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1888. NEW ZEALAND.

TECHNICAL AND ART INSTRUCTION AND DRAWING IN PRIMARY SCHOOLS (REPORT ON) IN AUSTRALASIAN COLONIES, BY MR. A. D. RILEY.

Presented to both Houses of the General Assembly by Command of His Excellency.

REPORT upon Technical and Art Instruction and Drawing in Primary Schools in South Australia, Victoria, and New South Wales ; with additional information and papers. By Arthur D. Riley, National Scholar and Gold Medallist of South Kensington, London; late Art Examiner and Lecturer to the Education Department of IStew South Wales ; Art Director of the Wellington School of Design and Education Board of the Wellington District.

Mr. A. D. Riley to the Hon. the Minister of Education. Sib,— _ Wellington, July, 1888. In accordance with the request contained in your letter of the 13th of December last, I have the honour to submit my report upon the various technical schools of Victoria, New South Wales, and South Australia, including drawing in primary schools. I have included with the report matter and papers relative to other institutions not in the colonies, but which I consider to be of value, and to have especial bearing upon the subject of this report. In the following pages I have given the full programme of study followed at the chief institutions visited, considering it necessary that such should be cited in extenso if it is intended to make any practical use of information of the kind. I have, &c, The Hon. George Fisher, Minister of Education. Arthur D. Riley.

Thanks. My thanks are due to the under-mentioned gentlemen, who very kindly gave me every assistance and information in their power: The Hon. C. H. Pearson, the Hon. J. Inglis, and the Hon. the Ministers for Education respectively of Victoria, New South Wales, and South Australia : the Under-Secretary for Instruction; J. H. Hartley, Esq., 8.A., &c, Inspector-General of Schools ; and H. P. Gill, Esq., of South Australia: J. W. Brown, Esq., Under-Secretary for Instruction, Messrs. Ball, Eraser, Campbell, and Cox, connected with educational institutions of Victoria: E. Johnson, Esq., Under-Secretary for Instruction, H. Maiden, Esq., Curator of Technological Museum, Professor Warren, Messrs. Hennessy and Henry, and the officers of the Technical Board of New South Wales: J. E. Blair, Esq., Chairman of the Wellington Education Board: also to the Railway Departments of Victoria and New South Wales, for railway-passes.

Summaey ow Recommendations. 1. That drawing-books, Standards I. and 11., sanctioned by the department as class-books, be dispensed with, but chat some of the exercises in Book 11. might be used by the teachers as blackboard exercises for class-instruction. 2. That all schools be required within two years to be provided with efficient drawing-models. 3. That boys holding the full first-grade drawing certificate, or showing special aptitude in drawing, receive free instruction in the central schools of design or workshop, with a view to technical training. 4. That the first-grade drawing examination be held in primary schools throughout the colony. 5. That no applicant for the office of pupil-teacher be accepted unless holding a full first-grade drawing certificate, or undertaking to complete the same within twelve months of appointment. To take effect from January, 1890. This is provisional upon recommendation 1 being adopted. 6. That second-grade drawing be taken as the standard of examination for pupil-teachers and teachers of primary and secondary schools, and that the same should be separate and distinct from the ordinary classification certificate; or, should the same be combined, that the ordinary I—E. 11.