periment, but rather because it was a positive step which reflected the thought and care of the Maori parent. The press printed and the radio broadcast the news of this project. Television filmed the students at work.

Another Centre at Whakarewarewa The news spread and the Whakarewarewa, Ngapuna and Waipa parents recognised that a similar Centre would be helpful in their area. They met on a Sunday and their Centre opened the next day with an attendance of 60 students. The Whakarewarewa Primary School was the venue and the records show a complete roll of 85 students. The organisers have divided the Centre into three divisions: the intermediate schoolchildren who arrived unexpectedly, but fired with enthusiasm; the third and fourth forms; and the fifths and sixths. Now that a few months' experience has been gained it is possible to assess the need for, and the value of the Study Centre. Supervised study conditions give the students an opportunity to get away from home distractions. It provides a quieter place. The demands of household chores are reduced. If those who attend are being provided with better study conditions, then the effects should be reflected in the students' school work. We have reports of a better attitude and more settled school work among those who attend.

Students Respond to Parents' Interest An extremely significant result was that in several instances a student responded to the presence of his parent at the Centre as a parent-supervisor by showing an increased interest in his school work. Many parents do not come up to the expectations of their children because they are unable to assist with homework. What actually is a lack of confidence is interpreted by the child as a lack of interest. Consequently the child's interest in school wanes. By an occasional attendance at the Study Centre the parent reassures his child of his practical interest. The students themselves are aware of the benefits they derive from attending the study sessions. The qualified supervisors are prepared to assist in their own particular field and over the week a good coverage of school subjects is obtained. The students also find assistance from amongst themselves by discussing their work. One cannot overlook the social atmosphere inherent in these study sessions. The students obviously enjoy sitting down together to do their homework. Although the rolls of both Centres are large, attendances are not always of the same order. Research reveals that distance often influences attendance. It has been particularly apparent at Ohinemutu that Koutu children have difficulty in getting to the Centre. The fall-off in attendance of Koutu students is disconcerting. The initial interest shown suggests that if transport were to be provided a high rate of attendance would be maintained. Hired transport (preferably a bus) could service both Study Centres, and the full benefits of the facilities provided could be utilised. Finance, of course, is the problem.

Homework study centres where children can work in the evenings are now operating in a number of Maori communities. Study centres with small libraries attached to them are functioning at Orakei, Auckland, and at Putiki, Wanganui, and a study centre based on those at Rotorua has recently been established at Kawerau. Mr S. M. Mead, well known as an educationist and a writer of books on Maori culture, recently left New Zealand to spend three years in the United States. He is to study primitive art for a doctorate of philosophy at the University of South Illinois. Mrs Mead and their two daughters accompanied him. A member of Ngati Manawa of Murupara and of Ngati Pahipoto and Ngati Rangiheua of Te Teko, Mr Mead was formerly headmaster at Whatawhata School. Later he became a lecturer in Maori studies in Auckland University's anthropology department. Pukekohe's Maori welfare officer, Miss Ngahinaturae (Ina) Te Uira, recently spent three months in the United States studying social welfare under a grant given by the American government. Ina Te Uira comes from the small community of Taharoa, south of Kawhia Harbour. She went to Queen Victoria School, and joined the Maori Affairs Department in 1951. Before going to Pukekohe she spent several years as a welfare officer in Te Kuiti, and also graduated with a diploma of social science at Victoria University.