BOARD CONTROL

Evening Post, Volume CII, Issue 39, 15 August 1921, Page 7

BOARD CONTROL

EDUCATION ADMINISTRATION

I DEPARTMENTAL VIEW.

In the annual report of the Wellington Education Board there was reference to the .limitations placed by the Education Department on the administrative action of the boards. The Director of Education has made the following reply to the statements:-«- - - .

'' The chairman's remarks regarding present limitations by the Department on the administrative action of the boards relate specifically to' organising teachers and to temporary appointments to the staff of the Training College or Normal School. L In both cases the chairman seriously misrepresents the position. The regulations regarding organising teachers state : ' With regard to the general policy and method of directing the work of the teachers in the schools under his supervision, the organising teacher shall in all cases first obtain the approval of the Education Board and 'the senior inspector of. schools, oiv of an inspector selected by the senior inspector of. schools^and shall in all respects, so i"ar as circumstances permit, conform in his practice to the policy and method so approved by the Education Board and the inspector.' This gives all necessary freedom of action to the Education Board. The .Department certainly requires that it shaft be consulted regarding the. necessity of placing certain groups of schools under an organising teaehef. The necessity for such limitation by the Department may be judged from the fact that some boards desired to place as many as' thirty schools under an organising teacher, whereas experience shows he can effectively supervise only twelve or fifteen. Further, it has been found that, regardless of economy and efficiency, some boards have continued to keep under an organising teacher a group of schools of .which twothirds are reported, by the inspector to be good or satisfactory. Another board, regardless of expense which it does' not ha*Te to meet,from its own funds, transferred an organising teacher, at. considerable expense to the Department, from a, district where he was sorely needed to nnother area, where reports of the inspectors show that there was little T.eed of his services. . / v

"It may in general be stated that, out of 406 schools at first supervised by organising teachers, 244 ,are reported as being good or satisfactory, yet Mr. Forsyte appears to resent the attitude of the Department in endeavouring to control the distribution of organising teachers a.nd their work. ;

"With regard to appointments in the training colleges and normal schools, I have to state that the only unnecessary correspondence and delay, that have been occasioned in. connection with appoint-, meats, have been due to the unbusinesslike methods of the Wellington Education Board. In case of emergency the board has power to appoint a temporary or relieving teacher with a- recommendation to the Department that a certain salary be paid. Though it is required that these reports should be promptly made, a short time ago the Wellington Education Board, was five months in arrears with Tespect to its recommendations regarding relieving teachers. Further unnecessary delay has been caused by the board through omitting to send with . recommendations particulars which are known to be necessary.) Recently, delay lias also been caused through tho action of the board in endeavouring to make appointments under a system of its own, which makes it very difficult for a teacher from another district to apply for a position 'in the Wellington dastrict. This is a direct contravention to the intention of recent legislation.

"The Department has really been forcel by the action of the boards or of certain boards to place restrictions on their administration. If it were permissible to publish a list of some of the extraordinary actions of education boards, the public would'feel little surprise at the action of the Department in placing restrictions upon certain- practices."