TEACHERS' INSTITUTE.

Timaru Herald, Volume XIIC, Issue 13533, 2 March 1908, Page 7

TEACHERS' INSTITUTE.

A in. .-ting of tli-.- South ('aiitei bury branch of The XeW Zealand ional Institiil>- was held tin Sat urday. Mr \\ . Thomas presided i.v. r a meeting ot ;i ili'Zt ii im-nibeis.

Th.> secretary. Mr l-'leming. lvail a precis i.f 17 replks he had lco-ivcd ti> a clreular addrtsscd tit lie.nl teacher.--, asking whether t hey approved <»r disapproved Hi til." system I)f centralising tin- examinat ion of fli." sixth .Manilar>l. adopted by the lioanU' in.-|)iiloi slt year. Only one teacher objectril lo tli.- system : three nlheis objected lo il.'tails, but two of the.-.- did ?o under evident inisappreheu.Mon. Taking .-il. lie. for approval, lie concluded that tlii- teach. n> as a body favoured till- lie W -sy.it.lll.

.Mr Dalgliah inquired whether this system would be made compulsory by i-vgu-lation. A regulation bad hc.n promisd. and on that, promise the in.sp.-etoiis bad acted. If it- was not made general the old svstein might lie rt-verU-d to. and teacher.s would not have their pupils prepared for the earlier examinations. An inquiry was reeeiv.-d from the >-e lvtary of another braneh. asking how to get- teachers to join, as South Canterbury bad enrolled 95 per <eiil. of the teacheiii ill the district, and lit- less than 50 pt-r cent.

Reports by delegates lo the Auckland conference were thi-ii taken. Mr Menzies. who was to have been spokesman, had inL-ise<l his train.

.Mr Thomas said he was struck with the capacity of the delegate, many of them showing a high degrot- of mental power, Tlii- "ivaW-r part of tli.- sttssion was de-voU-d to the problem of promotion, and the Auckland scheme was tinally carried, alter a great light, between its- advocates and those of the Otago scheme. The South l'ante:bnrv delegates took but little pai*tin llie discui-isioiis. The Auckland teachers, lie wished to say, treated the visitors rovallv.

Mr Valentine supplemented Mr Thomas" remarks', saving that the Auckland committee, Me.-is is Xewton, Cousins and McKenzie. deserved great thanks for the work tliey had j>ut into their scheme, as it could be veiy little altered. He was surprised at tile delegates being welcomed by the Mayor in his official robes, and the" Mayor ill his official robes, and and the Mayor in litis turn expressed surprise at the number of delegates. He made a very good speech on the valu« of the personality of the teacher, and of the value of his work to the community ; and tipoke i-itroiigly or. the point of the inadequacy of the teachers' emolument, liitherto. * The remits sent up by South Canterbury that they particularly wished to pass were all carried. Tile thank<> of the delegates were dm- to the Auckland members for their to visitors.

Mr Valentine then lvad a paper on the reduction of salary by eighteen teachens of South Canterbury this year, t liriiiigh reduction in the average attendant*'*. and a discussion followed, as reported eitsvulu-iv. On the motion of Mr Dalglish a vote of thanks was passed to ilie- delegates tithe Auckland conference —Messrs Thomas. Valentine and Men/.ies; and alfio thanks: to Mr Valentine for his paper. The question whether the Board should be requited to hold Saturday classw next winter was brought up, and only one teacher .present desired to have any. It was, therefore, left to the director of Technical Kd ucntioa to circularise teachsr.s on the subject. Mr Goodall suggested that classes calculated to help those studying for higher certificates might be successful.