BOARD OF EDUCATION.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXVIII, Issue 8538, 11 April 1891, Page 3

BOARD OF EDUCATION.

The Auckland Board of Education met yesterday. Present: Messrs. Udy (chairman), Motion, Luke, Lennox, Muir, Moat, Grant, and Cooper. The chairman welcomed the three new members of the Board, and they briefly replied. Accounts.—The accounts of the Board to the 31st March were submitted. The total assets and the maintenance fund were £13,633 8s sd, and the liabilities £5910 4s 9d, leaving a credit balance of £7723 3s Bd. The liabilities of the building fund were £-1065 18s r and the assets £1545 6s 9d, the excess of liabilities over assets being £2520 lis 3d. Girls' High School.—lt was announced in a letter from the Commissioners of Education Reserves that a grant of £250 had been, made out of the revenues derived from reserves for secondary education to the Auckland Girls' High School. Notices of Motion.—Notice of the following motions was given by Mr. Grant : — 1. "That whereas the Inspectors' examinations of schools are conducted some at one season and some at another, there can te no reliable criterion of the quality of teaching in the various schools. It is' therefore desirable that the Inspectors' examinations be limited to one period of the sear, and that arrangements be made accordingly." 2. "That whereas a large proportion of scholars at the public schools have learned by rote the lessons in their reading-books long before the annual examination, it be an instruction to the inspectors to examine the reading in every school from books not used therein as text books." 3. " That with the view of ascertaining and improving the standard of Education in public schools throughout the colony, it is desirable that an effort should forthwith be made to establish an interchange of examination questions by inspectors." 4. " That with the view of lightening the syllabus, an effort forthwith be made to have all drawing in schools made class subjects, except geometrical drawing, inclusive of plain drawing and drawing to scale. 5. "That, with the view of facilitating needful inquiries and considering suggested improvements, the Board appoint a committee to investigate the teaching in our schools, and to report thereon at an early date, one subject to be dealt with being text books used in our schools; and that this Board constitute the said committee, three to form a quorum." Mr. Muir gave notice of his intention to move. " That the following words in regulation 33, No. 2, be eliminated : —' In the case of all schools having an average attendance under 100 a complete copy of the school roll for the quarter, duly signed and certified by the teacher,'" Dr. Laishley's Essays.Dr. Laishley wrote as follows :—" In the hope that they may be acceptable, I forward herewith nine copies of my ' Education and Educator' essays, in order that each member of your Board may receive a copy. I do this because after years of careful thought, and after converse with many of the best authorities in the world, I am confirmed in the belief that the views expressed in my essays are true. Of course I fully recognise that they are unpopular here, and that their adoption would involve radical changes. But as it seems to me the sole question worthy of attention is, Are they true ? If the views in question be true, they, of course, ought to, and must eventually, prevail; and the longer the day that is deferred, the more is the community injured. These essays are, as you probably are aware, only rudimentary. For detail, I would venture to refer you to my larger work —that is, my State Education report, copies of which were, I believe, supplied to your Board." The gift was acknowledged with thanks. Auckland CoLLEG E and Grammar SCHOOL. —The Chairman proposed the re-election of Mr. Luke as a Governor of the Auckland College and Grammar School. Mr. Lennox seconded the motion, and said the most progressive movement of the Board of Governors, that of granting nine or ten certificates to children in the primary schools, had been undertaken at the instance of Mr. Luke. The motion, was agreed to. Whangarei High" School.—The Rev. L. L. Cubitt and Mr. A. H. Mason, who were nominated as the Governors of-the Whangarei High School, were appointed. Mr. Lennox said he had heard that it was intended to ■ re-open that school. The Chairman's Report.—The chairman reported that J. M. Somervell having declined "to take up his contract for erection of school building at Mangere Bridge, the next lowest tender, that of John Davis, £359, has been accepted. The Awitu committee had been informed that an error in the payment of the grant to the school fund would be rectified at the next half-yearly adjustment. The Komokoriki committee had been authorised to accept the tender of G. J. Vickers, £7 12s 6d, for the lining of the No. 2 school. The list of books submitted by the committee for the Lake school library had been approved. -.A memorial from, the Ngaruawahia residents regarding the. teacher had been referred to the local committee for their report. The committees of the undermentioned schools had been communicated with in terms of the inspectors' reports on the state of the school buildings and grounds:—Ararimu, Mata, Paparata, Te Puke, Waihou, Waipu Central, Waipu North River, and Waipu Upper. The following teachers had resigned—Miss L. L. Young, Swanson school; Miss E. Krippner, assistant, Patumahoe school; Miss E. J. Bennett, assistant, Russell school. Arrangements had been made as follow Miss A. Pascoe to Wayby; Miss S. Watson, assistant, to Te Kopuru; Miss M. Cranch, to Waitetuna aided school; Miss M. Patterson", pupil teacher, from Devonport to Lake Takapuna; Miss Florence Lever,; pupil teacher on probation, to Tauranga No. 1 school. The report was adopted. The Vacant Seat.—lt was announced that the candidates for. the seat rendered vacant on the Board by the retirement of Mr. Goldie, were Messrs, W. L. Buck-

