E.—s

34

Continuation classes in English, book-keeping, shorthand, and typewriting were carried on, but again the attendance was disappointing. We are in hopes that as our young people come to more fully realise the benefits to be gained by attending these classes the number of pupils will increase, but we much regret the apathy shown by parents and young people. Special classes in woodwork for amateurs, and also for the Maori students attending Te Ran College, were fairly well attended. Steps taken to form trade classes for those engaged in the building trade and carpentry met with no response. There was also a class for instruction in wood-carving. Classes in dressmaking were held for («) girls under eighteen residing in town, and (&) girls of the same age residing in the country, the latter being the most popular. There was also a class for adults in the same subject. At the close of the session an exhibition of the work done by the pupils attending these and also the school classes was held, when some excellent work was shown, the visitors expressing themselves highly pleased with the quality of the work. Adult classes in cookery were not taken advantage of. During the year a Shacklock range was fitted in the cookery room, so that instruction is now given in the use of both gas and coal stoves. An attempt was made to inaugurate some system of rural technical instruction for the country schools, but owing to lack of support the idea was abandoned. We hope that some comprehensive scheme may be brought forward during the coming year which will provide instruction in this direction for the benefit of our farming community. The classes for teachers in woodwork, cookery, and dressmaking were not very well attended, but some of the teachers attended very regularly, with good results. Specimens of work done by the boys attending the woodwork classes were sent to the Christchurch Exhibition for inclusion in the exhibit of the Department. We desire to thank the Gisborne Borough Council and Mr. A. Webber for donations to the funds of the classes. W. Morgan, Secretary. Statement of Receipts and Expenditure for the Year ending Slut December, 1906, in respect of Special Classes conducted at Gisborne by the Gisborne High School Board of Governors. Receipts. £ s. d. Expenditure. £ s. d. Balance at beginning of year .. .. 11 18 1 j Salaries of instructors .. .. .. 410 9 8 Capitation on classes .. .. .. 501 12 11 I Office expenses (including salaries, stationery, Buildings .. .. .. ..1500 &o.) .. .. .. .. .. 25 18 6 Furniture, fittings, apparatus .. .. 416 11 Advertising and printing .. .. .. 14 19 6 Subsidies on voluntary contributions .. 21 16 0 Lighting and heating .. .. .. 15 17 2 Pees .. .. .. .. 74 3 3 Insurance and repairs .. .. .. 2 6 0 Voluntary contributions .. .. .. 21 16 0 Material for class use ... .. .. 60 12 4 Grant by Education Board towards salary of Caretaker and cleaning .. .. .. 19 11 0 instructor of teachers' cookery classes .. 25 0 0 Pares of instructors .. .. .. 312 6 Transfer from Secondary Account High School 10 0 0 Cartage, freight, and wharfage .. .. 12 9 Sale of material .. .. .. .. 418 8 Repairs .. .. .. .. .. 612 3 High School Board of Governors—For build- Coach fares to and from claeses .. .. 100 10 3 ings, furniture, &c. .. .. .. 21 18 10 Contracts (new buildings, additions, &c.) .. 30 0 0 Architect, &c. .. .. .. .. 2 2 0 Furniture, fittings, apparatus .. .. 913 9 Balance at end of year .. :. .. 913 0 £713 0 8 £713 0 8 W. Morgan, Secretary.

MARLBOROUGH. Extract from the Report of the Inspector of Schools. Handwork. —Forty-one schools undertook handwork of some description. There were 18 in 1904, and 29 in 1905. The remaining schools are very small. It may, however, be observed that there is no school too small to use concrete methods in teaching. To omit handwork is, therefore, to show that its idea is not grasped — e.g., to use plasticine in order to plot a map in relief is surely a pleasing and instructive variation on the usual drawing of a map, and the mere fact that plasticine is used instead of the pencil cannot constitute this a new subject; so also when plasticine is used to illustrate the mensuration of walls or cubic content, or when bricks are used in drawing plans and elevations and in illustration of scale-drawing. Ambulance and First Aid. —An incident of the past year is worthy of inclusion here: A child had fallen into a water-race, and after several minutes' immersion was recovered unconscious. Among the bystanders was a schoolboy who had been taught first aid, and under his direction the child was brought round. Some consider that but for the presence of that boy the accident would have ended fatally. Elementary Agriculture. —ln 1904 there were 6 school gardens; in 1905 the number had increased to 17 ; and now there are 24, including 3at private schools. The teachers have taken a keen interest in this late departure, and, as Mr. Bruce, our specialist in agriculture, says, they realise that it affords much help in dealing with the other work. Through the study and cultivation of plants the children acquire habits of observation and orderliness—the causal idea, the idea of planning work to ends, the idea of the inevitableness of natural results—which also tends to affect conduct in the schoolroom. Objects are taken from the garden to be used as studies in drawing; topics for essay-writing also abound. Diseases of plants are studied, and indirect lessons on human health taught. The school garden is a laboratory where many experiments are made. Waitohi, Tuamarina, Grovetown, and Springlands appear to have made the most of their garden from this point of view. In short, the teachers find that agriculture is not only a technical