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1899. NEW ZEALAND.

EDUCATION: TEACHERS' AND CIVIL SERVICE EXAMINATIONS. [In continuation of E.-1A, 1898.]

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

The Inspectob-Genebal of Schools to the Hon. the Ministee of Education. Sic, — Education Department, Wellington, 3rd April, 1899. I have the honour to report upon the annual examinations of candidates for teachers' certificates, and for admission to, or promotion in, the Civil Service. The examinations were held in January, between the 9th and 17th days of the month, at the thirteen towns which are the seats of Education Boards, and also at Whangarei, Thames, Tauranga, Opotiki, Gisborne, Masterton, Westport, Oamaru, Palmerston South, and Lawrence. The number of candidates was 1,235, made up as follows : Eor the Junior Civil Service examination, 468; for the Senior Civil Service examination, 96 ; for certificate examinations, 646; for drawing (pupil-teachers only), 25. The expenses of the examinations amounted to £881 16s. 2d., and the fees paid by candidates to £1,000 7s. Printing and clerical work are not included in the account of expenses. The results of the Senior Civil Service examination were made known on the 16th of February, the results of the Junior Civil Service examination on the 17th, and those of the teachers' examinations on the 23rd of the same month. Of the 96 Senior Civil Service candidates, one applied to be examined in shorthand only, and passed the examination; one had already passed the examination, but wished to pass in a seventh subject for the purposes of the Barristers' General Knowledge examination, and was successful; and 28 came up to complete examinations in which they had already been partially successful. Of the 94 ordinary candidates, 44 passed the examination. (See Gazette, 23rd February, 1899.) The names of 261 of the Junior Civil Service candidates were published, in the order of marks, in the Gazette of the 23rd February ; one fulfilled the junior test in shorthand only; and the remaining 206 failed to reach the minimim required, which is one-third of the possible total. Of the 25 pupil-teachers who availed themselves of the regulation which allows them to come up for one branch of drawing at a time, 15 satisfied the examiner. At the teachers' examination, two were candidates for Class C (University status being taken into account), 204 were candidates for the whole examination for Class D, and 126, having been credited with "partial success" for Class D, came up to complete their examination; 223 were candidates for the whole examination for Class E, and 90 came up to. complete the examination for that class ; one candidate, a graduate, voluntarily presented herself for examination in subjects in which it was not necessary for her to pass, and she satisfied the examiners. Among these 646 candidates were 153 candidates who had already passed for Class E, and were seeking promotion to Class D ; and of the remainder —493 in number—B6 were teachers in the service of the Boards, 245 were pupil-teachers, and 68 were normal-school students in training; while 34 were persons who had ceased to be teachers, pupil-teachers, or normal students, and 60 had never sustained any such relation to the public schools. Of the whole number of 646 candidates, 239 have " passed " (144 for D, and 95 for E), and 188 have achieved "partial success" (80 for D, and 108 for E), while 219 have failed to improve their status. Of the candidates that have achieved " success " or "partial success," 33 had previously failed. As the result of the examination, 188 new certificates will be issued (1 for Class C, 92 for Class D, and 95 for Class E), and 52 certificates of Class E will be raised to Class D. I—E. la.