EDUCATION NOTES.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLIX, Issue 14927, 27 February 1912, Page 4

EDUCATION NOTES.

BY MESTOIL

Xo one seems inclined to *.i , 'V the Local Government Bill i 7*7 Wrio^T Minute survives th 0 n£on£ a« «* »t is certainly not strong 12 , DQB del *£ provision in the Bill ia of ,£" J* <W j educationists, inasmuch ,s ? T 6St l * | foreshadowed in the admini.f, ♦ • * " educational s,stem. Thn T.. ° "* abolish education boards a, a Prop ° Ses » stit.ut€d, and to entrust IU PrM * Bt «*■ -« counts tlTZt** «P Ihia would ii,., n the w £ * ** "* -mo of the sma •dSii ,P 3»2 « ; Present existing, but it does *T*" f «>- enough to satisfy the wishes of 7 P fa ' ;«* teaching profession/ i 'EJ* 0 * * ; B enerall y hold that there i^Hi, ■education districts in ,j 10 D« m „ • ° Ur £rth* North and two The proposaL to hand over thoadt Di '«'" of education to a dbS.^l** -trusted with many 2? very careful consideration, or Eu l "??• could hardly do, etc the time. .* *»> the consideration of ed cat onal IT"* <« would probably mean, as i, "hi « • Jt London County Council, tho taSLV' education committee, to which ** trusted the work now w« b *« a « education boards. pcrfo by.^

! the Wanganui Education bSSKS? J7«JI - M '-- Stagpoole, head t S *. [the Linton school, has boon aronSl 0 { Interest in educational *"* the Wellington diSfe case h» boon going on during tho at angaria, and at Palmeraton N 2? before a Court consisting of Mr . ff^ S.M., with Mr. R. McXab represJL?!?* and Mr. E. I, Broad tho gjj Mr R D. Stewart, of Auckland, J«J ducting tho proceedings for Mr. SUgp<2' while Mr. Pirani is appearing for the 82} In the course of his evident, a JSSfel fltetemont was made by Mr StanSKS' tf» condition, under wUWSStaj After describing the bad discipline ESS existing on taking charge of KSSofS (went on to affirm: -The health of th! | children was very had, and it wJ, *£• common for them to collapse £ fffi? Tim.was largely due to the state aTi£ budding Hundreds of birds lived £'ft! roof, just above the children's held? £* their droppings used to fall on thoouffi Rain came through the roof, aoi Wt££« An insanitary green curtain divided thaX room into two, and the whole 67?fi£ taught in this one room. The liE? «3 bad that on cloudy day? SfSffi-- 1 worked m semi-darkness, while the fi were so placed that the north-west ,2 blew right through the budding. At ]£ end the water would often li a foot des underneath the school. Many of the cM dren suffered from. weak eyes, adiaoids, «rf Caches." If 67 childrW Wfaffl ■ .under these conditions tho fact reflects 3 discredit upon all concerned. ™3i

n ft^M lTmvr£ , lt y authority report' of the Rhodes scholars that white flS'-' have not forced their way into the 'S ;Tfj, rank M regards acad «mio distinction? yet they have done good work during t£ past year. In this connection it mis* to remembered that it was not the ahn 3 the late Cecil Rhodes to pick out™™ men who promised to distinguish tW selves simply by the amount of ]«wZ' they could assimilate; it was rather ha object to _ select all-round men-thosa who. while doing good work in their studies! would hold their own in sport, and in col'' lege.life generally— in short, who >. might bo expected to develop into leaden of men, or captains of industry. That such was the idea in Mr. Rhodes's mind is nude • dear by his directions to his trustees, There ' expressly lay it down that in the election" of a student to a scholarship regard shall be had to—(1) his literary and scholastio aW tainments; (2) his fondness for and success in manly outdoor sports, such as cricket, football, and the like; (3) his qualities of manhood, truth, courage, devotion to datr sympathy for and protection of the weak, kmdhness, unselfishness, and ■ fellowship; end (4) his exhibition during school days of moral force of character, and of instinct* to lead and to take an interest in, his school-; mates, Mr. Rhodes further suggested tha* two and three should be decided in ikyschool or college by the votes of fallow-, students, and four by tho head of the scbwl - or college. ,

