TEACHERS' RAILWAY PASSES.

Otago Witness, Volume 06, Issue 2899, 6 October 1909, Page 14

TEACHERS' RAILWAY PASSES.

A CANTERBURY" PROTEST. CHRISTCHURCH, September ' 29. Al to-dpy's meeting of f!ie Education Board, the Normal School and Technical Jommittoe reported as follows on the subject pf teacher*' f ree railway passes :—: — "A eiicular meirorandum was received tVoin ilie department stating that the Mini-ier had decided to discontinue, as uom the cad of the. current quarter, the r-oiV-.c-5-ioi,., Jiitherlo T.ada to teachers to riable them to travel free by train to attend training clashes. The communication went on \o state that it v.oald still i>2 open ior the board to apply to the \lini-;c: fo:f o: a eo.iees^on to meet the t«moorary nurpo^c.s of specially-arranged short ■*e*iion-.. .such as pumjner and winter schools. Your committee very much re5 rets the decision arrived al by the depart-■nci-.t. and recommends that the board resptctfuily but strongly objects to the change being made before the completion of the present recognised cla.^se*, most of which do not terminate until the cad of November."' Mr Dalziel referred to the department's decisio.i as a " bombshell," a.nd expressed the opinion that the board should take further action in the matter, and urge the d-epartment to cortinue the issue of passes. The country teachera' lot was a very hard one, and discontent would result from taking away from them opportunities for impro/ing their status. The opportunity given to \isit town helped to make their lot comfortable. Mr Hardy, M.P., said that the department's action was one of those cases of "backing and filling" for which the department had been so remarkable ior a considerable time. For the 'ife of him be did not know what the Minister waa ty> to m allowing such an action oa the part of his officers. He did xot think thai the Minister had suggested the depaitment's actaop. It' was one of £h* most serious mistakes that the department had | made. ■ Hie issue of passes on the rail- : ways had had a splendid effect, «yen if j the; itesehers never attended. the cks*e« in ; town {stoAthey knew tiat they ha& <©} J Efo considered ttiat] the- opportunity •gjlvea. i to conniry teacher? to 1 'iaeef» the town ' teachers and discuss matters affecting i fcfoif profession was of -giWt v»fee: "Hh© proposal to dncotttaaw free passes was o&e- of those "penny wi«ft and poundfoolish " propo«aie. They kiiew ihsA Uw> department was spending Hhausmis trf poond* fooh*hly, and yet titey' were applying the pramng knife to «c 6! the

most necessary concessions. He hoped the board would stand to its guns, and force the department to ccnthrae what was really a very good thing. Mr Opie said that, whereas education in New Zealand is particularly advanced for town people, in the country it was under great disabilities. They had a difficulty in getting trained teachers to go into the country. In fact, in many of their country schools they had untrained teachers, and the only feature about country appointments^ that made teachers willing to put up with many disabilities was the opportunity afforded by free railway passes to spend the week-end m town. He pointed out how injuriously the department's decision would affect the board's desire to encourage agricultural instruction. The report was adopted, members expressing the opinion that the objection made in the report was a sufficient protest.