusting the control of primary,, secondary, and technical education to a Boards' Council of Education. It woidd be a good thing if it secured a proper interpretation of the code and alterations therein -made on the advice of experts. Conferences convened by the Education Department were useless, because they were dominated by officials, and it was very seldom that anything practical was evolved therefrom.

llr. Waters (head of a produce firm in the city) expressed the opinion that primary education of to-day did not produce lads so well grounded in the "three B.V as boys of 20 years ago. That was a general complaint, jiuiong business men. During the last three years writing and arithmetic showed signs of improvement, but acquaintance with one's mother tongue was 'lamentaibly deficient.