FREE PLACE PUPILS

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXVII, Issue 8365, 27 February 1913, Page 6

FREE PLACE PUPILS

We do not know whether the actingMinisier of Education shares his -•inet's merriment when things go vrong, and particularly when they are ;haped in a direction opposed to the ■ uterests of tho general community, if he does, he must bo almost tickled ;o death over the scandalous manner hi which a considerable number of Wellington children who have qualified for free places in the colleges have neen treated. Tho particulars were set out very clearly in a letter written by Mr Flux, headmaster of the South Wellington School, and discussed by the Education Board on Tuesday. Briefly, the position is that applications for free places at the Girls’ College closed on December 18th, while those scholars at South Wellington School who had by examination made themselves eligible for admission to the college were not made cognisant of the fact until December 19th. When they asked for admission to the higher institution they discovered that the available accommodation was all bespoken by girls from certain other schools in the city. ( .Now, the fortunate young people had not the shadow of right to this priority. The unfortunate ones are shut out through no fault of their own, and are certainly the victims either of grave neglect by their own school authorities or of what almost looks like sharp practice in other quarters. It transpired during the discussion by the Board that the pupils of several schools have shared this ill-treatment, and it happens that all of them are in localities principally populated by people of the working class. The chief inspector suggested that the pupils of “one school in the city” obtained inside information and went to the college “in a body” to apply for places. The time is coming when there will have to bo some very plain talking concerning the administration of the free place system, which is known to be altogether too democratic to bo welcome in certain circles. We do not blame the Government for every error of omission or commission that may be made by persons or bodies appointed under the Education Act, but we shall certainly hold the acting-Minister open to the gravest censure if he does not concern himself very actively in this grossly unfair treatment of deserving children in Wellington, and take drastic measures to see that none are jockeyed out of rights conferred upon them by tho Legislature.