E.—6

10

is possible only in separate schools for boys and girls, or where the school is large enough to have in its lowest forms teachers for boys and girls respectively. English, arithmetic, mathematics, history, geography, and a branch of science are common to all. Latin and French are added in the case of (a) ; book-keeping and allied subjects as alternatives to Latin and French for (b) ; and agriculture and other topics closely related for (c) (boys), and subjects having a direct bearing on house-craft for (c) (girls). The work is arranged in all secondary schools to reach the Intermediate Certificate in two years. The pupils of course (a) reach the University Junior Scholarship Examination in four or five years. The three courses thus indicated are provided for in a few of the secondary schools only. They are not found in the secondary schools in the cities and largest towns. In some of the schools, even in the country towns, the curriculum is almost identical with course (a). This is surely a mistake, for New Zealand must depend largely on the products of the soil, and if the education of its boys ought to bo related to their future life-work the course of instruction should make suitable provision for intelligent teaching in agriculture. In most of the district high schools the rural course has been adopted, and where facilities are provided for individual laboratory practice and an area of land has been set aside for observational and experimental work very satisfactory results are being achieved. It is not desired that the curriculum should be mainly of a vocational nature, for a good sound general education is a matter of paramount importance. Piircly technical education is not advisable, but as good a training in the principles of science can be obtained from the ruial course drawn yip by the Department as from any of the other sciences. In some of the secondary schools and district .high schools the home-science course has been introduced. It has been felt that there is a considerable number of girls whose tastes and capacities lie altogether in a direction away either from professional or office work. Accordingly some of the secondary schools and district high schools have made a beginning with a course of instruction in which hygiene, first aid, cookery, dressmaking, and art have been substituted for the foreign languages and mathematics of course (a), and for the book-keeping and closely allied subjects of course (b). ' The value of a course such as this can scarcely be overrated. In fact, it might fairly be contended that every girl in our secondary schools, whether Government or private, ought to be taught the elements of household management. It is a matter for regret that in some ruralized secondary schools the course in agriculture has received such a small measure of support that it had to be abandoned or occupy a decidedly inferior position. Almost without exception course (a) is the most popular in both the cities and large towns as well as in the smaller centres. This is probably due to two causes : Firstly, for a long time this course was usually taken by boys and girls, and is still regarded as the most suitable one by parents, even when their children do not intend to enter on a professional career. This course, moreover, has an examination of on« kind or another as its goal, and examinations still exercise considerable fascination ; secondly, there is an idea in many quarters that the agriculture course is intended only for pupils who wish to take up rural pursuits in after-life. This arises from a misconception of the aim and scope of this course. When it is clearly recognized that the agriculture course can provide as good a training in secondary subjects as either the professional or the commercial courses, and that the work is not necessarily of a strictly technical character suitable for the future farmer, the agriculture course will no doubt receive the consideration it merits. General intellectual equipment can be obtained from a course in which agriculture is the branch of science taught as well as from any other. Its chief recommendation lies in the obvious fact that it draws most of its illustrations from phenomena with which the pupils are familiar from childhood, and is not based on theoretical instruction from text-books. Moreover, the programme of work in English, history, geography, arithmetic, and mathematics is .> practically the same as that of the professional and commercial courses. Organization. —The organization of the schools varies considerably. In some a form master or mistress is appointed who is responsible for the general progress, home lessons, behaviour, &c, of that form. This is the teacher to whom the pupil would go if he wished some slight adjustment in his course. In general, the teacher chosen would be responsible for a substantial amount of the work of that form. In some schools the teacher of English is appointed to that position. Tn other cases —usually few in number—there is no form master or mistress, as the teachers are teachers of subjects primarily. Specialization is of considerable importance in school-work as well as in other departments, but it must be a great drawback and a source of bewilderment to a boy or girl who enters a secondary school from a primary school to have a number of teachers every day. It must take him a considerable time to get his bearings. Moreover, the loss is greatest in that side of school life which is of the highest importance —-viz., the formation of character. It is surety indisputable that the continual influence of the teacher on the pupil throughout practically the school day is the determining factor in character-building. Where the personal element is in the background—and it must be so where there are as many diverse influences as there are separate teachers —the work of producing a regular beneficial influence on the pupil is seriously hampered. There is little opportunity for mutual expressions of confidence which lie at the back of the formation of ideals of conduct. In some schools meetings of the staff are held to discuss the progress of individual pupils, the amount of home lessons, schemes of work, the way in which the various subjects of the curriculum can be correlated, &c. These meetings cannot fail to be highly beneficial in improving the efficiency of the teaching staff. English. —The teaching of English is, in general, good. The English language is in most schools taught in a systematic manner by carefully graded lessons for the various forms. The main, grammatical distinctions are taught in the lowest forms, and the detailed study is left for subsequent treatment. In some schools, however, too much detail is taught in the earlier stages. In the teaching of spelling the spelling-book containing isolated words, the meaning of which is often not known, is still sometimes used. Such a practice should be discontinued. The vocabulary of pupils must be extended, but the words should be learned from their context in the passage in which they occur, and not from lists of isolated words. An extensive course of reading is the best method to follow, and if good lessons in wordbuilding are associated with the reading lessons accurate spelling will be the result. In many schools