CONSOLIDATED SCHOOLS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LX, Issue 18497, 6 September 1923, Page 9

CONSOLIDATED SCHOOLS.

APPROVAL OF principle,,,, REQUEST FROM ,TE AWAMUTU. ANXIOUS TO TRY EXPERIMENT. A request for the consolidation ." of schools in the Te Awamutu district was discussed by the Auckland Education Board yesterday. In a communication from tho»Te Awamutu Chamber of Commerce, forwarded by the Education Department/ the principle of consolidation of country schools, wherever possible, found approval. The chamber stated that it had every reason to believe that some country schools in the district were prepared to consolidate with Te Awamutu, and if it was proposed to try out the scheme in the Waikato. the chamber urged that the claims of Te Awamutu should receive consideration. The school buildings in the town were up-to-date, and the district roads were suitable for the conveyance of pupils. The advisory inspector, Mr. D. ' W. Dunlop, reported having visited Piopio and Otorohanga with the senior inspector of primary schools, _as requested by the department, to enquire into the possibility of establishing a consolidated school in one of those districts. He had gathered from the senior inspector that the department was considering the possibility of trying the experiment in one North Island and one South Island district. The suitability of .Te Awamutu as a centre would depend very largely on the It could be taken for granted that the cost of running a consolidated school would be greater than the cost of maintaining separate schools. The chairman, Mr. E. C. Banks, said about 600 or 700 children would be ready to start at Te Awamutu if a consolidated school were established. Probably . the cost of establishment would be less at Te Awamutu than at Otorohanga. It was decided that the advisory inspector and a member of the board visit To Awamutu and' report.