CAMBRIDGE SCHOOL COMMITTEE. The Committee, the Teacher and the Parents.

Waikato Times, Volume XXI, Issue 1779, 29 November 1883, Page 2

CAMBRIDGE SCHOOL COMMITTEE. The Committee, the Teacher and the Parents.

A hH.n \l meeting of this body was held at Mi Hoskings oiiice, Duke-stieet, at tf..JO on Tuu^clay morning last. Piesont : Messis Jlosking (cli.uini.ui), ttaigent, Hewitt, Ni\on, \Viight and Houghton. The Key H. I\. Dewsbuiy did not attend. The object of the meeting ■was t<» consider ceitam pioposals concerning tlie loniodelhng of the teaching stiff, and the m.ittei of oorpoial punishment in the school as applied to guls, the legality of the action oi the piovious liiui'tinj- of the committee m legaid to these matteis having been questioned. The Channian in opening the proceedings •„iicl '—You aio all awaie fioin notices sencd on jou that this meeting is c >nvened to consider what steps this Committee shall t ike with legaul to the subjects discussed at oui last meeting. It has been said that the last meitnr_ r was convened without sufficient notice, and as the subjects aio of gioat inipoitnnce I ha\e thought it advihable to call this committee together again that the legality of its decision should be placed beyond question. Permit mo fmthei to .state that no action has been taken or lopiesentatiou made to the boaul on the matter which is befoie you. With lefeience to the motion piopoaed and seconded bv Messi-> Houghtnn and Hewitt, and earned unanimously, on the .subject of coipoial pumshmeut inflicted on young ladies in the school, from what has since tianspued in the public Piess and othenviso, it is manifest that the gentleinon then lefened to would be aveise to making any official complaint on the subject, nor had I any wish to convey the idea that any official complaints had been lodged with me by those gentlemen. The fact, ho\\e\er, lemains that the head teacher has inflicted corporal punishment on young ladies. Undei these ciicumstances, but without ■wishing to withdiaw any .statement 1 nude on the biibjcct at the pieviou.s meeting, and as the gentlemen appaieutly wi*h their conveisations to be considuied as private communications, and not at> official complaints, I ay ill ahk the mover and hecondei of theiesolution, with the leave ot the committee, to allow their lesolution to remain mopciatno for the piefsent. — JVI r Houghton thought the committee had no alternative but to let the subject stand ia abeyance for the present. Of couise, the principle of the resolution would contwiue to exist. — Mi Ni\on objected. Hedesued that the matter should be enquired into now, as it had crept up, and disposed of once and for all.— Mr Sargent did not see how they could possibly deal with it unless they had a lettor or letters of complaint from home of the patents who felt themselves aggrieved. — Air Ni yon was of the same opinion.— Mr Houghton, as tho mover of the proposition as adopted at the pievioub meeting, had no objection to allow the matter to .stand m aboyanoe for the present. — Mr Hewitt said of those gentlemen who brought foiward the matter at the pievious meeting, and supported it, were afraid to let their actions and convictions come to light, considering that the whole affair had now been publicly reviewed, he certainly would agree to the withdrawal of the proposition. Nevertheless, it would not in any way lessen the gnevance. — The proposition dealing with corpoial punishment, as adopted at the previous meeting was accordingly withdrawn. Remodelling the Teaching Stafk— Mr Sargent's proposition dealing with this matter, as already published in these columns, was read.— The Chairman said it seemed to him desirable, ii) the interests of the Hjgh Soljoql, th.as *^c head teacher should be in a position to overlook, direct, and examine the whole of the work in the school.- He would, therefore; call upon the committee, by adopting the propositiqn before them, to place on record; their

