SCHOOL COMMITTEES ASSOCIATION.

Lyttelton Times, Volume XCIX, Issue 11542, 31 March 1898, Page 3

SCHOOL COMMITTEES ASSOCIATION.

The first annual meeting of the School Committees Association of North Canterbury was held in the Normal School last evening; present—Mr M. Sandstein (chairman) and Messrs M’Clea, W. J. Watson, J. Clark, E. J. Pauli, J. B. Sim, H. G. Ell, F. C. Hall, J. G. Glass, G. Watson, E. Thompson and M. Dalziel, jun. In presenting its report for the first full year of the Association’s existence, the executive congratulated the Association upon the work initiated during the year, although it had not been found possible, to carry many of the matters to a successful or satisfactory issue. The membership of the Association had steadily increased, there being nineteen committees affiliated, as against eleven at the beginning of the year; but now that the rules had been altered to allow of country committees appointing delegates outside of their own members, it was confidently hoped that a much larger increase would ensue at the commencement of the new year. During the year several matters closely connected with the educational system had been considered by the Association at its quarterly meetings, such as the question of the mode of election of members of the Board of Education and of Governors of Canterbury College, creating a seventh standard, and raising the school age to fourteen years to harmonise with the Factory Act. Eepresentation on these subjects had been made to the Education Department, but as legislation was necessary to give-effect to the Association’s views, they would haveto wait until that could be passed. The report statedthatit would be the duty of theincomingexecutive to follow up the matters of the Gainmack scholarships, school holidays, school prizes, technical education, sewing in schools and uniformity in school books, and endeavour to have the Association’s views given effect to. The balancesheet showed the receipts from May, 1897, to have been <£l6l6s Bdand the expenditure £l2 16s, leaving a credit balance of .£6 Os Bd. The report and balance-sheet were adopted without discussion. Notice of motion was given by Mr E. Thompson that the Association should take into consideration the desirableness of co-operating with the Teachers’ Institute with reference to the appointment of teachers. Notice _of motion was also given that provision should be made in the public schoolssystem for the instruction of imbecile children. The meeting-then closed.