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and parents in their homes. During the year five teachers have travelled extensively under this scheme, and there is evidence that their work has been appreciated in the backblock districts. Weekly radio lessons from the Correspondence School have served a similar purpose in making the pupils feel that they belong to an institution that has a corporate living existence. In August the Headmaster attended the first International Conference on Correspondence Education held at Victoria, British Columbia. His report was most informative and valuable. ADULT EDUCATION. Council op Adult Education. A Government that believes it is the right of every citizen to be given all the education from which he can benefit cannot limit its activities to the schools, and during the past three years I have been anxious to put adult education on a firmer and more permanent basis. Statutory authority for the establishment of the Council of Adult Education was included in the Education Amendment Act, 1938. The Council consists of the Director of Education, the Director of Broadcasting, two representatives of the Senate of the University of New Zealand (Dr. Elizabeth Bryson and Professor T. A. Hunter), one representative of the Dominion Council of the Workers' Educational Association (Mr. P. M. Smith), and two persons appointed by the Minister of Education (Mrs. N. A. R. Barrer and Mr. W. G-. Simpson). Although the Education Amendment Act, 1938, was not passed until September, the Council had functioned from the beginning of the year and had investigated the whole field of adult education. An amount of £7,000 was made available for adult education, and the Council arranged for its disbursement amongst the agencies and organizations responsible for carrying on work in this field. In addition to providing for the needs of the four University colleges, which had been assisted financially in the past, the Council considered requests for assistance from the Women's Division of the Farmers' Union, the Federation of Women's Institutes, and the British Drama League, and also requests on behalf of Maori adult education and the Box Scheme. It is hoped that in the coming year, with the appointment of district advisory committees, there will be marked advances in the sphere of adult education. I am particularly desirous of seeing more classes organized in Public Works camps. Country Library Service.* In May the Right Hon. the Prime Minister formally inaugurated the Country Library Service, which has, under the control of Mr. Gr. T. Alley, established itself rapidly during the year. Its books are being distributed by means of two specially built vans, one in the North Island and one in the South. The effects of the service are to be seen not only in the appreciation by country people of the books sent out, but also in the general stimulation and awakening that is occurring in rural and small-town libraries. The amount appropriated for the service for the year 1938-39 was £8,766. The library contained 16,533 volumes at the end of 1938. Feilding Community Centre. New Zealand has not yet developed an ideal system of adult education, especially as far as the rural areas are concerned. Experimentation will be necessary over a long period. One bold experiment was started during the year at Feilding, where Mr. and Mrs. H. C. D. Somerset were appointed to the staff of the Feilding Agricultural High School for the special purpose of trying out a new method of organizing adult education in a district. They spend half a day each per week in class-teaching in order to maintain contact with the older pupils; the remainder of their time is spent at the Community Centre, which is a building in the town that was originally used as a technical school but has now been structurally altered and specially equipped to cater for adult education in the fullest sense.

* For report on Country Library Service see,.H.-32A.

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