conviction on this important question. — Mr Saigent suggested that instead of naming. iP , t!o00 for the head master a year, only £250 ■> 4'4 ' should be mentioned, and £Lsoforthe assiii-,' taut. He made this suggestion lest the - board, in considering 1 their recommendation, should make tho question of additional cost a fatal objection to their proposition. — Mr Hoiking did not think that such an alteration w.is eithor desirable or U3ceb&ai y. If they wanted a man qualified to teach all the subjects sot forth in the High School cunicnluiri, they must be prepared to pay him a suitable salary. He would uphold their adopting the^Kjposition unaltered.— Mr Houghton coWaWfed that if the B iaid of Education saw the de-,, sirableness of the change .suggested, theM paltiy consideration of an extra £50 would™ not stand in their way.— Mr Hnsking expic^ed a belief that, in the course of time, the High School would participate in the benefits d"iivable from the educational endow merits of the colony, and in this case he could not see why they should stint themselves m the matter of salary. The"^, pie^ent head tuacher, he would likewise point out, «,ii m leceipt of a larger salary than wa» siig^vsted to be given by Mr Sargent. He believed the High School was paying at the present time. — Mr Sargent having w ilhdi awn his Miggebtion, the original pioposition leoom mending the remodelling of the teaching staff was put and seconded by Mr Wi ight. — Mr Nixon said he had an amendment to propose. It was : "That in the opinion of this meeting it is not durable than any change shall take place in the head t"acher»hip for the following reasons :—(l) That as by far the larger number of pupil- attending the schools are | doing primary woik, it is essential that the I head master should bi well acquainted with the methods of instruction followed out in elementary bchool.s ; (2) that as Mr Stewart has pi oved hiu^elf competent in the past, the .school having made very satisfactory piogiess, it would be to the detriment of the school if he were removed ; (3) it being admitted that the Higa School iis doing good woi k under a scheme originated by Mr Stewart, it is very unwise to interfere with the school until it has had a fair trial ; (1) that if the committee recommend the Inard to remove the present head teacher, tney will be acting in oppositions^ tf&3 wishes of the parents of the cmldren who are attending the High School." — Mr Hosking seconded the amendment pro foima in ordei to speak to it. In regard to the first statement questioning the desira- j blcnebs of the change in the teaching staff, % he would say that the primary school was taught by the assistant teachers who were duly qualified to teach, and he believed that the Education Board rules provided that the head teacher should go rouud once a week and see that the teachers were doing their duty. In regard to Mr Nixon^s second btatement, he had to say that he did not think that the High School had originated with Mr R. D. Stewart. Again, he did not think that the High School was doing veiy good woik. It had now been in existence for about five months, and not one child in the school could do the 10th piopoMtion in tho first book of Euclid. The Latin which the scholars had learned was as near to nothing as possible ; and in Algebia they had not yet got as far as Simple Equations. And these were the leading subjects taught in the High School, li that was what Mi Nixon called doing good woik, he wondered very much what bad woik would be like. The High School had done very woll under Mr Wilson, but since his time no progiess whatever had been made. Since their lust meeting he/ had lecjived <i Luge numbor of letters from the paients of childien attending they jhgli School, appiowug of the actioiL^tha" c miniitteo in looo'iimondin? a lemo^lhjr of tho teaching stall. — Mr Nixon a&ked ttf cli.uiman if he had examined the childr/ , of the school that he was able to expr/ I such a decided opinion about their progr/ J — Mr Hosknij> leplied that he had not,/ I he had examined his own. — Mr Nixoij I not think that Mr Hosking's boy V ..a^ I good ciiterion for the committee to go upon. \ —Mr llosking considered that he was a veiygood ciiterion. — Mr Nixon's amendment was put, but was only supported by one \ote — Mi Salient's proposition was then pui. and earned, five voting m its fauna. Awsrvxi' Ti.vciipr.— On the motion of Mr Nixon, Mr "Wright was unanimously lecommcndccl to the bo.ud for appointment as assistant ueachei to the High School. Yujnm or thk Commit ike's* Election. —Mr Houghton .said \arious statements weio goiny the rounds of paients at the pioht'iit tune to the effect that when the committee w ei e elected their poweis weie nioie limited than at piescnt. He, for one, was piepaied to have their election coufii mcd in order to show that the parents have continued the committee. — Mi Hewitt said a gentleman bad told him that mornin« that a petition was in ciiculation •gainst the action ot the committee. Mr Stew ait was hawking it about, and had called upon Mi Foirest and .solicited his bignatmo. He questioned the action of the committee in the matter of lemodelling the teaching staff and abolishing corporal punishment. With the permission of the meeting he would le.id them. — Mr Saigent suggested that as they weie called together for a specific purpose, they had bettejjaaot consider these lettoi.s then, but adpwrn their consideiatioii until the next ordinary meeting. — Agieedto. This terminated tho business. Seveial letteis weie received from Mr "R. 1). Stew ait lega ding the action of the cmnmttee in matters dealt with in the foreq >ing rep'ut, que-)tioinng the legality of the * b.une, and making his emphatic protest against the course w hich they had adopted ; but as the meeting had partly broken up, and some of the meinbeis had departed befoie the chairman discovered the letters, then consideiatioii was defened.