EDUCATION SYSTEM

Evening Post, Volume CIX, Issue 149, 27 June 1930, Page 15

EDUCATION SYSTEM

INSPECTOR S1 CONFERENCE

Reviewing the work of the 'recent conference of primary and secondary school inspectors and departmental beads, the Director of Education: (Mr. T. B. Strong) states that a scheme was adopted whereby "there would be closer . co-operation between training college staffs and the inspectors. There would be dn interchange of visits, and an attempt would be made to keep the training college, principals..in closer touch with the work of probationary assistants who were completing their fourth year of training. Reference was also made'to the desirability of close attention being paid to speech-training in the colleges. V The requirements of the training, collegu entrance examination were also discussed. The -Department undertook to give consideration to a recommendation that. the requirements in mathematics, should be modified. The' suggestion that possibly primary school pupils might, without undue pressure, be reasonably expected to reach a higher standard of attainment, was the subject of lengthy discussion, as also was the inclusion of secondary subjects into the curriculum of Forms I. and 11. (formerly Standards V. and VI.). It was decided that the question was one of great importance to all "the schools, whether primary or secondary, and that a comniittee should make a closer investigation of the matter than was possible at the' conference. . A great many detail matters relative to the award of grading marks to primary school teachers were discussed, and decisions arrived at that should have the effect of making the grading more uniform throughout the Dominion. Opinions were strongly expressed that the present system of annual grading absorbed much valuable time that would be better spent by the inspector in actual work in the schools. A system of biennial grading was favoured. The Department adopted a suggestion that the salary of relieving teachers should correspond more closely with their position on the graded list.