7

G.—7

4th Class: dumber in class, 4. Book read, 3rd Royal Reader. Two good, two fair. Spelling fair; pronunciation imperfect. Meaning understood. sth Class: Number in class, 3. Book, 2nd, ltoyal Eeadcr. One fair, two imperfect. Spelling fair; pronunciation imperfect. Meaning understood. 6th Class : Number in class, 5. Book, Ist Royal Reader. Two good, one fair, two imperfect. Spelling, one fair, four imperfect. Pronunciation imperfect. 7th Class: Eight doing letters and strokes ; some reading monosyllables on tablets. The master assured me that he had taken great pains to overcome the defective pronunciation of the children, and from what came under my observation I am sure that he had : at the same time the . pronunciation was, on the whole, bad, and it will require constant attention aud correction to overcome the natural tendency of the Maori to mispronounce English. Dictation : Number in class, 16. Three good, four fair, nine imperfect. The writing of all was good. Tables Weights and Measures: Thirteen correct, three imperfect. Geography: Number in class, 10. This class named and pointed out on the map all the counties of New Zealand. They could also point out the various countries on the map of the world, and had a fair acquaintance with the subject generally. Recitations: Twenty-three recited pieces of poetry, some fairly; but it would have been better if a few of the best had been selected to recite : the children would have been spurred on to prepare their pieces more carefully. Copybooks : Four good, sixteen fair. Exercise-books: These contained the work done at home by the pupils. They were clean, and the writing and figures well, written. Maps: Several maps were shown. None of them were traced, and I selected one or two to forward with my report. Singing: For want of a proper manual the master is obliged to confine himself to familiar sacred tunes. Drill: I was sorry to find that the Committee had discouraged the drill. I regard this as a great mistake, and trust they will rectify it at once. Sewing: The work shown was the result of a few weeks' teaching, and was hardly a fair sample, but I was glad to see that sewing had been taught to the girls, who excel in doing fancy work, but fail in the plainer but more useful accomplishments. Like their elders, the children desire to pluck the fruits of civilization before the plant has matured. During the whole time the examination was proceediuff, the School Committee and most of the parents of the children were present, and I took advantage of the occasion to remind them that without the help and support of the parents the best master could not get their children on. Mr. Taiaroa, M.H.R., the Rev. Edward Ngara, and others expressed the warmest interest in the welfare of the school. It is a fact worth recording, that Mr. Taiarpa's eldest son, who wu educated at this school, is now a boarder at the Dunedin High School, where I hear that ho is making very satisfactory progress. I was glad to find that Mr. Lucas continues to take an interest in his pupils when outside the bounds of the school ground, and that the parents appear to appreciate his valuable services. Purakaunui School: Master, Mr. Henderson. —Inspected 12th March, 187 S. Registers carefully kept. Highest number on the books, 4. Present at inspection, 3. Reading: One read 4th Royal Reader well; pronunciation, good ; spelling, good. Dictation, wrote fairly sentences from the lesson. Grammar: Fair knowledge of the elements. One read 3rd Royal Reader fairly. Pronunciation good. Spelling good. Dictation: Wrote easily sentences from readiugbook. Exercise-books, containing original compositions, were very neatly written, and the contents expresed in good English. Arithmetic : Two doing rule-of-three fairly. "Writing : Copybooks. Two good. Singing: The school sang several selections from " The Junior Vocalist " fairly. The third pupil had only lately joined the school, and was learning letters and strokes. The girls whom I found here last year, and who were very advanced, have left, and as the Native population at Purakannui is very small, and as the few children they have have been sent to Waikouaiti, there is little likelihood of any increase in the numbers attending the school. Wailcouaiti School: Master, Mr. Maloney.—lnspected 13th March, 187 S. Registers carefully kept. Highest number on the books, 60. Present at inspection, 40. Reading: Ist Class : Book, 4th Royal Reader. Number in class, 8. Four good, four fair. Pronunciation distinct. Considerable pains had evidently been taken with this class. Spelling good. Meaning of lesson understood. 2nd Class: Book, 3rd Royal Reader. Number in class, 12. Four good, five fair, three imperfect. Spelling of this class good. Pronunciation not distinct enough. Meaning of lesson understood. 3rd Class: Book, 2nd Royal Reader. Number in class, 9. Three good, five fair, one imperfect Spelling, six fair, three imperfect. Meaning of words understood. Same defect in pronunciation noticeable as in 2nd Class, 4th Class: Book, 2nd Royal Reader. Number in class, 7. Four fair, three imperfect. Style of reading, sing-song. Spelling imperfect. Meaning of lesson understood. sth Class : Lessons on card monosyllables. Number in class, 4. Just commencing to read and write. Arithmetic: Ist Class: Thirteen doing compound rules. Ten fair, three imperfect. Several miscellaneous questions were written down from dictation, and worked correctly by this class. This class has made considerable advance since my last inspection. —2nd Class: Twelve doing simple rules. One good, eleven fair. This class requires a good deal of teaching. The figures were neatly set down, but the working incorrect.