CURRENT TOPICS.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 11396, 13 April 1899, Page 4

CURRENT TOPICS.

In viow of recent correspondence on th* subject, some criticisms hy the school "Saturday Review" on bcliool books. hooks may prove instructive. According to tlio Review, the (subject of school books baa boen shamefully neglected by tiie English educational authorilies. Tho school boards are charged with ' both incompetence and neglect in tlio selection of school boohs. They seldom trouble " to appraise the educational merits of tho books they use; their chief aim boing to securo the largest discount from the most squeezable purchaser." The result i_. that tho, whole responsibility of producing school hooks is relegated to publishers, who approach the subject from the commercial rather than the educational standpoint. The publisher** aro accused of seeking the largest market by striving to obtain the approval of the head master.-. " The head masters -are human, and the hooks which thoy approvo are those which are devised to give the teacher a minimum of trouble, while they onablo him to obtain a'maximum of passes; they aro tho books which are prepared with an eye to the inspector, rather than with a view to tho beat educational results." The greatest sinner in this discreditable ueglect, says the Review, is th. London School Board./ While the, committee expends about £100,000 ' annually on school books, not a single member of the committee is an expert in school v - book-Si possessing the requisite knowledge to estimate their value, both commercially and educationally. Instead of marking* with its approval I the books that should be used in its schools,'the board leaves it to head masters to select frbm lin ajjproved list. With the purchasing power at its coihmahd, tha "Saturday-' Review ", thinks, the London School Board should get the very best books for its schools, or at least books very much better than those generally in use. ' "J3y appointing ono or two paid \cperts, the London School Board could obtain and systematise ' the experience of its own skilled-teachers, and apply that experience,directly to its own school hooks." This is, the remedy the. Review suggests for the present unsatisfactory stato of affairs and haphazard methods. The diversity of opinion that holds amongst head masters regarding school books has led to an inferior class of books from the educational standpoint. The tendency haa been too generally iii the direction of pleasant reading, apart froln its instructive value. The degeneration of the school book has resulted Irom the attempt to icaki it conform too much to the light'literature oi the day for which tho popular taste appeals tp be, grow-. ing. While the school books'Of ah. older, date did not present quite so pleasant reading, they contained a fund of, Useful information that" possessed a'higi educational value. The greater difficulty in mastering their contents loft iinpressi-ms .Upon the youthful mind that were lastiftg, instead of the evanescent titillation of the senses . that the tendency appears now to be to cater for. The events of the next few days will Shot. - whethei.. the Sydney Daily ThE Telegraph is correct in its be-, federal lief that the appointment of -12 ENABriNe . additional members vof 'the .hill. Legislative Council, in.: New • South .Vales will turn.the scale in that Chamber ih favour of the Federal Enabling Bill. It is perfectly true that on some, of the "divisions the majority of the ■ anti-federalists,in the Legislative Council ex- . ceeded;l2..,.:This was the case in the division which mado the participation of New South Wales in the federation scheme dependent upon the attitude of Queensland—the amend, ment in the bill which was the most destructive of- alb That amendment' was carried by 26 votes tb 11, and there were other amendments in which the f-deralists were defeated by 2. to 11, and 23, to _7. Tn the bulk of the divisions the majority against the. Government Was seven or eight. It may happen that the Federal Enabling Bill wi}l again be so mutilated by the' Legislative Council of.the mother colony as to be not worth accepting hy the representative chamber, but no one can doubt that .that would'involve merely a postponement of what the antifederalists believe will be the evil day on which the dawn of the unification of the Australian colonies will be witnessed. Mr Reid, ths Premier of New Soiith Wales, has lit the present time expressly disclaimed • .any intention of swamping the Council, preferring, as he said, to take the medium course. His object is to bring the Council in- > to closer touch with the people of the country by the introduction of fresh blood. Speak-, ing at Wallsend at. the close .of last month, be explained his intentions thus:-—"The policy of those who followed him .other was to respect the Legislative Council and to make it more efficient for its great and re- , sponsible work by subjecting those, who had the legislative power in that Chamber, to .some sort of contact with .the people of the country in which,they legislated. If the Legislative Councillor, were a good and faithful servant of the people in a term.of limited tenure, he was bound to be a perpetual Councillor by re-appointment and re-appointment; but there were men' in it who most disgracefully neglected their duty to the ypeople hy not attending the Legislative Council at all. The people saw on the business paper a grcr*i ■' array of names at the meeting of the House, aiid fondly imagined that those gentlemen sat there until the termination of the busi- '

ness; but half of them disappeared in a short space of lime, and instead of their high position being an incentive to honest, faithful ■ work by attendance, there were many of them who used it as though it were a.mere personal distinction given to themselves, but which did not entail upon them even the commonest of obligations of. doing the work lhey were appointed to do. He hoped in a few days that a- vigorous body of public opinion in the persons of men who would devote themselves to their duties, and who would bring to-bear upon the proceedings of tbat House increased zeal and vigour and devotion, would tako place." Mr Reid has now gone so far that he cannot draw back, even if the Legislative Council still proves obstructive. The unreasonableness of its opposition consists in the fact that the Federal l.nabling Bill does not decide the momentous issue, but merely provides that' it shal go for fateful decision as a free issue to i free people.