UNIFIED CONTROL

Evening Post, Issue 87, 9 October 1936, Page 14

UNIFIED CONTROL

EDUCATION POLICY

The Board of Managers of the Hutt Valley Memorial Technical College, decided to supporMhe action of the Auckland Grammar School Board in a request to the Minister of Education for a conference of representatives of the post-primary schools to consider proposals which have been put forward to unify the control of all schools from the' kindergarten to the pijstprimary schools under education boards.

Mr. W. V. Dyer put forward the views expressed at a conference of education boards which had favoured the proposal. Primary education had in. the past, said Mr. Dyer,. been starved and it was desired to bring the grants for primary schools up to those for post-primary schools, Unity of control would enable education boards to follow a child through all the stages of his education and to co-ordinate the whole system of education.

Mr. E. N. Campbell referred to the discussion on the subject at the meeting of the technical schools' representatives .which had generally been unfavourable to the proposal.

Mr. W. B. Nicholson said that so far as the Hutt Valley post-primary schools . were concerned the proposal would be a retrograde step. The local boards would go out of existence and the councils which would take their place would have little control and direct touch with the Education Department would be lost. The past experience of the college, .when it was controlled by the Education Board, was that important matters were sidetracked and never reached the , Department. His personal view was that all education after the primary schools, i.e., intermediate and secondary, should be'under the control of local boards which, would in each case control all these- schools in the district. This would enable local interest and knowledge to be retained. It was decided that education boards should be invited to the proposed conference. ■ ,