WELLINGTON TRAINING COLLEGE.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 753, 6 August 1886, Page 17

WELLINGTON TRAINING COLLEGE.

INQUIRIES INTO ITS WORKING.

A meeting of the Training College Committee was held at the Education Board office yesterday. Present —Messrs J. R. Blair (Chairman), J. Youngs H. Su&ny 9 A* W. Brown, Dr Newman, and the Rev J. Paterson.

The meeting was called to discuss Mr Young’s proposal for an inquiry into the working of the Training College.

Mr Yonng said in asking for the inquiry he approached the subject in no unfriendly spirit to the institution. He recognised the fact that in Wellington we were Angularly deficient In educational institutions of a superior character, and consequently could not afford to part with the Training College. His object in bringing forward his motion was to see if the institution could not be rendered more popular. He had long been of opinion that the public were not getting a quid pro quo for its large expenditure in connection with the College, for he found that its average cost was £1,7C0 a year. That was one aspect of the question, but there was another and far more important one, namely, that the students were not getting that amount of. instruction that they and the public had a right to expect. The result was that the students were losing the golden opportunity essential to enable them to perform their important daties in after life. The information supplied to him by the Principal showed that the school had not done tfiat amount of work, or showed such results as they had a right to expect from such an institution. He gathered from the returns—although there was a slight discrepancy—that 90 or 95 pupils had passed through the school. In six years there had been six examinations, and 40 certificates issued, 32 E , 7 D., and 1 C. The number of successful pupils was only 33, because 5 or 6 of them had obtained more than one certificate. No less than 10 out of the 33 had done the whole or greater part of the work before they went to the College, so that reduced the number to 23. They were therefore brought face to face with the fact that they were turning out for £I7OO a year only some 5 or teachers, or in other words, that each pupil coat from £250 to £3OO. Last year the average number of pupils attending the school was 17. He found that in Otago, including Southland, there were 631 teachers employed ; the Training College at Dunedin showing an average attendance of 48. In Canterbury there were 594 teachers with an average attendance at the Normal School of 39. Auckland showed 648 teachers, with an average attendance at the College of 28 ; while Wellington, which had Hawke’s Bay, Taranaki, Nelson, and Marlborough to draw from, numbering 699 teachers, had an average attendance at the Training Qollege of only 17. We had, therefore, thV' largest number of teachers to draw from, and the smallest school. What was the cause of the paucity of the numbers ? He had been about the districts mentioned, and found that the teachers said they would rather go to Christchurch or Auckland on account of the unpopularity of the Wellington Training College. Having referred to the time-table as unworkable, and to other details of the school, Mr Young said it was a remarkable thing that no creditable teacher had been turned out of tbe school, unless he or she had been a teacher before going there. The institution could not teach school management or the art of instruction, and he felt that a seriou3 responsibility rested upon tbe Board, as the guardian of the pubiic interests, for the state of things prevailing at the College. In answer to the Chairman as to what he proposed, Mr Young said he had come to the conclusion, after careful deliberation, that they had the wrong man in the position of Principal. He therefore moved that three months’s notice be given to the Principal of the Training College, and that they advertise in all the Australasian papers for a person qualified to fill the post. He was quite certain that they could get a first-clasß man for the salary (£500). The Rev. J. Paterson dissented from Mr Young’s statement that the school was unpopular. Mr Bunny said if Mr Young’s statement was correct, it showed that a large amouut of money wa3 being thrown away. He had thought for some time that they were not getting as much as they should for £1,700 a year. He should, however, like to know more about tbe matter before he supported the motion. . , . Mr A. W. Brown said he had been impressed by what Mr Young had said, and was inclined to second the motion to allow discusThe Rev. J. Paterson said he had read over the returns very carefully and found that the percentage of passes compared with the number of students was larger than that of any other district in the Colony. The.attendance was certainly small compared with the area they had to draw from, but the districts mentioned about Wellington did not send pupils to this College. No doubt the expenditure was large for such small results, but it was the same in other training schools of the Colony, and it had to be remembered that very many more pupils could be received than were forthcoming. He thought it would be much better if there were only one or two training schools in the Colony. Dr Newman thought Mr -Young had mixed matters up a little. He was perfectly right in raising tbe question as to whether Mr Howard was the right man in the position, but he had gone further and tried to show too much. He (Dr Newman) did not consider the statistics brought forward comprised the whole facts, and he would be prepared at the next meeting of the Board to show that the cost of turning out the pupils was not £250 oc £3OO each. He was prepared to prove that the Wellington Sohcoi was not costing more on an averags than other similar schools in the Colony. Mr Bunny moved that further discussion be adjourned until tbe next meeting of the Education Board, and that Mr Howard be requested to attend that meeting. Also, that the Secretary write to Hawke s Bay. Taranaki, Nelson, and Marlborough to inquire if any and what number of pupils have been sent from those districts to the Training Schools at Auckland and Christchurch. He thought the number of teachers said to be drawn upon by Wellington might be reduced from 699 to 400. He was glad Mr Young had brought the matter forward, a 3 he had lon<r been of opinion that the Training School was* costing a large amount of money considering tbe amount of work being done. The Rev J. Paterson thought it would be injurious to the institution and cause disaffection amongst the students if the inquiry was held over. It would be well to have the matter settled as quickly as possible. Mr Bunny thought it would do good ultimately to the school, as a large amount of l disaffection had been expressed by the public.

The motion that the inquiry be adjourned until next Board meeting was then pnt and carried, and the Committee adjourned.