5

E.—6

in average yearly attendance at public schools. 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. Under the Education Act, 1914, and regulations issued under its authority, the arrangements for scholarships have been|remodelled. Junior and Senior National Scholarships, to be awarded under a national scheme, replace the older Junior National and the Education Board Junior Scholarships and the Education Board Senior Scholarships respectively. The University Entrance Scholarships, which have hitherto been called Senior National Scholarships, will in future be known, in accordance with the University Amendment Act, 1914, as University National Scholarships. Under the scheme thus introduced junior and senior scholarships, in the proportion of nine to five, are to be awarded, the standard of qualification in any year for the respective grades being determined beforehand in such manner as approximately to provide one scholarship for every five hundred in yearly average attendance. For pupils of schools below Grade 111 a slightly lower standard is to be provided: The qualifications of candidates for Junior National Scholarships will be tested in an examination of somewhat greater difficulty than the certificate of proficiency examination. For the testing of the qualifications of applicants for the new Senior National Scholarships there will be, alternative to the examination based on. the Public Service Entrance Examination, an examination of equal difficulty provided to suit the needs of those candidates who are being instructed on the lines of the rural or domestic courses now adopted in many schools. The following summary to Table L 4, showing the number and value of Junior National Scholarships current in December, 1913, and December, 1914, respectively, deals only with the Junior National Scholarships of the older conditions. The first award of scholarships under the new conditions will be made as from the beginning of next year : — Number of scholarships,— 1913. 1914. Boys .. .. .. .. .. ..68 76 Girls .. .. .. .. .. ..62 59 Totals .. .. .'. ' .. ..130 135 Number receiving boarding-allowance (included in the above total) 72 77 Number receiving travelling-allowance (similarly included) .. 2 3 ." Number held at secondary schools . . . . .. 114 117 Number held at district high schools .. .. 16 18 Total annual rate of payment .. .. .. .. £3,460 £3,650 (ii.) Education Board Scholarships. The scholarship funds of the Boards have for many years up to the present been provided by grants which amounted to Is. 6d. per head of the average attendance. The conditions of the scholarships have been determined by regulations approved in the case of each Board by the Minister of Education. For the award of the junior scholarships all the Boards have now for some years used the Junior National Scholarship Examination, and for their senior scholarships the Intermediate Examination as arranged for scholarship candidates ; but the awards themselves and the subsequent control of the holders have been entirely in the hands of the Boards. The number and the value of the Board scholarships in the various districts are shown in Table L 5, the totals of which are for the whole of New Zealand, as follows : — Scholarships. At £40 per annum . . .. . . .. .. . . 118 At £35 per annum .. .. . . .. .. .. 5 At £33 per annum .. .. .. .. .. .. 3 At £30 per annum .. .. .. .. .. 50 Under £30 and. not under £20 per annum .. .. 14 Under £20 and not under £10 per annum .. . . .. 239 Under £10 and not under £5 per annum .. . . .. .. 159 Under £5 per annum .. .. . . .. .. 38 Total .. .. .. .. .. ..626