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1943 NEW ZEALAND

REPORT OF THE MINISTER OF EDUCATION FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31st DECEMBER, 1942 (In continuation of E.-1, 1942)

Presented to both Houses of the General Assembly by Command of His Excellency

Office of the Department of Education, Your Excellency— Wellington, 18th May, 1943. I have the honour, in accordance with the provisions of the Education Act, 1914, to submit to Your Excellency the following report, upon the progress and condition of public education in New Zealand during the year ended the 31st December, 1942. I have, &c., His Excellency the Governor-General of the H. G. R. Mason. Dominion of New Zealand.

REPORT

The War and the Schools. —With the entry of Japan into hostilities, the impact of the war upon the schools attained what one trusts was its maximum early in 1942. Not only were large numbers of teachers absorbed into the armed forces, but it became necessary for military and hospital authorities to take over a number of schools and other educational buildings for defence purposes. These were willingly given up by controlling authorities to meet the sudden emergency, and I must pay a tribute to Boards and their staffs, to Committees, and to teachers for the courageous and imaginative way in which they struggled to see that the children in their care should suffer as little as possible from this regrettable but necessary sacrifice. For weeks or months, and in a few cases for the whole year, classes had to be taken in improvised accommodation, and it says much for those engaged in education that only a handful of children missed more than a few days of schooling. The blow fell hardest on one training college, on a few post-primary schools, and on the schools of Palmerston North and Feilding. In these two towns, out of thirteen primary and post-primary schools, only two were available for educational work for the first five weeks of the year. Boards and teachers rose to the occasion magnificently and organized a system of education without schools that not only met the emergency, but also broke new ground and turned a necessity into a genuine educational experiment. The Government has made every effort, even in the face of growing demands for defence buildings, to release school buildings for their proper use. Over the same period, it became necessary to provide air-raid shelters and fire-fighting and first-aid equipment for schools. These were provided free of cost for both State and private schools in vulnerable areas. The Education Boards were most helpful in this by 110 means easy task. Children in all schools were drilled in orderly dispersal in case of emergency, and in most schools first-aid instruction was intensified. Soldier Teachers.—No group of men entering the armed Services can have had their civilian interests better protected than have soldier teachers. After consultation with the teachers' professional bodies, the Government last year passed regulations which ensure that no man entering the Services can lose status, salary, or advancement thereby. Already nearly 70 per cent, of the male primary teachers and 36 per cent, of the male post-primary teachers'are with the armed forces : many have won distinction. The loss of these men has thrown a heavy strain upon the schools. Women teachers have