5

E.—6

of £9 10s. 2d. per pupil. There should be added also those receiving free education in Maori schools, 134 in number, and the holders of certain free places in technical schools, numbering 1,144. There is thus an approximate total of 7,051 pupils receiving free secondary education, exclusive of those holders of free places in technical schools who were art students, or were evening students, or were taking courses which may be more approximately described as technical rather than as secondary. The following table gives a summary of the various secondary free places at the end of the year for which payment was made by Government:— Free Places in December, 1909 and 1910. , 1909. , , 1910. , (i.) Secondary schools— B°ye- Girls. Total. Boys. Girls. Total. (a.) Junior free pupils ... 1,326 1,004 2,330 1,468 1,193 2,661 (b.) Senior free pupils ... 571 394 965 578 446 1,024 Total ... ... 1,897 1,398 3,295 2,046 1,639 3,685 (ii.) District high schools ... 944 947 1,891 955 963 1,918 (iii.) Maori secondary schools .. 51 73 124 51 83 134 (iv.) Technical day-schools ... 345 501 846 505 639 1,144 >j jj g Grand total ... 3,237 2,919 6,156 3,557 3,324 6,881 In the above table (in the case of the secondary schools and district high schools) the roll at the end of the year has been taken; a fairer estimate of the number of persons receiving free secondary education in public institutions would be obtained by taking the average roll throughout the year and including in the total the holders of foundation and private scholarships or exhibitions who received free tuition not paid for by Government. We obtain thus the following approximate figures : — Ntimber receiving Free Secondary Education in 1910. Secondary schools ... ... ... ... ... ... 4,073 District high schools ... ... ... , ... ... ... 2,189 Technical day-schools ... ... ... ... ... ... 1,144 Maori secondary schools ... ... ... ... ... ... 134 Total ... ... ... ... ... 7,540 The corresponding number for 1909 may be estimated as 6,748, showing an increase for the year 1910 of 792 in the number in the Dominion who are receiving free secondary education. • Scholarships held at Secondary Schools and District High Schools. These scholarships are of four kinds, — (i.) Junior National Scholarships; (ii.) Education Board Scholarships; (iii.) Foundation or Governor's Scholarships, given by the governing bodies of secondary schools; (iv.) Private scholarships, endowed by private owners. (i.) Junior National Scholarships. —These scholarships are allotted to the several education districts practically on the basis of population, as in each district there is offered annually one scholarship for each 4,000 or part of 4,000 children in average yearly attendance. The scholarships are awarded by the Education Boards on the results of an examination conducted by the Education Department, and the Boards exercise a certain control over the holders, and pay over to them from time to time the amounts falling due. With the Junior National Scholarships are now incorporated the Junior Queen's Scholarships,