TROUBLE OVER SCHOOL BOOKS.

Evening Post, Volume LXXII, Issue 133, 3 December 1906, Page 7

TROUBLE OVER SCHOOL BOOKS.

AN UNAUTHORISED READER. The position i,n regard to the new school readers, which the Wellington Education Board sought to have placed on the authorised list, haa not been' affected by the report of the board's inspectors, which was asked for by the board when the Government's refusal to accede to this request was received. All the inspectors could do was to suggest that the matter be deferred until early next year. It appears that with the object of replacing an old book a new one, the b£ard, on the inspector's recommendation, requested the dcoartment to place Longman's British 'Empire Readers on the list, in lieu of Longman's New Zealand readers. In the meantime, anticipating a heavy demand on the part of all tho schools in tho district, local booksellers imported very largely, with the result that the books arrived just about in time for the supply of the newly-formed classes, after the_ close of some of (he annual examinations by the inspectors. Without, apparently, any written authority to do so, the teachers in a s number of these schools — chiefly in the country' and Wellington suburbs — instructed the children to purchase the British Empire books. This they did. In consequence, a reader not authorised by the department is now being used in the schools in question. Mr. Hogg, at last meeting of the board, mentioned that the booksellers, as well as parents, would suffer seriously if the books were not adopted generally. Chief Inspector Fleming, however, thought the matter could be adjusted satisfactorily in the New Year — probably by having tho book adopted as a supplementary reader. In any case he did not think injustice would be done, although the board could not be held responsible for the, unusual situation which had been created. The position is certainly a remarkable on«. The department, it is understood, wished to keep the changing of books as far as possible to a minimum,. The board did not wish to increase the list, but sought to get one book, more up-to-date, substituted for another. At all events, some thousands of the new book are now in use in some of our schools, while other schools have the old books. So far the object of getting a uniform book throughout tho district to, amongst other things, lessen the cost to parents who may remove with their families from one town to another, has not been achieved. At the meeting of the board referred to, Mr. T. W. M'Donald enquired if it was not possible to in some automaticway keep the school readers up-to-date. For instance, in readers now being used Lord Roberts was referred to as the Commander-in-Chief of the British army. The Chief Inspector said s\ich instances seemed to be unavoidable at pre- | sent, but the trouble complained of would be greatly reduced by the publication cf tho proposed School Newspaper early next year.