E.—lb

8

The following table shows the percentage of passes in each of the compulsory pass subjects in all classes. Beading and spelling might well be stronger in nearly all standards. Writing is excellent throughout, and occupies the place of honour with 94-4 per cent, of passes; while gramma*, with composition, is lowest with 64-9. Arithmetic has 74 per cent, for all classes, but I should like to find it stronger in all standards from 11. to VI. Geography has 74 per cent., and-is strongest in Standard 111. Drawing has 89 per cent., and came out in Standard IV. better than I expected, with a percentage of 82.

Table D.

Possible number of passes in subjects, 24,273 ; actual number of passes in subjects, 19,784 : percentage of passes in subjects, 815. Instruction. — Preparatory Classes. —The children in these classes are those who are not considered by the teachers sufficiently advanced for presentation in Standard 1., and they numbered 2,644, or 373 per cent, of the number on the rolls on the days of the examination. The attainments of these children varied very much, not only in different small schools of about the same size, but also in different large schools. In one of the large schools the infants' mistress asked me to give the first division of her pupils addition sums of five columns five figures deep, and after doing so I found that, out of a class of thirty, all but two found the correct answer and wrote it in words, while the figuring was very fine. This first division also could write the tables without error to 12 times, while the second division could write to 7 times. These were the most advanced children presented to me, but at some other large schools the work was really good. Spelling often was very fine, especially when children were taught mainly by the phonic method. Indeed, this subject was not infrequently better in the P. class than in Standard I. In the small schools the work varied very much. Beading generally was so poor that teachers would have, after the examination, to form the future First Standard from pupils whose attainments in reading consisted in ability merely to recognise a few disconnected words on cards. In this subject more attention should be paid to the proper grouping of words in phrases. Children also should be thoroughly trained in the short and long vowel sounds, and in the functions of the consonants. Counting generally was very fair, but there is much room for improvement in the manner in which the ball frame is used. Writing often was very good, but at many of the small schools children are asked to form too many letters in one lesson, and they are left too much to themselves, the consequence being scribbling, with little or no attention to lines. It is very important that there should be a well advanced primer class if a good First Standard is to be obtained the following year. A reading book might well be used— Nelson's Queen Infants' Eeader and Queen Primers for choice—for then children would probably pick up something at home as well as in school; and little ones generally take some interest in a book, especially if it is well illustrated. On account of the necessarily very varied attainments of these preparatory classes the teacher of a small school is placed at a great disadvantage as compared with the teacher of a larger school. In the latter school the children enter the class preparing for Standard I. well grounded in their work, while in the former they are little more advanced than what are technically known as "infants." Standard Glasses. —ln Beading I find, on comparing the percentages for the two years, a considerable improvement this year in Standard 111., a marked decline in Standard V., and very similar results in the other standards. The misuse of the aspirate is becoming very common in this district. At several schools children read in such a low tone that it was a matter of great difficulty to hear what they were reading, even though the passages treated were well known to me. With a view to obtain improvement in this respect, I have for some considerable time recommended teachers to place their pupils standing at the back of the desks during the reading lessons. The explanation of the subject-matter of the reading lessons is still in a great many schools very poor. This lack of comprehension on the part of the pupils is in a great measure due to weak teaching and-to a bad style oi questioning. Thus, instead of requiring pupils to give in their own words in full statements the meanings of phrases, of clauses, or of sentences, as recommended year after year, too much attention is given to single_words such as are found at the end of the lesson, and which a pupil would probably be quite unable to embody in sentences if asked to do so.

Diets am Spell sition Gram andC positi mar iubjeot Bead: ing. Writ: ingArith: tetic. iomion. Geogri ■,phy. Drawing. d ling. Class. II OS 1^ CD CV 0 4^» B -a II J5 1 h O w w II "§■2 <D Q -fc3 !zi % 43 i itandard VI. V. „ IV. „ III. II. I. 156 332 654 1,038 1,043 988 94-2 86-1 86-5 84-4 83-8 82-7 156 332 654 1,038 1,043 988 86-5 73-5 68-2 69-9 82-41 85-5 156 332 654 1,038 1,043 988 96-1 96-4 92-2 93-4 95-2 94-0 156 332 654 1,038 1,043 988 67-3 1 62-7| 59-51 )72-4 77-0 87-2 156 332 654 1,038 57-0! 66-2; 59-2i 69-41 156 332 ... 11,038 70-5 62-9 78-2 654 1,038 1,043 988 82-1 90-9 90-3 92-0 t 1 I I ( 1889 Totals ... \ { 1888 4,211 84-7 4,211 77-3 4,211 94-4 4,211 74-0 2,180 64-9 1 1,526 I I I 74-1 i 3,723 894,086 84-1 4,086 79-4 4,086 93-9 4,086 73-8 2,043 65-9 1,459 76-2 3,016 93"