E.—2.

[Appendix A.

yeai' the need of improvements to many of the teachers' houses has occupied the Board's attention. In response to inquiry made lists of requirements in this direction have been forwarded to the Department. In the majority of cases the chief needs were for bathrooms and washhouses, the residences erected many years since being for the most part deficient in these respects. The decision of the Department to grant the necessary relief only in the case of buildings Dot over twenty years old merely deals with (he fringe of the trouble and leaves the main question untouched. This policy, too, seems unfortunate, seeing that it is chiefly the older structures, occupied by head teachers of long experience, that require modern conveniences, not only so that they shall be comfortably flOUSed, but also iti order that they shall be in possession of a consideration at least equivalent to the allowance they would receive if there were no house. Maintenance. The expenditure on salaries and allowances to teachers engaged in primary departments was £75,389 I Is. Bd., the giants to School Committees and other incidental expenses amounting to £!>,487 11s. lid., making a total of £81.877 -'is. 7d. r l lie expenditure on salaries, as compared with the previous year, showed an increase of £2,256 ss. 10d. The salaries paid to teachers in secondary departments amounted to £2,686 Ms. Bd., being a decrease of £90 15s. sd. as compared with the expenditure for 1909. Return No. 6* shows the amount spent in eaeli sohool for salaries and incidentals during the year, and the following table gives the annualf totals under tlie two headings from 1878 to the present year : —

There Mere 592 teachers in the Hoard's service at the end of 1910, being an increase (if twenty-three as compared with the previous year. Of these, 207 (119 males and eighty-eight females) were heads of schools or departments, or in sole charge; 238 (forty-seven males and 191 females) were assistants; 122 (thirty-live males and eighty-seven females) were pupil-teachers; and twenty-five (six males and nineteen females) were probationers. The number of sewing mistresses was fourteen. The undermentioned table shows the number of schools, the number of children on the rolls, the number in average attendance, and the percentage of attendance at the close of each yearf since 1878. The percentage of attendance for the December quarter, 1910, rose to 9012, showing a gratifying improvement on the previous year (85*51), and being the highest on record in this district, as also was the number in average attendance, 18,922.

XVI

Year. Salaries. Incidental Expenses. Totals. Totals. Average Attendance Dec Quarter. [_ 1878 1883 1888 1893 1898 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 . . i £ 8. d. 31,919 0 0 42,240 19 10 50,749 14 6 56,291 15 9 55,390 3 11 55,320 19 5 57,117 16 2 56,748 2 10 55,579 11 2 57,965 18 7 62,939 2 10 64,240 10 2 65,218 15 9 73,133 5 10 75,389 11 8 £ s. (I. 6,276 6 9 6,090 15 9 6,400 7 5 6,871 14 10 5,933 11 1 6,579 5 0 6,046 14 2 5,922 10 7 6,027 5 8 6,717 16 4 6,759 16 3 6,694 12 11 6,825 12 1 7,107 10 I 6,487 11 II £ s. (I. 38,195 6 !) 48,331 15 7 57,150 (i 3 63.163 10 7 62,323 15 0 61,900 4 5 63.164 10 4 62,670 13 5 61,606 16 10 64,683 14 11 69,698 19 1 70,935 3 1 72,044 7 10 80,240 15 II 81.877 3 7 10,076 1 3,462 16,395 17,315 17.152 16,773 16,527 16,462 16,808 17,005 16,759 16,263 17,688 17,821 18.922 .

Quarter ended 31 si December. District Schools. Aided Schools. Total of Schools. On Roll. Average Attendanoe, December Quarter. Percentage. 1878 .. 1883 .. 1888 .. 1893 . . 1898 .. 1901 .. L902 .. 1903 .. 1904 .. 1905 .. 1906 .. 1907 .. 1908 .. 1909 .. 1910 .. 106 139 155 175 186 185 185 183 181 187 189 192 195 196 194 4 4 1 4 16 20 22 22 22 23 20 14 14 14 15 III) 143 156 179 202 206 207 205 206 210 209 206 209 210 209 > - 13,647 17,797 20,388 21,229 20,618 19,638 19,451 19,579 19.378 19,385 19,403 19,282 20,003 20,842 20.985 10,076 13,462 1 6,395 17,315 17.152 16,773 16,527 16,462 16,808 17,005 16,759 16,263 17.688 17,821 18.1122 73-83 75-64 80-42 81-51 83-19 85-41 84-96 84-79 86-73 87-72 86-37 84-34 88-42 85-51 90-12 * See Appendix E of this Report. t Table condensi sd into five-yearly periods from 1878 t< 1898.