High School Grievance.

Thames Advertiser, Volume XXV, Issue 7168, 8 March 1892, Page 3

High School Grievance.

meeting of the High School Bo|sof Governors the following letter wa||eceived from the Board of Ednca tiijtfjfwith reference to the selections made for the senior district scholarships examinations: jfeWroply I am directed to assure your Bdirii that no preference is given to one eohoo l over nnother in this matter, Tlio practice of this Board during the past f.nr yeate has been to invite the head mastm of the Auckland and Thames High Schools (which have tupplied almost all the cao» didates for these fcho'aiships). to suggest selections in Englieh, Latin, and history for the njxt year's' examinations. 'Iheir suggestions ate carpfully considered by the Board, and the selections adop ed are these whicb in th». Board's opinion are deemed to be most efltable ior tlw purpose. In the selection'sfllnle for the years l>B9, 1890, and 1891, the iccommerdatiins of both hiadmaaters received equ;.l attention, It regard to the selections for the examination to. be. held in December 1892, the Board conld not . seo its way to artopt the. •BUggestions offered by Mr Adams in regard to English ind Latin, The change made'this year in repaid to French wai> made in order to bring the culmination n that, language into harmony with the examination in other languages, anil it received the approval of tfc'e Minister of Eduoation. lam further dir'pted to ny oare is taken to publish the selecfois U each examination in goTi timn to aiiow of an adquatc supply of books being availab'p at the begiuniug'of the school year. |T(Th'e following report was read from Mr Adams:

It is not surpr'Bing that no sitisfactory reply.'was received from the Auckland Board of Education to the complaint—that the headmaster of the Auckland Grammar School exerts too much control in the senior provincial teholarship examinations, because tho secretary,.Mr Rice, did not briDg thareal matter complained of before his Board, Your letter referred him to thr adoption of Mr iSouroo's roggestions anri alterations on October 2ml, 1891. The following is a copy of. tho report in the Auckland'Henld : " Scholarship Exa ina>' tions for 1892: Mr C. F, Bourno, headmaster of the Grammar School, made the followinr recommendations as work to be prescribed for the senior scholarship examination of 1892: English, Shakupeare's 1 Julius Casar;' Latin. Vi-gil-a' Aeneid.' VIII., 306-731, and Cxs'ar's 'Dβ Bell Gail' V., section 1 to 37; History of England, the reign of George III.; Greek and German, ns in 1880. Mr Bourne added that, 'under exiting regulation?, passages are to be prescribed >r Latin, Greek} and Qerman, but not it tfrenoh. If this anon-aly ehonld be re' moved, whiob, I, think, ia desirable, I would suggest , ,' La Canno do Jouo,' chapter* 1,, 'lII,'III. As to Morris , 'Elementary „ Lessons in Historical English Grammar,' which is recommended under English, I think it should be clearly, understood tha , candidates are not exneoted to master tho harder details.' The reeoranrndalions of Mr Bourne were adopted." There is no mentjon here of other suggestions, Mi Bourno's recommendations and alteration? ore adopted in full, which is bad enough, but what fa worse • etill. tho books recommended cannot be procured by me. Some of the pupils Jmv« not been ab*o to get Latin boob. Wf 'hiive to put up with a poor edition of Shakespeare's play, and the French book cannot bn procured at all, so that while the candidat.es'afc the Auokland Grammar School, I puppose ( ' ara carefully learning their teaoher's linglish version of the three pimp, tere tpsoified we have hid not even thr chance as yet of senna the book. Bui the ■ wor.'t feature of all is that Urn whnli examination is fudduily chaufced. Th« str.i» dard portion of 'English and of fcVcnch i> lowered, and the classical portion nvule t v c , great,feature of the examination, Io fac l the study of Julius f seiar is the great objfot; his praists by Virgil, his doings by himself, and his passions as depicted by Shakespearo. It i» possible to carry uni> ■fdrmity a l'ttle too far, This examination is open to all schools just as in a race, but one alone hat the start, the handioappine, *nd the power to alter the course. It is absurd ' to say'there ie no injnstice, when I am euro there , is not a rig'it minded man that does hot Kc'ogniso that th r re is glaring injustice «uch as would not be tolerated on the so-called immoral race course. I felt gtvatly pained tha , ; myreporfcehouldhive induced Mr Bourne io think, it was an attack upon him but possibly his indignation was assumed for ihetorinil effect. The fact ofhiswritirg to the Board of Education at all shows that ho "onsiders himself the proper adviser; and the letter itself doe? not appear much to the point for it contain? eurmises, that are quite unfounded, the ,usual self laudation that midit have been omitted and an ingenuous offer to give the . JBowd the benefit of bis advice that does not aopear to have been accepted. He assertthat he was asked for ewrgeations—but was he asked to alter the courfe of study I To . tjiis question Air Rice also makes to reply: : he shows what wbb done in other years und does not attempt to explain why Mr Bourne is folo adviser this year. He appear, however, to crilicia" the suggestions . and I should like to ask what qualifications Mr Bice posscssm that he acts us arbiter in such a matter ? Hhen again he is reported to havo said that candidates for these scholarships only come from the Auckland Urammar School and'thft Thomoa High, School, in spite of tho fact that a pupil from Ponsonby College got a scholarship this year, and candidates have pained d r ßtinc'ion at thi» examination that were sent from other sohsols —Kauaeransfft, Tuakau, etc, The matter, hMSger, is far too important to allow me fctrfylulge in personalities, for it must be borne in mind that tho subjoots ebosen for this examination will have a 'lasting cllec* on the oareer of all the most talented boya and girls in Auckland provinoej Is ili rlgh' then~tbat this year tho main feature of the examination ehou'd bo the lifo und adventure of Jnliue Caaar ? Thero arc somo no doubt who think that anything tear did not know is not worth learning, but this boHeE I venture to Bay in not in harmony ' w ith modern On Hie other aand the subjests for sxamina iQn can be drawnup by tho professors of university colleges, each excellent in his own depart* ment, and each alsi_ will tako care that due attention is paid to his favonriie Btudy. D( * w ' ia ' i P O3 ''blo objection can be made to tbo publication i>f thf> aeleoted portions two or three years before hand ? It i R tD c great drawback every yen that the books .selected cannot be prouursd in time. Of course I am well aware thv this plain statement of facts avails little ngainst a dilniw rhotoricni prosontofion of t,ho case, especially if llavoured with prr eonal abuse; but Ihr.v) such coufulenco in the Board of Education that I believe when the matter is fairly put before thorn, thoy will adopt juiHuioiis and impartial arnneu. ments for carrying ou these oxaminatious. In the course of discussion it was showu that the letter received from the Board of Education had evaded certain questions asknd them with regard to future provision, and it was eventually resolved that the ([uostion be referred back to tho stouic committee to endeavour io a a'isfactory reply from the JfrWOi