hurst, E. W. Burton, O. T-,Hearne, and G. L. Peacocke. Tenders.— following tenders "were accepted :—lmprovements to the teacher's house, Kihikihi, T. E. Doyle. New North Road, £21 12s 6d; painting of the No.-2 School, Taotaoroa, T. Longville, £7 j painting teacher's house, Wainui, W. Kinsay, Wainui, £10. The only tender received for the painting of the No. 1 School and dwelling, Taotaoroa, that of W. McFarlane, £20 19s, was referred to the committee, as it was about £5 in. excess of the architect's estimate, C Howies School.—Mr. John Burrow, chairman of the Howick School Committee, and other members; attended the meeting, and protested against the proposed appointment to the school there of a pupil teacher who had not yet qualified, and was at present on probation only. On the motion of Mr. Cooper, it was resolved to send a second year, pupil teacher to the school. Papakura School.— The chairman of the Papakura School Committee asked that Miss Walter, who was a good teacher and very popular in the district, should be allowed to remain at the school there. The chairman said that Miss Walter was an excellent teacher, and had therefore been appointed to the charge of the Ngahinepouri School. After considerable discussion, it was resolved to adhere to the decision to appoint Misa Walter to the Ngahinepouri School. Mr. Udy said that another teacher would beseni to Papakura. Schools and ScnooL Accommodation.— It was decided to open a full-time school at Dacre's Claim, in the hall there, for six months, as an experiment. The consideration of establishing schools at East Tamaki and'SikManukau Heads was deferred until further information had been supplied. An application from Huanui, in the Whangarei district, that a school be opened there, was referred to the Whangarei committee. The people of Hukanui applied for £30, to be expended in repairing the building to be opened' there for a school. The decision of the Board to open a school if the residents provided the building was adhered to. An objection was received to the opening of the Mahurangi Heads school for full time. The matter was; referred to the Inspectors. The consideration of an application from the Paparata Committee for theenlargementof the schoolhouse was deferred for a fortnight. The Chairman reported that he had interviewed Mr. Cadman as to the .proposed site for a school at Russell, and - there was every probability that the Board would get the site. A good deal had been said about the condition of the Russell school from overcrowding, but no blame could be attributed to the Board, as they would be quite ready to build when the site was gra.ited. An application that parts of the Beresfordstreet and Nelson-street school-grounds be tarred and sanded was deferred, so that an estimate of cost could be obtained. A request was received from the Awitu committee that some kerosene lamps be procured for th« school-room, so that a night-school could be held there. It was decided to ask what number of lamps would be required. The Board resolved to ask for an estimate of the cost of repairing the drain and fence at thtf Grafton Road school. The Kauaeranga committee sent an account of £10 17s 6d for; Venetian blinds at the schoolhouse there. As the work had been urgent, it was done by the authority of the committee, who then sent the bill to the Board, asking them to pay. The Board agreed to discharge the liability, but to inform the committee that this action must not be taken as a precedent, as works of such a character should not be undertaken; without consultation with the Board. It was decided to place some gates at the Mount Eden Schoolground, at a cost not exceeding £5. A claim received for rent for the use or the Paparoa Homestead School. The consideration of the matter was deferred, a return of all schools held in buildings not belonging to the Board to be laid on the table. The Board received an application for a grant of ■ ;£6 for a bridge across a creek on the way to the Omaha School, Puriri. The settlers themselves, it was stated, had built the school, and the grant asked for was unanimously voted. An application for gymnastic apparatus at the Waiotahi School was granted. Teachers' Houses.lt was resolved to prepare specifications for a teacher's house at Papakura Valley. An application for fencing the teacher's house and grounds at Rotorua was referred to Mr. Albright. The estimated cost of the work is £50. Committee's Report.— The annual reports of various school committees were received. Their consideration was deferred for a fortnight. Typhoid. —ln a letter received from Mr, Harrow, it was alleged that typhoid had appeared at Lake Takapuna, and that the . insanitary condition of the school was the cause. It was-decided to forward this portion, of the letter to the Lake committee. Legal Opinion. —A country school committee wrote asking for information as to what was meant by " paid servant" in that clause of the Education Act stipulating that a paid servant of any committee or Education Board could not be elected to a seat on the Board or on a committee. They asked whether a man whose wife was paid to clean the school was a paid servant ? or whether it could be held that the husband of the sewing teacher was a paid servant 2 Mr. Cooper thought there was a good deal of weight in the questions. If the husband of the sewing teacher was not qualified, why should the husband of an assistant teacher, or the wife of a head teacher, be qualified to hold a seat on a committee ? It was decided to obtain from the Board's solicitors} a definite opinion on the subject, and send it to all of the-com* mittees.