EDUCATION BOARD.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 10290, 22 February 1895, Page 3

EDUCATION BOARD.

Tha ordinary meeting of the Education Board wa9 held yesterday, and attended by Messrs J. Green (chairman), J. J. Ramsay, J. F. M. Fraser, H. Clark, T. Mackenzie, Dr Stenhouse, and the Hon. J. MacGregor.

PUPIL TEACHERS. Inspector Goyen wrote:—To the vacant pupil teacherbhips in the city and suburban schools I have the honour to recommend the appointment of Isabella M'Giegor to the Caversharu School; Olivia Batkrnsn and'Win. E. MeckaeUf, Forbury; Harry Urquhart and Catherine O'CVunell, High street; Wm. R. Cook and May A. White, Arthur street; Ellen Chalmers and Lilian F. Jones, Normal; Florence Bressey and Jane K. Brown, George street; Elizabeth Duthie, Union street; Beatrice Barr, Kaikorai. Inspector. Taylor recommended that John Kerr Edie and Louisa A nnie Grant bo appointed pupil teachers in the Tokumsiriro District High School. Inspector Fitzgerald recommended Jessie F. L.- Cameron for the pupil teacher vacancy in the Palmerston Di;tcict High School; and Sarah Dale and Peter P S. Finlayson for the racancks in the Port Chalmers District High School. The recommendations were agreed to. THE MOA CREEK SCHOOL. The following letter, dated February 16, was received from Mr Alexander M'lntosh, secretary to the Mta Creek School Committee :— At a meeting of the committee held last night I waa instructed to write to the Education Board respectfully requesting thim to put out applications for a teacher for our school, so that wo can have it opened after the harvest holiday. The children have lost over six months' schooling, and it will tak« them a whole year to inak« up what they have lost. Trustiag that the board will give the matter favourable consideration and give us a teacher as Boon as possible,—l I'tmain, &c."

Mr Fbaseh said that he was glad, in common with the rf st of the mtinbtrs of the board, to see the last of the controversy. At the same time he recognised he had a duty to perform in the matter, and he could not overlook the fact that this committee had thown disrespect towards the board. They had declined to allow the board to exercise any right of ownership whatever over the building in wbich tho teacher paid by the board conducted the school: They had refused to give them the key of the building and set them at defiance. He thought .the difficulties of the position would be met by the following resolution, which he proposed:— " That: before they recognised the school in any shape or form the school building be placed under, the board's control, so that they might avoid a repetition uf the unseemly dispute which arose over that building; and that, in justice to the board, the committee should express their regret for their past action "

Mr Ramsay seconded the motion pro forma, and reserved to himself tho right to vote againßt it if a proposition he deemed more suitable were advanced. He wished to refer to the point—an important point, and one which Mr Eraser overlooked—and that was whether the Moa Creek Committee were entitled to a teacher at all. If they looked up their records they would find that Moa Creek was not entitled to a teacher, and if they were entitled to anything they were entitled simply to a subsidised teacher such as other districts possessed. He had no personal feeling in this matter at all, but had fought the question right through on the principle that the education system was a secular 6ystem. So far as the Moa Creek case was concerned, it. involved a principle which the board should uphold. He agreed with Mr Fraser that if they gave the committee a teacher which they were not entitled to they would be rewarding them, as it were, forrebelliug against the law of the land and the authority of the board. He would suggest to Mr Frafer that he should withdraw his motion and substitute ■one to the effect that the committee be informed they were not entitltd to a teacher. The Moa Creek Committee by their own action had closed the scbool — (Mr MacGregob : Hear, hear), —and how they bad no right to ask the board to reopen it. To open a school there at all was Dot in accordance with the regulations, and he for one would not vote for its reopening. Mr Ramsay then referred to an opinion by the board's solicitors, which he read as follows :—

Re the Moa Creek School.—We are asked to advise the Education Board whether it has the right to the possession of the above school. We understand that the school committee provided a building for school purposes. They state, through their chairman, that the undoajjajidfnf; was that if they got a building, and JfS&^J) school going successfully for a year^JjHTpSH would. most likely build a schooL-. > QJ Wft Jatiuary 1892 the chairman of the CQfcMKce wrote to the board stating that the iSflßm had been carried on for the year agreed on, and that the committee hoped that the board "would look with favour upon their request" (to provide a school). The board thereupon voted to the committee £7 10d per annum from Ist January 189.* as rent of the building used as a school. This fact was communicated to the committee by the board's secretary in a letter dated 18th January 1892. We do not think that, under the circumstances, the board can be said to be tha owEer or possessor of the budding. The building waa a private one, and the board did not become the tenant of it. What the bo»rd did waß to make an allowance to the committee in lieu of building, or providing, a school. There does not seem to have been any agreement between the owner and the Educatiou Board, unless the committee could, and did, biud the board under the authority of the letter of the ISth February 1592. We are of opinion, however, that this letter did not authorise the committtie to enter into any agreement on behalf of the board.

