EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTE

New Zealand Times, Volume LXXI, Issue 4331, 15 April 1901, Page 5

EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTE

THE WORK IN THE ENGII.SH SCHOOLS.

In a paper read before the Wellington Educational Institute on Put art lay. ei titled “Gleanings from English School Board Reports,” Mr C. Watson, 8.A.. he ad master of the Willis street School, gave some interesting particulars of education in England. He desex-ibed the very extended functions of the Loudon School Boards, showing that ll.r-y exercised a general supervision over elementary education, and had the power to establish schools for the deaf, o'iud and me/ntally deficient, to carry on industrial and evening schools, and were ab'a to levy rates. He pointed out that many of the schools were free, and that fees were seldom over threepence per wee);; but tlio .'collecting of fees and the recording; .of the hours of . .attendance, and much other registration! work, was a great Burden, which the teachers here were spared, mainly owing tp the efforts of the late Mr Habeas. All the large urban boards, he said, employed a large staff of : organising experts and - teachers for such’ subjects as music, manual instruction, cookery, drill, art. swimming and iso , on. The system of enforcing school’ ’attendance., was wonderful in its results. There were large staffs of district visitors, who kept registers, pained by a house-to-house visitation, of. all children of school age, and; the system is so rigidly followed that the attendance Overage is very high. • •"> Each school has a school-keeper; and in London alone the wages of school-keepers amounts to £60,000. With regard to staffs and salaries. Mr Watson stated that the average salary of a head master at Home was £295. and that of a head mistress £217-, while the minimum salary for a teacher is £BS. He described the method of training pupil teachers. A discussion followed the paper, addresses being given by Messrs Grundy, MacMorran, Pilkington and the president (Mr T. HjGiII). Mr Watson was given a hearty vote of thanks. Four new members were elected. It was decided that practical recognition should be made of the services of Mr Erskine, the late secretary, and the matter was referred to the Management Committee. ’ Mr MacMorran gave notice of the following “motion:—“That this institute considers that the recent change in the regulations rendering it necessary for pupil teachers to retire from the service at the end of their fifth year ,should not apply to those apprentices who were in the employ of the Board previous to the change being made, and would respectfully urge the Board to reconsider its decision as regards such pupil teachers.” '' Mr Watson gave notice that he would move at next meeting*—“That after the end of this financial year this institute ceases to contribute to the local defence fund.”