THE EDUCATION DEPARTMENT AND FEES.

Oamaru Mail, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 10591, 21 October 1910, Page 1

THE EDUCATION DEPARTMENT AND FEES.

(Pek Press Association.>

Dunedin, October 20. At a meeting of the Education Board to-day the Rev. P. B. Fraser initiated a discussion on the subject of the fees charged by the Education Department to pupil teachers. In moving that in the opinion of the Board the fees charged by the Department foi matriculation and civil .service 'examinations are excessive,- and' should be leduced. Mr Fraser said "education was supposed to be free, and if payment was made at all by students it should be to teachers who coached them. The fee for matriculation was two guineas and for the civil service one guinea. Every time a pupil teacher sat tor the latter examination ho paid one guinea, not merely to get a certificate, but even if he sat for one subject. Pupil teachers were compelled to sit for this examination: The Department took .£4OOO from students for the teachers' examinations alone. Mr Fraser quoted the case of a young man in a school m Dunedin. He had already paid £4 12s 6d for coaching fees (whereas coaching ought to be done by the headmasters), and he had still'eight lessons to pay for at 2s 6d a lesson, and in addition had a fee of £2 2s to pay for sitting for the examination. That was a nice total to have to pay in,one year out of a salary of £4O: Mr Fraser 'quoted another case of a girl who had had to pay £9 18s out of a- salary of £25. The head tea'chers' salaries had t been increased partly" with the intention that . pupil teachers should be coached, whereas they received in many cases very little coaching," and had to ' employ, 'private coachers. 'An outrageous amount of work was put,on pupil teachers' shoulders, such an amount as reached-the'proportions of/'sweating."- . " . -Mr J. • Mitchell seconded. He thought the fact should b« emphasised that the fee's were keeping eligible young people from the profession. Where a matriculation examination was set as a preliminary to entrance at a training _ college the fee should be returned a's soon as the teacher entered on his college course. It", was finally resolved to discuss the matter further at next meeting.