THE COLONIST. Published Daily- (Morning). Nelson Saturday, Feb, 17, 1906 THE SCHOOL INSPECTORS' REPORT.

Colonist, Volume XLVIII, Issue 11556, 17 February 1906, Page 2

THE COLONIST. Published Daily- (Morning). Nelson Saturday, Feb, 17, 1906 THE SCHOOL INSPECTORS' REPORT.

Th^ annual report of the Inspectors of Schools in the Nelson District discloses what must bte rteg&rde'd as a satisfactory tidridi'tiori on the whole* There were 114 schools at Work at the end of last year, or four less thanj;welve hionths^previously, but the reduction was due mainly to the closing of household Schools, which hn, d WaSe'd to be necessary, ftnd '6 "the amalgamation of schools At the time of examination the total number on the rolls of the schools was 5632, an increase of 85, while the average attendance for the year was 4529, being an increase of lit; The attendance Was e^iiai to 85:<3 per cent* which we are told is the highest percentage • yet recorded for this district, though it is only slightly higher than the average for the whole colony last year, 85.5 per cent. Only four, however, of the thirteen educational districts showed a better average. Considering how scattered is the population in a large portion of the Nelson district, the record is highly satisfactory. Th Inspectors very properly point out where the weakness is, and it should ,be the duty of the School Committees in those localities to take action that will bring about improvements, for whilst the whole of the people of the Colony are taxed in order that the children of New Zealand shall not grow up in ignorance, they have the right to insist that the opportunities which are provided shall be taken advantage of. It appears that the average attendance at Pangatotara, Ngatimoti, Lower Moutere, and Motueka Valley fell below 70 per cent, which, as the Inspectors pointed out, means that on the average each child on the roll of those schools is losing over a day and a half schooling per week. At the end of last year there were in Jthe employment of the Board 165 teachers and twenty-five pupil teachers, whichwou ld give an average of over twenty-five children per teacher, taking the average attendance, and including the pupil teachers ; but in many cases it must be very much less than that, for the Inspectors say: "We regret to see any reduction of staff made, the scale being in our opinion none too liberal, and we would especially welcome the lowering of th© number (41 average attendance) which a school under a sole teacher mnst attain to before he receives any assistance. It practically means that one teacher unaided mast for at least a year teach not less than 12 subjects to about fifty pupils in different classes, possibly 10 in all.

i It is, in our opinion, a position in which it is absurd to expect any one to do full justice to all his charges. " The very fact of the general average being so much less proves the justice of the remarks made by the Inspectors, and the subject should receive the immediate attention of the Department. Satisfaction is expressed with the new provisions which have enabled schools to be amalgamated, whereby a reduction in loss of power of management is effected. The disadvantages connected with small district schools owing to perpetual changes of staff and the lack of coru-

petent teachers, owing to the smallness of the salaries and the isolation of life, are pointed to, and the remedy declared to be the amalgamation of schools where possible. The Inspectors say that "The increased grant made by the Department for the conveyance of children over three miles to and from school, though it does not yet err on the side of ex- j travagance, should help to foster the system which has done so much for rural schools in the United States and in Canada. It is gratifying to learn that keen interest is taken in obtaining proficiency certificates with a view to obtaining a free place at a secondary school, and, as compared with the average age at which the several standards are passed throughout the Colony, to find that Nelson^ is not behindhand. In the Preparatory Class the average in Nelson is two months lower than the general average; in Stnadards 1., 11., and VII. it is one month lower; in Standards 111., IV. and V. it is one month higher; and in Standard Vl.'" the averages are equal. ~

Satisfaction is expressed with the iirst year's work under the new syllabus, -though there have been some difficulties which should ho j longer bo apparent \ ian'ti as to the w^rfc 'donfe in to\ost subjects, the Inspectors appear satisfied with; what has been accomplished, though in rGgard to geography they confess ' to a feeling of disAppointnienk I Thß inspectors allude to technical instruction, and to what is being done, referring with satisfaction to the large attendance at the Nelson Technical School, but as yet it is too early to judge as to results. The contents of the report should. ; be carefully-considered by fc^acttors. ; members of School Committees, and; parents generally td the end that weak p J 6in'fcs Slay b*s Strengthened, and that "i system which is costing the country a very large suni may be j made to serve the best interests of , the children and ftie coi^iri'itjnSt.yi gene'ral ! ly« i