E.—3.

practice has ceased except in perhaps one or two cases. It is worthy of note that sewing is now being recognized as a branch of manual training for boys in European schools, and we may therefore find it taking its old place in our curriculum. Woodwork: During the year there were in operation fifteen workshops in which instruction was given in woodwork and carpentry. These have all done successful work, and have proved to be a means of valuable training to the senior boys and young men of the settlement. They certainly play an important part in bringing the Maori into touch with European comforts, anil thus contribute both to his civilization and physical well-being. In Whakarapa School, for instance, there was a keen demand for bedsteads with wire-woven mattresses, which the boys were constructing in the workshop, and in the houses of the other settlements in which workshops exisi one finds that the greater part, if not all, of the furniture has been procured in this way. Elementary practical agriculture still languishes, and it will do m> until we have some means of providing instruction for the teachers. A few of the teachers are enthusiasts in the matter, and the results achieved by them are very gratifying, affording object-lessons of the most useful kind to both pupils and parents. We may mention here that arrangements are in hand to give instruction in dairying at Nuhaka Native School, the pupils of which are largely interested in dairy-farming. The drawing is generally only lair in quality, there being comparatively few schools in which a high standard of excellence is attained. Reproductions of Hat copies from diagrams is still much in evidence, and though the work is done with care and accuracy its value is comparatively small when compared with that derived from the drawing of natural objects as practised in the best schools. In some cases a beginning has been made with briishwork. and as the children find pleasure in using colours we think that this brunch of drawing should be encouraged to a greater extent. In othei handwork the pupils show a considerable amount of natural aptitude, and exercises in modelling in plasticine, canllmard-werk. and various forms of paper-work are well done. In the i'cu schools where instruction in cooking is given to the senior girls valuable work is done, and the specimens submitted for our inspection show that the subject has been well taught. The lessons are highly appreciated by the girls, and we should like to see arrangements made to provide this instruction in a much greater number of schools. The expense likely to be incurred is not very great, as the aim should be to show the girls how to get the best out of what they have, and better ways of doing what they have to do. The chief object is to improve the home life; and any work that is of a standard unattainable by the girl in her own home, even though it may make a good showing in the class, is not desirable. 5. SINOING in the schools has maintained a high standard, and continues to be taught very satisfactorily. In most of the schools the pupils have a good knowledge of the sol-fa notation, and even the infants can read simple songs at sight without difficulty. We consider that a fewminutes daily would be more effective than one or two half-hours each week, and recommend teachers to make a trial of this suggestion. It should be remembered, too, that with few exceptions the compass of the voices in a class or school will be much the same, and in part-songs the alto should not be too low. •' The altos of one day should be the trebles of the next, for to set apart certain children always to sing alto will have a disastrous effect, since the ' head ' voice is the proper voice to be cultivated, and it is almost impossible for a child to sing alto in it." (i. Physical INSTRUCTION. —As far as the present system goes, the results appear to us to be very satisfactory, the exercises being performed with commendable precision and vigour. Recent developments in this branch of education will no doubt lead to the introduction of newschemes into the Native schools, and we shall be glad to have any assistance in this important subject that the Department may be able to afford us. Meanwhile we would again urge upon the teachers the advantages to be derived by the children from organized games during the winter months, and from swimming, where the opportunity offers, in the summer months. Organization. In many of the schools the organization —arrangement of time-tables and of schemes of work, and the methods of teaching—is exceedingly well designed, and the work proceeds without obstacle and on well-defined lines. We find that where grouping is necessary it is made with sound judgment, and with good results. There are instances, however, in which the contrary would appear ti. be tin , case. It is impossible, for instance, to group effectively Maori children of various standards lor instruction in arithmetic, and equally impossible to group them for English, and yet we have noted eases in which this is proposed on the time-table. We fully recognize the difficulty of the problem, and that the time at the teacher's disposal is necessarily limited. But we I'eel that the time-honoured custom of allowing half an hour for each lesson has much to do with the faulty grouping such as we refer to. We believe that shorter periods would enable the teacher to handle his classes for separate instruction, and that in no case should the children of the lowest classes be kept at the same fixed occupation for more than fifteen or twenty minutes. The schemes of work are, on the whole, fairly satisfactory; but, as in previous years, we must call attention to the fact that English language ami composition require systematic treat ment more than any other subject of the curriculum. In remarking upon the organization we feel it incumbent Upon us to draw the attention of teachers to the delay frequently observed in the promotion of children from the infant classes to the standards. It is true that the pro motion of the child should depend upon his proficiency and upon local circumstances, but we are inclined to think that in a great number of instances children are kept far too long in the infant division. With the advance in methods and the increased efficiency of the schools, two years should suffice for the preparation of the average child for the work of Standard I.

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