_ The Rhodes scholarships have not;'tw»: instituted for a sufficiently long time to enable us to judge how far the founder's hopes and aims are going to be realised. Moreover, it must be remembered that it » a very difficult matter to estimate and measure with any degree of accuracy til*' results of a college or a. university ooub#.i Statistics have been • compiled on several .' occasions to show the relation between 'rink' m college and success in after life, the success in life being usually estimated either by the appearance of the names of graduates in such a publication as " Who's Whoffj -or by the estimates of class-mates and ot'tets. But the first of these tests usually giv#ti>o; much weight to purely literary or echolistia! qualities; the latter to a prominence duo to | | wealth acquired possibly by marriage oi? inheritance, for the conclusion arrived tk to be very convincing. No doubt colonial' scholars going direct from a comparatively | minor college to a great university such,! as | j Oxford must waste some time in adapting themselves to now conditions,, but the oppor*': unity afforded to our picket, men of spend-1 ing three years at a university with such a glorious national tradition in language and : literature, and with such a controlling 'consciousness of this tradition in the minds of teachers and taught is a truly magnificent one. Tho future will, without doubt, fully establish the greatness of Cecil Rhodes'! scheme. .

That exploded futility about the/'good old times" passes through one's mind on ;, reading tho account, which has recently appeared in print, of the duties of a echo* master in the little commune of Courloft in 1768; good old times, indeed, if over they existed. . The duties are detailed thus:— ' He will attend every service in tho church, on ali feast days and Sundays, and he will btt'"y present at all burials, services, and special'', guild meetings. He will rule and teach'tn» young folk well and truly, and, as far as 3» can, with moderation and without hatred or passion; ho will correct them only with th» birch, without anger or malice. Twice ft ■week ho will catechise in the school. On •' saint days and Sunday.* ho will take car* that tho children do not play in tie neigh- i; bourhood of the church during catechism, and this will not prevent him being also in the church to compel the children to behave with proper decency. As it is recognised that the sound of consecrated beu» v drives away storms as soon w one breaks, ;' the schoolmaster will go and ring a full peat whether it be by day or by night." • 8a : ■■'.': Boyle Roche's famous bird, which was in two places at once, would find it hard to ; compete with this dominie of olden times, who was to drive away the noisy boys from their play outsido the church, and yet was _ to be all the time inside the building pro-' j ' moting, with the aid of the birch rod, :' "decent" behaviour there. J i

i _ ihe domiuie of Courlon was no isolated , instance. Strict and elaborately detailed. tj regulations were drawn up, and entered on;, I the- municipal records of the times. Beside* I such duties as those mentioned above, the • pedagogues of this golden ago were tied > down to a rigid observance of the inert : curious rules- They couldn't leave thoparish ; ; i without the vicar's' express consent. They, acted as clerk to the vicar of their respective parishes in nil his functions, by day or -<i by night. Of course, they led their flock. v two 'by two, it is expressly ordered, to the t I church; beforo doing which it was their j duty to collect their charges in school, and,' , y while waiting for tho church bell to cease,,. ; f Ito read aloud to them from some pious : i book. Sumptuary regulations, too, there , I were. For instance, it was enacted tha* > ',! schoolmasters must wear their hair short' | i and modest, (no flowing curls, love-locks, or . i | other delusive attractions for the school- • i ; I master of the good old times), during ser- *f#;| I vice they were enjoined to appear in # cassock, surplice, and square cap- Strictly clad and with strict duties to perform, the poor dominie had to walk ctraightly. * or j "it is forbidden that they keep, i/ms, pW ~ I I i publicly on the violin or other instrument^ I' or attend dances and evening Assemblies. How many, I wonder, of my teacher friends have yearnings for any return of ' the good old times?" , • ,