E.—l

10

Percentage of the Children of each Age-group in the Schools of England and Wales, and of New Zealand, in 1922.

(N.B.—Pupils of technical high schools are not included in the figures for New Zealand.) England and Wales, continuous lines; New Zealand, dotted lines.

some two thousand children should be taught in special classes. The percentage of mentally deficient children is about the same in New Zealand as in other countries —neither more nor less. Nevertheless the numbers are large enough to indicate that a problem has to be faced, for teachers know that really backward children require an amount of time and attention out of all proportion to their numbers. At present some three hundred children in the Dominion are being educated in special classes. It is evident from the investigation that considerable extension of this work is desirable. Pupils leaving Primary Schools. In 1925, 19,844 pupils left the public primary schools; of these, 15,112, or 76 per cent., had passed the Standard VI examination, and 4,732 (24 per cent.) had not passed that examination but had attained the age of fourteen years. Duration of School Course. In connection with the serious discussion that has taken place on all sides during the year regarding the duration of the primary-school course, the age at which the secondary course should commence, and the proportion of children embarking on secondary-school courses, the following graphs are especially interesting, showing as they do the relative positions of England and New Zealand in these matters : —