THE EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTE.

Lyttelton Times, Volume LXXXI, Issue 10310, 31 March 1894, Page 6

THE EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTE.

NORTH CANTERBURY BRANCH. The annual meeting Canterbury Branch of the Now Zealand Educational Institute was held last evening in the hall of the Young Mena Christian Association. There was a large attendance of members, and several visitors, including members of the kduc*tion Board, were present. The Vice-President. (Mr T. S. Foster) occupied the chair. The annual report of the Committee of Management was read by the becretary, Mr C. Hall. It stated that there were 144 members of the branch, and that during theyear great interest had bean taken m the work of the Institute. Among other things the following matters had been discussed: The lightening of the drawing syllabus; the desirableness of classification m drawing ; the return to payment of salaries according to working average. The committae hailed with pleasure the institution of an Inspector’s Conference, and_ it was gratified to learn from reports of the proceedings that the conference advocated improvements that had been urged by this and other branches. The conference, it was hoped, would result in a more uniform interpretation of the syllabus m the various educational districts. Mr Hall moved the adoption of the report. The motion was seconded by Miss Alley, and carried. Mr F. J. Rowley, the treasurer, read the balance • effeet, which showed a credit balance of £1 13s 6d. and was adopted. Messrs T. S. Foster, C. S. Howard and J. Speight, members of tbo council of the Institute, accounts of the annual meeting held at Nelson in January, and were accorded votes of thanks for their services. n „ Tho retiring president, the Hon G. G. Bowen, delivered an address upon education. He said that in the presence of an assembly of experts—persons who had made a study of the science of teaching in all its branches—it would be most absurd on hia part to discuss questions which generally occupied their attention. But the principles upon which the national primary education system were based were olwavs of interest to them, and re was useful for them to sometimes.inquire into its performances, its effects and its dangers. After speaking of the history of tho system he said that hs hoped the country would never give up the local committees and the local provincial Education Boards, which had been established to protect the tcnools from the narrowing influences of centralisation. It should be remembered that a blunder made by a central office was infinitely more deadly and far-reaching than the most stupid blunder of the most incompetent committee. And the more intelligent a central department was, the mors inclined it was to usurpation. Therefore the intervention of the Education Boards was of the greatest benefit. They were, i Q larger sense than committees, influenced by public opinion, and their discussion of important subjects kept up public interest and prevented tha school system degenerating into a dead level of uniformity throughout the country. Ho would like to gpesk of a few of the objections against the present system of education. Firstly, as to expense. The expense was certainly very great, and it would be always necessary to sea that what funds were available should be administered with the utmost care ; but would anyone be satisfied that the whole of the rising generation should grow up without the means of making their way in tha world? It had been said that to tax tho whole community to support the schools was not right. The system was maintained by taxation to benefit the whole of the people if they chose to accept. Then it had been said that education as imparted at the primary schools did not prevent boys becoming larrikins. It was a fallacy to think that a mere smattering of letters was education, and that such would immediately bring a cultured mind to the pupil. It too often only led to a sort of self-conceit which despised elders who ware wiser, though perhaps not so book-taught, to mistake ill-manners for independence, and vulgar assurance foe force of chai acter. Society had to grow through a sort of hobbledehoy state, and if it would take more than a generation to educate it up to the level it should occupy then the sooner the work was undertaken the better. Elementary education, whatever people might say, was one of the chief atones of the foundation of the colony. (Applause.) Turning to the question of religious teaching in public schools, he said that schools did not profess, to and could not, give education on religious matters, although they did a great deal towards it. Even in tha echoo’s in Western Europe and in England supported by denominations it had been found inadvisable to have religious teaching; so, how much less should it bo adopted in New Zealand, where the whole support came from the State? The national system had to be one which could be taken advantage of by every part of the community, and the State could not exclude Roman Catholics from the schools by having religious teaching part of the curriculum. It was no argument to say that boys educated under the secular system- turned out to be larrikins. Tho • cause was not in the schools—it was in the homes. New South Waha had a perfunctory system of religious teaching in its schools, and were the boys of Sydney noted for their moral behaviour ? It was not generally known that the Act contemplated that the children should have religious teaching, hut it was provided that tha committees could grant the use of the schoolrooms for such purposes, and 9.30 had been specially named as the hour at which schools should open, so as to allow half an hour for religious teaching beforehand. If this clause had been taken advantage of, tha children would now have been receiving religious training of a better nature than any perfunctory system could impart, (Applause.) The national character of the education system had to be maintained, tmd it would not survive the granting of such claims as those put forth for orants-m-aid by the Roman Catholics or the introduction of Bible reading. Ha liked the establishment of good private schools, and ho thought they should be encouraged by having the right of State inspection if they wiahed. This had been contemplated by the Legislature, and any private school could be inspected if it was so desired. The refusal of this by the Auckland Education Board to a Catholic school had been against the spirit of the Act. Thera was a certain tendency in the schools to a narrow uniformity which he deprecated, and he also believed that a larger 'selection of books should be used. Children’s minds ware too often crammed hy a constant repetition of the same thing. Subjects should be presented in different forms, and the children presented with that which would make them think. They should not be restricted to narrow local ideas, but should be taken a little beyond the sphere in which they lived. He grudged much of the time that was at present spent, for instance, on the details of ’ geography. (Applause.) That time would bo better spent on the general features or tha world, and it would not huit the children to recognise that New Zealand was a very small bit of toe world. The liberty of the teachers should not be too much interfered with. Too little liberty was given for oral teaching, tho system being too much used up in standard examinations and not giving enough scope for live teaching. It was the fault of the regulations under which the national system was necessarily earned on, and teachers were compelled to go oa in the narrow circle of preparing their pupils in standards for ceitain examinations. (Applause.) If any change were made the system of inspection would have to be revised. He bad always advocated loss examination and more inspection. The inspector should be the friend of the schoolmaster and encourage any specia l ability on his part in any special Hue. -To ■var afraid, however, that it would be some time before the teachers would he able ti do anything other than manipulate examination machinery, fie thought that

inspectors should be officers of a central department. Mr Bowen then spoke of the paths in life generally chosen hy boys after leaving school, and he deplored tha lack of attraction farming occupations seemed to have for them. Ho would like to ree tho majority instead of the very small minority go in for outdoor employment. (Applause.) He concluded with the hope that those who had the making of the regulations of the primary system of instruction in New Zealand would not make them a kind of Procrustes’ bed, on which children Ware to be shortened or stretched to meat the exigencies of the system, hut that it would be made of sufficient elasticity to bring out each latent quality in every boy and girl. (Applause.) A vets of thanks was accorded to Mr Bowen for his address, and Messrs S. J. Alexander, E-. Watkins, T. S. Westou and C. J. Munmngs spoke upon the matters contained therein. The meeting then adjourned till tea o’clock this morning, at the Normal School.