E.—9a,

1894. NEW ZEALAND.

EDUCATION: SECONDARY SCHOOLS. REPORTS OF THE INSPECTOR-GENERAL OF SCHOOLS ON THE OTAGO BOYS' AND GIRLS' HIGH SCHOOLS. [In Continuation of E.—9, 1894.]

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

BEPOET ON THE OTAGO BOYS' HIGH SCHOOL. Sir, — Dunedin, 25th August, 1894. I have the honour to lay before you, at your request, a statement with respect to the organization and work of the Boys' High School as I have observed it in the course of an unusually minute inspection extending over the whole of the school-time yesterday and the day before, and as I have considered it in the light of copious information supplied to me by the Sector and the secretary You asked me to pay particular attention to the " commercial side "of the school. The distinction common now in English schools between the '•' classical side " and the " modern side " has no place in this inquiry, for the simple reason that in the Boys' High School there is no classical side. There is only one boy learning Greek, and the instruction he receives in that subject is not given in school hours. The whole school, therefore, belongs to the " modern side," and I conclude that by the " commercial side " is meant that part of the organization by which special provision is made for boys whose parents desire that no part of their time may be devoted to Latin. The number of these boys is six, and two of the six omit French as well as Latin. One of them is in the Lower Fifth, one is in the Upper Fourth, three are in the Lower Fourth, and one is in the Bemove. It would not be reasonable to expect the Board to provide a special teacher for these six boys, and if one teacher were appointed he could not teach them all at the same time. The arrangement that is made for them is as follows : The boy in the Lower Fifth intends to be a mechanical engineer He comes from a primary school in which he passed the Sixth Standard. He has been a year and a half at the High School, and is in his seventeenth year. The five hours a week when the Fifth Form is at Latin he spends in the mathematical master's room, and works alone at algebra and Euclid. The master decides what work he shall do, leaves his own classwork occasionally to see what this one boy is doing, and is always ready to answer a question or render assistance in a difficulty. When I asked the boy how the five hours were spent, he said he worked by himself at algebra, and had no help , but I found that, by Mr Brent's direction, he was actually working at Euclid, and when I further questioned him he confirmed the statement I have here adopted as to the supervision exercised by the mathematical master The boy in the Upper Fourth came in at the beginning of last year after passing the Fifth Standard. He is in his eighteenth year. He began Latin, but was not getting on well, and he gave it up because, as he told .me, his parents wished him to do so. He spends the five Latin hours in the mathematical master's room, working at arithmetic. He at first informed me that he received no help during these hours, and, like the boy in the Lower Fifth, he did not appear to recognise any inconsistency in acknowledging, on being further questioned, that Mr Brent's supervision, and direction, and assistance, were available and operative. The two boys of whom I have spoken that learn neither Latin nor French are between sixteen and seventeen, and both have passed the Sixth Standard in primary schools. One of them began to learn French, but was not making much progress in it. The three hours of French he devotes to physical science under the supervision of Mr. Brent, of the five Latin hours he spends two in Mr. Anderton s geography class, two in private reading of geography under Mr Anderton's supervision, and one in the gymnasium. The other boy takes three hours at book-keeping (under the supervision of Mr. Anderton) in place of French, and of the five Latin hours he gives four (under the same supervision) to algebra, and one to gymnastics. The one boy in the Fourth Form who learns French, but not Latin, is in his seventeenth year. He came from a school in Fiji, where he passed the Sixth Standard (according to the Melbourne syllabus, I believe), He spends the five Latin hours in Mr. Anderton's room as follows Two hours in geography class, two hours alone at geography, and one hour alone at arithmetic. The one boy in the Bemove, who