MUMBLING OR READING?

New Zealand Herald, Volume XVII, Issue 5877, 17 September 1880, Page 6

MUMBLING OR READING?

TO THE EDITOR. Sir,—Lα England and elsewhere a stand i a being made against extravagant expenditure ia educational grants, and tgainat the cur nculum of primary schools being preten tiously swollen with clones and foreign, languages. But surely no one will maintain that such objections are applicable to the teaching of the three it'a o f which reading is the first. Now it la a simplo fact, as the interesting lenort lately made by Inspector O'Sullivan testi ties, that correct reading is not duly taueht in the public schools ; and indeed the same remark would apply to schools or colleges oE secondary education. Under these circumstances the Auckland Boird of Education recently made a good hit, when, for an extremely small saiary, they secured the services of a specially qualified teacher of elocution, wh» should visit the several Echools —a gentleman whose specialty in this matter is highly appreciated by persons beat qualified to decide, and who have had opportunities of judging. If any good masters o£ our public schools feel their amour propre somewhat wounded by this appointment I venture respectfully to suggest to them that the feeling is a mistaken one, as it is no dis. paragement whatever to a highly qualißed teacher that ha should, in a given branch be assisted by a gentleman having a professional speeialty. The public have been treated to rather too much of uninformed grumbling upon this subject, end it ia to be hoped that we shall have no more of it —I am - &0 -. ■ JR.K.