THE EDUCATION CONFERENCE.

Press, Volume LXVI, Issue 13646, 1 February 1910, Page 3

THE EDUCATION CONFERENCE.

.STATEMENT BY THE MINISTER

(PRESS ASSOCIATION TELEGRAM.) WELLINGTON, January 29. In the course of an interview today, the Hon. U. t'owlus made a statement relative to the general conference on education matters which is to ue held at Wellington next month. Asked if lie had seen th-j resolution [.:>:sed by various Boards seeking to be represented at that conference, rue Minister said he did not propose to grant the request. "It kecins to mc, fie said, "that there is quite a wrong impression in the minds of some people as to the nature and scope ot tliJ conference. It is purely a technical conference de-ilia- with the question ot teaching and is confined to those who are engaged in teaching the Jifferent branches of education. Instead of increasing the number of representatives at the conference, I should have liked to reduce them by one half, but it was not possible to do that, because we wanted to get the different gradoa of schools and the different brunches of education fully represented, so as to get a full survey of the work being done and to provide for the co-ordina-tion of the different branches. T«> give effect to the w'shes of Roar.ls would mean either thirteen or twentysix additional representatives Each Hoard would want to send one member, and most of them, 1 expect, nould want to send the secretary also. That would not end the matter, because 1 have had requests from school committees and school committees' associations all over New Zealand to 'je allowed to send representatives. That would still further increase the nun- ,- her, but even that is not the end of it, because 1 have had requests of a similar nature from those connected with several private schools. To comply with all those requests would simply mean the bringing together of a mass of people, and no effective work would remit. I want to get business done, not mere talk. T!ie conference will have nothing t.) do with the question of administration except as between the Department and the principals of schools, but will simply deal with iho teaching of education. At some future time I think it would be a very desirable thing to do as we have done before, and have a conference with representatives of Education Boards. Representatives of school committees could also be present, so as to covor the whole field of administration in the same way as at the conference next month. We propose to cover the whole of the technical field. This is a general conference of teachers ns distinguished from the triennial conference of inspectors which will follow. I fully recognise the value of the, work done by Education Boards and school committees, and the fact .that they are not included in this eui.ferenoe is not in any way intended as a reflection upon them."