EDUCATION.

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume LXVI, Issue 17534, 29 March 1919, Page 5

EDUCATION.

ADDIUCSS BY MR. TIHAJSI,

OBSERVATIONS AT HOME

Before a fairly larye audience s.t | the leiJnucnl Culie&e Hai Jast night, an address on educational mutters, paviitiliany with reierence to observations, aoicuci, was delivered by chairman ol tiie »\ angamu i!/Jucation Board, Mi J'iud r.Tt.ui, who r«!ten:u visited Bii- i tain as cue of 'ihc Se'. Zealand Pr^ss delegates. my tie iJerry presided. , In ius opening remarks Mr Piraai sa;d it was a wonder) it! tr.p i.i many re riptcts, bat disappointing in others owing U» HOtae oi lite arrangements male, as they couid have, seen much more ir k .strenuous pace had bee i adoptel. Iho party were very well treaited. j I liere was little opportunity to see anything outside the programme arranged !>y the officials. lhe speaker sacritieel a"trip atToss Canada to look into educational matters. He had an interview with Mr Fisher, the Minister of Ei.ication in England, and subsequently had further discussions with him and received letters of introduction. Mr Fisher was a great man who endmvoiired to place education within the reach of every child, a^i'l to prevent children working under 14 years of age. At Belfast the speatier saw chil Iren $f ten working in 1 linen factories. Mr Fisher was responsible for legislation passed to prevent child labour. His reforms were worked dating the war, the time New Zealand politicians said it wan mpossible i.. legislate for domestic , affairs. Continuation classes was a matter that Air Fisher had very much at heart. The first reform was central schools to which children were trrnsferred, i school almost the counterpart of tlm New Zealand technical schools. T'ie speaker visited one central school ani saw the work and methods The teachers were selected from those who showed special aptitude. The headmasters got tip to £400, - good salary before the war, and the assistants uj> to £200. One headmaster said t)\3 greatest fault in the London schools was that only the poorer classes attended.

The Home outdoor schools were practically schools for delicate children, and by the system their health was greatly improved. Bevoiid seeing the wonderful treatment of the children there vv is nothing to learn for Near Zealand. JVfr Fisher was introducing a reform ior chijdren of three to six .years going to kindergartens. The present fault .f the kindergarten and Montessori seho>l was that it was not correlated with the education sytem. The speaker said they did not build a school in London without a hall and ridiculpd the id-^a of trying to work a school of over 230 without one. New Zealand, which wns "ahead of the world," was going to abolish central halls. Tha Home tei~ die** had great enthusiasm for thair work owing to t'ie system by which thi headmasters consulted the teachers Some years ago a series of local conference? were inaugurated \inder the Wuiganui Board, and the instructors sidmiited liow tlieir work whs assisted. There should be far more consultation snd an extension of that system. TLondon they had care committees, .ot school committees, who looked after th~ welfare of the children, planned excursions for 'them, and arra:ift"d for catering for them. The Loiiron CountCouncil had control of education ana spent six millions a year on it. Stale education was progressing so wonderfully that Mr Fisher had a grant of 21 millions more to spend on education, and he believed it would go- ud to nfry millions. Ne>v Zealand •* anted three millions for school buildings alone, 'o start with. At Home the number cf children in the classes had been reduced. The limit for a ieaoher was .1* of the bigger children, or 48 infants, Those were the maximum figures. The teachers there had a great advantrt&"> over New Zealand teachers. Here in Wanganui a teacher at the Avenue School had to teach 96 children 'n one class. The speaker went to a wonderful school in Dublin w'th a lodging block combined. The average attendance wa« 2500 a day. The hours we e <* p.m. to 7 p.m., and the children vrere provided with a hot drink and a btin before and after school. The school was founded by a wealrthv brewer. Ne'v Zealand, the speaker said, could take h le»son and prevent the estblishment til large factories in the town.

Mr Pirani said he cam." back w:tn the idea that the Old Country wts ahead of New Zealand in edufatkwi!i[ masters. Tn Tyondon the educational tax was Is lid in the P.. One reform should be —people who wanted better education, better teachers and sma ler classes, should contribute towardH the cost. New Zealand was only tinkering with educational reform. The Department had been effe*o for the ln« 20 years. They started with one ol the best Acts, but unfortunately education had come under political influence An advisory council of expels was urged to control the education system. Tin's was advocated by the speaker and other members o f the Ed.ication Commission. Th* Advisory Council was established but it lio-t proved ft failure owine to Hie control by the Department, who onlv adoptji a thing if it suited them. Still it wns the best system if it were properly carried out. By a proper system there would only be five boards in New ZeiUind. and school boards in the centres who would appoint care committees lor each school to look after the welfare of the children. Whnt was needed was better system in the training colleges, a reduction in the number in the classes in the schools, control ha'ls to accommodate the whole of ths children nfc any one time, one author-ty to control primary and secondary schools and the payment of education board membe:'* unless for purely local work.

Dealing with the Montessori system, Mr. Pirani said Sir James Allen, when Minister of Education, was greatly impressed with the system, as also was the late Mr. Braik. This led to the adoption of the system at the Central Infants' School with splendid success. Last year the Department took up the stand that children under five years should not be admitted, and would not provide the salary for a teacher for them.

Concluding, Mr. Pirani said New Zealand was not making the advances in education that it should, but ho trusted the time was not far distant when his ideals in education would be embodied in the Statute Book. (Applause).

A motion of thanks was proposed by Mr. Herd, seconded by Mr. N. Meull, an ex-teacher, and carried with acclamation.