It appeared to him that their hrrarsgemtnts iu the matter had b.en very slipshod and not creditable to the board, when r.ller pa>im;

' mousy away the,committee shoifid be able to j fchut the door in fcbe board's fade in the manner ' thut had been doco, and iu future transactions I ff the Viud thoy bbould, tak,e legal precautions j ihtti tfoi'ld prtivt-nk auj tlx'w'x of tho kind occurring again. J.)r Stbnhousk hupi.il that the board would net be gntded iu tlil« witter tither by Mr ! l'ltsjr or Mr Riwisiiy. Mr Prasci' waS a ScoiiiWau, and like all Sci>U:bmeii, and Highlanders ! c specially, he did ui.t m.fc know when he was benUu. ..The- Moa Creek Committee had beaten that boawl—(Ccits of "No" siud, "How")— and in lm opinion it had beaten the board oa the merits of the case. Mr Fkaseu : How is that ? Mr MacGukouu : Uxplain yourself. . Dr Stenuousk : Because they had not received tho teacher which they did not want to receive Mr Ramsay : Sho gob her Balary. Dr Stmnhousb : Tbut board had no legal right to pay that salary, and if tho attention of the Public Auditor was called to it, the board would have to refund the amount. They had no right to pay money awiiy without getting a return for it. What they had to consider wa3 the request of the Moa Creek Committee for a

teacher. At the time.the school was closed there were 18 or 20 clilldreu, and the parents of these ohildrcn were entitled tti have them educated by the law of the laud, iwd the board, therefore', had no right to refuse them a teacher. Even admitting that the attendance was under tha number which entitled them to a fullsckool, he thought it would bo altogether benc-ftth the dignity of that board to take advantage of a technical point to deny the application, seeing that the school formerly existed. As for asking th'l committee to exprt ss an apology for their conduct to the board iu this matter, Mr l'raser ought to know that the committee stood up for what they o msidered a priuciplo as much as his friend Mr Ramsay. Mr Ramsay : What is the principle ? Dr StsNnousE (warmly) • The principle was this—that neither the Government nor the board had auy right to insist on their accepting a teftcher againtt their wish, and if the Government of the colony wished to burst up the whole system they could not take more efficient means I

than by trying to coerce the committees and the parents of childreu. The right did not exist, and they would not stand it. It seemed to him that the most digniiied couree was to give effect to the requeet of the committee. He moved that the request be granted, and that a teacher be sent forthwith. Tho amendment was not seconded. Mr Mackenzie was pleased that the dispute was settled. At the Bame time he did not agree with Dr Stenhouso in regard to the principle of the thing. The fact Clearly remained that the committee had endeavoured to upset the principle of the education system by not receiving the teacher becaune she happened to bb, a Roman Catholic. That was the whole

thing in a nutshell.—(Hear, beai.) The committee had defied the board by not allowing the use of the building, for which it paid rent He hoped that the possibility of such a thing occurring in the future would be removed. If a school committeo could refuse a teacher on any plea thoy liked to advance, as soon as a committee were tired of a teacher they cculd clear him out. While he was of that opinion, he did not think the district should be deprived of a teacher. He should therefore support tho sending of a teacher to the school.

Dr Stenhousb: They will find means of getting him out, too. The Hon. Mr MacGrecjoh: Yes; if they had many more like you ou tins board. Me Mackenzie: However, I do not think the children ot Moa Creek should be deprived of a teacher altogether. The Hon. Mr MacGkeqor said the position was this : They were asked to appoint a teacher in a district in which the boaid hud no school. There ha'i been a school there, and the school cemmittef, by an set of their own, had closed the school. The school afc the present moment remained closed, and would remain closed until the board reopened it or made some other arrangement?. Xhe committee wanted a teacher now. That was the position before the board had appointed Miss White. They were all agreed, ha supposed, th&t they should not send a teacher again to the district on the same terms that fccey had sent Miss White, and the point then was whether they should build a school or make some provision for one. In regard to the appointment of a teacher, the number of children in the district waß not sufficiently large to entitle the board to send a teacher there. No doubt they had established schools with email attendances in other districts, but under special circumstances. The special circumstances in this caso wero all the ether way, and therefore he for one was net prepared to say that the committee were entitled to a teacher from the board. He could not shut his eyes to the way in which the committee had treated the board, and he thought they should simply refuse the application. H the school had batn closed for six months it was not through any fault of the board, but through the fault of the committee.

Tfle Chairman said he entirely differed from the Hon. IVir MacGregor, and took a very different view in connection with this uialter. Mr MacGregor had not got over the difficulty of leaving a considerable number of clildren without education. Mr Ramsay ; Let them provide a building. The Chairman : Treat all the others in the r>ame way. They had provided a building and put a teacher in districts where the number of children was smaller. If any member of the board moved that a site be selected it would get over the difficulty. Mr Kamsai- : Are you prepared to vote for a site? The Chairman : I should think so. Mr Ramsay : Well, why did you not do so when the proposal was before the board ? I proposed it, and it was negatived. Tbe Chairman : Well, if you propose it now I will support it. Mr Ramsay : What has altered your opinion ? Tee Chairman : My sympathy is with the children alene, and if you move it I will vote for it.

Mr Ramsay : My sympathy has always been with the children; that's why I move it now. Mr Clark thought the board should tike some action to secure a building for a school.After 6ome further discussion, Mr Fraser said he would delete from his motion I he clause requesting the committee to express its regret for its conduct.

The motion was then put and lost, Messrs Fraser, Ramsay, and the Hon. Mr MacGregor voting for it, and the others against it. Mr A. M'Kerrow at this point took his seat at the table.