E.—2.

[Appendix F.

In addition to the work carried out by the Medical Inspectors, school-teachers examine as many children as they conveniently can, keeping a record of such particulars of physical condition as they are qualified to observe. The heights and weights of over 17,000 children were observed and recorded by teachers during the year; and the graph given on page viii shows that according to the statistics thus obtained the average New Zealand child is superior to the English child in these particulars. The Medical Inspectors gave courses of lectures and practical instruction to the training-college students in the work of medical inspection. This is regarded as one of the most important parts of the scheme of medical inspection; the value of having teachers trained to observe physical defects in their pupils and to do everything possible to create a healthful school environment is incalculable. The Medical Inspectors report on the school buildings in respect of lighting, heating, ventilation, cleanliness, &c, and have been able to suggest many improvements where little or no expense is involved. Emphasis is placed on the value of fresh air, open-air teaching being strongly recommended. One open-air class-room has been built in Wellington, and the experiment of teaching children in it throughout the year is at present being made. The expenditure on medical inspection for the financial year ended 31st March, 1915, was —Salaries, £1,744; travelling-expenses, £433 ; material, apparatus, forwarding-charges, &c, £125 : total, £2,302.

2. REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR OF EDUCATION. The Director of Education to the Hon. J. A. Hanan, Minister of Education. Sir, — I have the honour to present the following report for the year 1914 with regard to the medical inspection of schools and school-children :— The work for the year was carried on on the lines previously laid down for the limited staff available —that is, for a staff of four Medical Inspectors —beyond which for various reasons it has not yet been found practicable to increase the number. Four hundred and three public schools were visited by the Inspectors for the purpose of regular inspection during the year. These were distributed among the education districts as follows :—■ Education District. Number of Schools. Auckland ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 69 Taranaki ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 21 Wanganui ... ... ... ... ... ... 25 Wellington ... ... ... ... ... ... 38 Hawke's Bay ... ... ... ... ... ... |(i Marlborough ... ... ... ... .. ... 5 Nelson ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 10 Grey ... ... ... ... ... ... ... <) Westland ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 7 North Canterbury ... ... ... .. ... ... 98 South Canterbury ... . ... ... ... ... ... 17 Otago ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 64 Southland ... ... . . ... ... ... 24 403

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