EDUCATION PROBLEMS.

Taranaki Daily News, 17 August 1935, Page 6

EDUCATION PROBLEMS.

The annual conference of the Dominion Federation of School Committees is a meeting of more importance than many of the pseudo-national conferences which take place with such regularity. The conference represents the section of the Dominion’s education system that is presumed to link individual interest of parents and guardians with the States endeavour to afford all the children in New Zealand the opportunity of obtaining an education that will fit them for citizenship in due course. School committees have undoubtedly felt the effects of the economy found necessary by the Department of Education when the depression was at its worst. They may be congratulated upon the manner in which they accepted that necessity and have carried out their duties with the limited resources available. The federation raised a matter of some interest in regard to the different capitation grants allowed for primary as compared with secondary .Schools. It was stated that foe the former an allowance of 6s 6d was made, while for secondary schools one of 32s 6d applied. The number of pupils attending a school may be no criterion as to the needs which must be met out of the capitation grant, but that primary school committees should be given an increased allowance as soon as the national finances will permit will be obvious to anyone who knows the work they are engaged upon. The conference very wisely decided to investigate further before declaring itself in favour of a “National Boafd of Education” charged with revision of the whole of the Dominion’s system of education. Such organisations have a habit of becoming more or less permanent, and of leading to centralised administration, of which many who are interested in the schools consider there already is too much. The discussion of so far reaching a proposal, however, denotes a determination that school committees do not intend to content themselves with the supervision of school buildings and their surroundings. They desire rather to share in the development o£ the education system generally. That the committees should be imbued with this desire is to the advantage of the community, provided there is no interference with matters that can only be handled- by trained teachers.