Conditions on which Aid is given to Secondary Schools.-A. By County Councils. THE Conditions upon which aid is granted by county councils to secondary schools may be generally classified under the following heads : (a.) Representation on governing body or management. (c.) Inspection and examination. (d.) Appointment of teachers. (f) Other conditions. Twenty out of the 49 county councils of England either make no grants to secondary schools, or were not in a position to supply the information required. Two other counties, viz., Beds and Worcester, have laid down the conditions on which aid may be obtained though no such aid was given in the year 1893-4. The number of returns giving information on this point is, therefore, only 31. Of these, 13 counties simply stipulate for such representation as will satisfy the requirements of the Technical Instruction Act, 1889 (sec. 1 (1) e.). In four cases, viz., East and West Sussex, the Parts of Lindsey, and the North Riding of Yorkshire, the county council claims its full statutory number of representatives. The London County Council also reserves to itself the right to be represented in proportion to the aid given, but has not always exercised it to the full extent. Five counties require that not less than a certain number of county councillors shall be members of the governing bodies of the schools aided; in Berkshire and Somerset, this number is three, in Norfolk and Cumberland two, and in Northampton one. In several cases the body represented is not the county council, but the technical instruction committee. In Surrey, two to four representatives elected by the county council, but not necessarily members of it, have seats on the governing bodies of all endowed schools for all purposes. In Bedford, the county councillors and the aldermen of the town must be represented on the governing body. The West Riding of York stipulates for representation wherever the scheme of the school allows it, and schemes which are not so framed are now in course of amendment by the Charity Commissioners, with a view to compliance with the provisions of the Act. In the Lindsey division of Lincolnshire, the schemes of management have been already so amended. The Durham County Council has applied for representation to each school receiving aid, but no representatives have been appointed up to the present on account of the limited number of governors permitted by the schemes. "Omnibus schemes" are, however, being prepared, and where no restriction as to numbers exists, representation has been already agreed to. The East Riding of York affords the only instance in which the county council does not claim representation on the governing body as a whole, but only on the science committee. In the Parts of Kesteven (Lincoln), the statutory provision that the county council must be represented on the governing bo ly does not appear to have been complied with. (b.) Subjects of Instruction. The conditions laid down under this head are very various; eight counties make no stipulation as to the subjects taught, whilst the remaining 23 prescribe the outline, and in some cases the details of the curriculum. Three counties simply require that the time-table of the schools aided shall be submitted to the approval of the technical instruction committee, while East and West Sussex only ask for the general scheme showing how the grant has been employed. Devon, Worcester, and the North Riding of York desire teaching "suited to the requirements of the district"; Durham and Northampton lay down a minimum number of hours to be spent on technical subjects, and the same stipulation occurs in the case of Derby and Northumberland, but, there, special regulations as to the subjects taught are also in force. Eleven counties, including Derby and Northumberland, indicate certain subjects which must be taught in all schools in receipt of aid from the county council. In seven of these counties drawing is a compulsory subject, and in all some provision is made for the teaching of science. The county council of Chester requires that at least two science subjects be taught to every pupil over the age of 10 years; Somerset stipulates for at least one branch of natural science, and that laboratory accommodation for at least 12 students shall be provided in every school. It further recommends that manual instruction in wood-working and the use of tools be given in boys' schools wherever this is possible; in girls' schools it recommends the teaching of needlework and dres-making, hygiene and domestic economy, including practical teaching in cookery. C The Hampshire County Council requires drawing to be taught in connexion with the Science and Art Department, manual instruction to be inspected by the City and Guilds of London Institute, commercial instruction by the Society of Arts, and agricultural instruction by the Board of Agriculture. Surrey requires that "due prominence" be given to laboratory work, drawing, modern languages, and shorthand. Northumberland specifies four groups of subjects, one of which must be taught in any school aided. These groups include (1) mathematics, drawing, chemistry, physical science, and manual instruction, or the curriculum required by the Science and Art Department for an organised science school; (2) agricultural; (3) commercial; and (4) domestic, subjects. The London County Council does not confine itself to regulating the technical subjects taught, but requires in addition, that "a "systematic and graduated course of instruction" be given to all pupils, and with regard to the teaching of science requires the same systematic and graduated course, "including in the higher "classes practical work in either experimental physics or "chemistry." In girls' schools, botany, or some other approved science subject, may be substituted for chemisty and physics. It also recommends that manual instruction be given, wherever it is possible, in boys' schools, and that household economy be taught in girls' schools. The Parts of Kesteven (Lincoln) appears to make some regulations as to the subjects of instruction, but the vague character of the return renders it impossible to state the nature of the regulation. (c.) Inspection and Examination. Regulations as to the inspection and examination of schools. are laid down by 23 out of the 31 county councils, but a wide difference exists between the extent of the powers which they claim. The county of Northumberland, for instance, simply reserves to itself the right of inspection in general terms, Hertfordshire goes further and requires that the rooms where technical instruction is given shall be open to inspection by the council between the hours of 9 a.m. and 9 p.m. In Cheshire, schools must be open during school hours to the organising secretary or other officials, whilst in Durham, the premises, the class instruction, and the books are all liable to inspection. The regulations for examination are equally various. In Leicester, scholars receiving technical instruction are to sit for an examination, if required. The Worcester County Council does not insist on examination, but requires local committees to place such of their classes as are suitable under the Department of Science and Art, the City and Guilds of London Institute, or some other examining body. In Cheshire it is distinctly stated that, at least, 25 per cent. of the scholars must sit for the examinations of the Science and Art Department. In Surrey the county council scholars in any school must sit for the University Local Examinations, while the rest of the school may be examined at the discretion of the headmaster. In the East Riding of Yorkshire an examiner is appointed annually by the chairman of the techical instruction committee to inspect the science teaching, and in the North Riding examinations are conducted by the Yorkshire College. In the West Riding both the students and their work must be submitted for examination; an inspector and assistant inspector have been appointed, and arrangements made with the City and Guilds of London Institute for the inspection of classes in certain technological subjects. In grammar and endowed schools, where examinations are held under the schemes governing the schools, the county council require that a copy of the examiner's report shall be submitted to them. (d.) Appointment of Teachers. Twenty-six counties make no regulations as to the appointment of teachers, and where regulations exist they do not, as a rule, go beyond a general proviso that the teachers of scientific or technical subjects shall be approved by the county council or technical instruction committee. In Sussex the governing bodies of schools appoint their own teachers, except for subjects in which instruction is provided by the county council. In Wiltshire and Worcester science and technical teachers are appointed by the local committees, subject in the former case to the approval of the county council. In Cheshire and the West Riding of Yorkshire, science teachers are required to "comply with the regulations of the Science and Art Department" and in Hertfordshire the science master must be qualified to earn grants from the Department. In Surrey, the county council may veto the appointment of any teacher to whose salary it contributes. In Staffordshire it claims a general power of veto, besides requiring that teachers shall be available for a portion of their time under the direction of the technical instruction committee. In London the technical instruction board has sometimes stipulated for the appointment of a teacher for a certain subject, with qualifications approved by the board, who is required to devote his whole time to his special subject. (e.) Fees and Charges. Only nine out of the thirty-one county councils making returns lay down any regulations under this head. These are Devon, |