DOMESTIC SCIENCE.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LVI, Issue 17255, 3 September 1919, Page 9

DOMESTIC SCIENCE.

QUESTION OF RECOGNITION. PAY OF INSTRUCTORS. A strong recommendation that the organiser of domestic science in Auckland, i Mies Juniper, should attend the conference of directors and superviso-s of technical education, to be held in Wellington on September 9, was made by Mrs. F. E. Baume at the meeting of the Education Board yesterday. It was most essential, said Mrs. Baume, that the matter of the domestic training of girls should receive ' attention as well as that of manual and technical training. Miss Junipers appointment wag, in a sense, unique in the Dominion, and she was in a position to bring before representatives from other centres the importance otf domestic science 1 instruction. Women never had attended | these conferences in the past, and it was ! entirely wrong that the girls' aide of work ! should never be considered. Several members of the board questioned whether Miss Juniper was eligible to at- I tend the conference, or whether she would i be able to effect any good purpose by | attending. Miss Juniper said she would be "uite I willing to attend if the board deeired it, i but personally she did not think any representations she might make would carry much weight. She certainly had never heard of any such conference in any other part of the world where women supervisors would not be included to represent i the interests of the girls. ] The board decided that no representative should attend, Mr. Kalaugher having ' intimated his inability to do eo, but that i i a letter should be sent to the Supervisors' j Association stating that the board would ! like to see domestic science more fully re- . cognised, and both Miss Juniper and Mr. i ' i | Kalaugher invited to future conferences. The pay and work of domestic science instructors was the subject of criticism by | I I members. During the consideration of the > I appointment of four teachers at country i \ centres, the chairman queried whether ' 5 I the salary offered, £180 a year, was i i sufficient to attract the beet type of teacher. The subject was an important ] - one, in which* it was necessary that only i • { exnert instructors should be appointed. < ■ | Mrs. Baume and other members supported . this opinion. Mis 6 Juniper, director of ? , domestic science, recommended an in- - j crease in salary, but said it was a regret- j j table fact that some of the instructors 1 were anything but efficient. She had I gone into one centre where the children had been instructed to briny one clean article of clothing to wash during a twohour laundry class. It was manifestly absurd to mstruct children how to wash clean clothes. In another centre she had found flour and sugar spilt on the floor, I with mice running around. For their own sakes, teachers should receive more training, and become more competent before they undertook the work of instruction. The hoard decided that tne scale of salaries should be £180, rising ta.i £200 after the first year. Tor teachers ] holding diplomas, and £200 and £220 for | those holding degrees. I "