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Otago Witness, Issue 1024, 15 July 1871, Page 1

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If the system of Education we possess is to be preserved to us intact, those who have the management of it placed in their hands must be true to the principles on -which it is based. One of these is made manifest by the fact that instead of leaving everything to local control a central Eioard was established. One of the purposes for which the Board was constituted was undoubtedly to supervise the distribution of the public funds devoted to education. It has also held the same relation to the High School and the Girls' Provincial School which the local School Committees hold to the primary schools. These are, however, but a part of its duties. Its chief function is to secure uniformity in the administration of the Education Ordinance, and to exercise such controlling power as will prevent its principles from being departed from by the School Committees and Teachers. It symbolises the fact that our Education scheme is to he a strictly national one. Up to the present time it had only partially fulfilled its duties in this respect. There is less uniformity in the management of our schools than there ought to be, and no uniformity at all in the methods of education adopted by the teacWs. The members of the Board are, as we have naid, always too

busy with other affairs to devote I themselves enthusiastically to the care or" education in the province. If they should presently be exchanged for men who would take an earnest interest in their work, and whose attention would not be distracted by other public engagements, one of the very first results would be an investigation into the actual working of our Schools and School Committees, with the view of remedying the want of uniformity in system of which we complain. If such a change m the constitution of the Board is not made, we trust that it will not be much long-er left without the assistance of an Inspector of Schools, whose reports on things as they are, and advice as to what they ought to be, may guide it to judicious reforms. In the general management of those details connected with our schools which are for the most part left to the School Committees, there is, we believe, a very great diversity. In some cases — probably in most cases — almost everything is left to the schoolmaster. Duties which he ought not to be troubled with are thrown on to his shoulders ; and, on the other hand, matters which ought properly to be kept under the immediate supervision of the Committee are left for him to manage as he likes. In other cases — happily they are few in number — there is constant and most improper interference with the teachers. It is no doubt difficult to find men in every locality who will discharge the duties of committeemen, as if they were a real business worthy of some trouble being taken with it. Still less easy is it to secure men who will be free from bias, foolish prejudices, or personal enmity to the teachers, or to other committeemen, and from whom impartial conduct can be expected. These facts have led many to condemn the system of School Committees altogether. For ourselves we must say, that after careful consideration of all the information we have been able to gather on the subject, we have arrived at the conviction that it would be better to do without them, than to leave the existing state of things to be perpetuated. Some rules are needed, by which School Committees shall be made to abide. And on the other hand, some greater confidence ought to be placed in them, and they ought to be subjected to less interference in regard to those matters on which it is their proper province to decide. As matters stand, they have many duties and few powers, and the sense of the latter fact makes them too often careless about the former. Moreover, powers are withheld from them which they ought to have, and others granted which should not belong to them. Passing 1 to the internal management of the schools, we will only refer to one point, which is often the subject of remark. The Education Board, either because it was too busy to attend to the matter, or because its members felt themselves incompetent to decide upon a question they had no acquaintance with, decided to leave to each teacher the choice of the school books which should be used in his school. The consequence of this is, that if a child has to be removed j from one school to another, most of the books it has been using have very often to be replaced by new ones. In a country like this, changes of residence are so frequent that this matter is not of slight importance, even from the parent's point of view, who, perhaps, only thinks of the money-cost of new books he may be obliged to provide. In view of the fact that, though there are school books innumei-able, very few of them are really good, the question assumes a greater importance. We only cite this as one of the objections to the existing diversity of systems. It is not the most important, but it is one which has naturally been more noticed than others. Some liberty of method should be allowed to * master, but not

more than is consistent with a reasonable uniformity. Before any decision as to the proper limits of such uniformity, however, it is absolutely necessary that there should be efficient school inspection provided, and that, if possible, the advice of the teachers who are now at work in the province on the subject should also be obtained. We shall only refer to one point more on the present occasion. Several of our correspondents, whose letters have appeared during the past few months, have endeavoured to fasten upon our educational system the stigma of sectarianism. On the whole, we do not think that a practical acquaintance with our schools and their management will lead to such a conviction. The fact that a large number of our schoolmasters are Scotsmen and Presbyterians does not of itself support the charge. The schoolmasters are necessarily selected from the narrow range of aspirants for the office. It is not only in O tago that Scottish schoolmasters are plentiful. Go where we will, where the English tongue Ls spoken, and out of any dozen schoolmasters, engineers, or gardeners, we shall find a fair proportion of Scotsmen amongst them. If this be true of England itself, it can hardly be wondered at that it is so in Otago. We have also to remember that no inconsiderable number of our present schoolmasters and schoolmistresses have been trained in the province as pupil teachers, and it cannot be matter for surprise that the majority of these are of Scottish origin. We attach no importance whatever to the nationality or religious idiosyncracies of the individual schoolmaster, if that secular system of education which the Education Ordinance was intended to establish amongst us is carried out in its integrity. Those who, like our correspondent, 'Enquirer,' would evidently prefer a denominational system, may be disposed to make much of the fact that circumstances have placed a large number of Presbyterians at the head of our schools. But, to those wha recognise that these circumstances are gradually being modified by time, and that the Education Board has throughout dealt impartially with qualified persons of all creeds who have sought employment as teachers, it will not have much weight. If there were any grounds for complaint of proselytising influences being brought to bear upon children at our schools, they would long ago have been loudly proclaimed. If there is a suspicion of them, the remedy is plain — a vigorous system of school inspection, needed for so many other reasons, will also be the best check to anything of the sort.