EDUCATION YEAR

Press, Volume LVIII, Issue 17430, 15 April 1922, Page 4

EDUCATION YEAR

CANTERBURY AND WEST COAST. The- annual report of the Canterbury Education Board, presented by the chairman, Mr G. W. Armitige, at Thursday's meeting of the Board, contains many interesting facts regarding the progress of education in the Canterbury and West Coast districts. Expenditure on buildings' and eites was less during 1921 than in the previous year, owing; to the- high cost of labour and material. works carried out included:— Allenton (additions), _ Charwell Forks (new school), Ealing (additions), Heathcote (additions), Hilton (residence), Kapua (additions), Linwood (additions), Methven (addition®), Rokeby (residence), Rotherham (residence), Waimataitai (teachers' room), Willowbridge (shifting and additions). In addition to these works, which, with two exceptions, were carried out by the Board's own. staffa of workmen, there are in course of erection a new school at Phillipstown, additions at Timaru South, and new tochnioal schools at -Greymouth end Timaru. At the end of the year there were 385 schools open; one was a separate infant school and 17 were oided, or household, edbools. In 1880> there were 185 schools in the then North Canterbury education district; in 1910 the number was 860, and in 1930 880. Other details ore:— On roll at Average Percentage Tear. end of year, attendance, of attend. 1880 23,088 16,412 , 71.1 1910 ... 29.778 25,587 '85.9 1920 85,870 29,761 85.1 1921 .. 86,498 82,768 98.7 The expenditure on salaries (including house allowance) in 1921 totalled £814,925 183, made up as follows (shillings and pence omitted) & Primary teaohew ,< 272,908 Secondary teachers * .. 8,578 Organising teacheira ... 1,291 House allowances .. .. .5,404 Training College (staff and students) .. .. 26,741 The incidental allowances paid to School Committees amounted to £17,381 3s'ld. Details of expenditure on salaries and allowances, and incidentals, for the years mentioned (shillings and pence omitted) are:— Salaries. Incidentals. Totals. Yeur £ £ ' £ 1680 ». 85,818 8,071 .63,390 1910 110,838 8,796 . 119,185 1920 i.. 285,100 14,303 . 299,403 1921 .. 814,925 17,381 832,306 There were 915 teadiera in the Board's employ- at the end of 1921; of these 883 were head-teachers, or in sole charge, and 582 were assistants. There were 104 pupil-teachers, 186 probationers, and 33 seeing mistresses. The expenditure on the conveyance of children to school was £5630, and on the board of children living a long way from the nearest school £894. In all, 1587 children were conveyed to ochool during the year, whilst board allowance was .paid in respect of 120 children. Of the total (£6524) paid in respect of conveyance and board, the Board contributed £llß out of its ordinary capitation grant. Dealing with, manual and technical instruction, the report states: —Returns received from all sources point to the fact that a year's solid work has done by all branches of manual and technical education in Canterbury during the past year Some form of elementary Handwork was taken up at all the Board's schools, and about 88,000 pupil? received instruction. At 33 schools with no female teacher on tiie staff instruction waa given by special* mistresses. Advanced handwork again received attention; 2836 pupils received instruction in "woodwork. and 2882 girls took cookery J and domestio science. The Phillipstown manual training building opened in March last with an attendance of 861 pupils. Seventy-one classes were carried on for swimming and life-saving.