SECONDARY EDUCATION.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 7636, 9 August 1886, Page 3

SECONDARY EDUCATION.

At a meeting of the Secondary Education Committee, Oamaru, the convener, Dr Macgregor, read the provisional finding as to course of instruction agreed to at last meeting, and the provisional programme as to teaching staff as thus far completed was found to stand as follows :—I. A rector for classical department, including modern languages with (highest) English; salary, say, *500, with profits from boarding-house, paying rent to governors. 11. A master for commercial department, including mathematics and (highest) arithmetic, with generally the positive scientific side of culture suitable for youth; salary, say, £400 with rectory. 111. A lady principal in charge of the distinctively feminine branches of the education and of some important branch of the main instruction, say, the junior division, with help of an assistant teacher; salary, say, £250. IV. Two assistant teachers, of whom at least one shall he female.— This includes one teacher more than was prescribed by the Rev. Dr Stuart in his evidence at the Parliamentary Commissioners' inquiry about Otago (Duuedin) High School in 1873, as sufficient &r a really efficient teaching of 150 boys ;n a school of the type now proposed, which was the type then recommended by hiia as the ideally good one for secondary education in this country. \Ve allow for girls being taught in different schools from boys, though it may be by the same teachers passing from room to room at different hours. We have supposed 150 pupils, male jyid female, entering not before the pupil has passed the third standard of the Now fe'.luud code or an equivalent examination. This, upon the Dollar system, woidd leave one year of High School teaching bo-fora distinctively secondaiy instruction o? the senior division; and upon the Madras College schime, two years. The committee are ot' op'nion that the attendance would probibly be much beyond 150; but observe that if an enlarged staff be neet\e;l in this way, there will bo at the same time aa enlarged revenue. The main wovk of to-day's meeting was careful studj of the financial aspects, on occasion o£ a report of Mr Elder, of Maheno. It appeared that the clear annual revenue from ' reserves—not including the Eveline Estate—to be relied on when the new leases come to be given, in 18SS, is a little above £1000. Tho Eveline Estate, allowing for debt on buildings and grounds of the Waitaki school, has a clear value of what may be safely placed at £4500. Though the existing buildings should be worth simply nothing, the above programme is amply provided for by the available resources. In order to leave a wide margin for free ad-miss-ion of boys and girls passing a high esaaiiuatioii, tho committee think that the see might be m:ule £4 instead of the Waitnki 10 guineas.— [Cijiiumtnieattd.]