, 1865-05-12
REPORT
ON THE
ANNUAL REPORT
OF THE
INSPECTOR OF THE COUNTRY Schools
FOR A. d. 1863-64,
Continued

V. From the fact of the Superintendent deem
ing it necessary to offer reasons or causes
for the failure of the Schools in doing as
much as they ought, we have a right to con-
clude that he admits their ineffciency. On
this point we en- irely agree with him; but
feel compelled again to differ from him on the
causes which he states, as the "abSOl~te hin
'tdranccs7 to their success-viz, "O0ercrOwd-
"edness,' and "Lregular Attendance" We
freely admit these to be serious obstacles to
full success but we cannot admit them to be
the "a6solute hjndrances' to the general etfi-
cheney Of our Rural Schools, that the Super
intendent asserts, simply because we find,
even by his W statistical Reports, that
both these causes do not exist in the Schools
to such an extent as t, justify such a conclu-
sion. From these reports we find the aver
age attendance at 6 of the s Schools to be
so. SO. 81. 90. 115. 1870. OF these only 2
Chose last mentioned) may be considered as
crowded, none as oyercroWded to such a de-
gree, as to be beyond the capacity of an en-
ergetic, and systematic Teacher, assisted by
a female Teacher, and Monitors, as all our
Teachers are. OF the remaining 2, we find
at Mt. Victory an average attendance Of l44,
and at Friedensfeld 100. 1t is to be obsery-
ed however, that, at the latter station, there
are two distinct School-roomS, and an assist
ant Male Teacher provided, which would re-
duce the average, to each Teacher, and room,
to about IS. In addition to this, we have to
bear distinctly in mind the very material as
~sistance rendered in each of the Schools by
the Female Teacher attached to each, whose
duties are by no means practically confined
to the sewing department, but extend also to
the general instruction. Under these circum-
stances we feel fully borne out by facts in as
sorting, that the only School of the whole
number that can be said to be actually over
crowded by the number in average attcn-
dance is that at Mt. Victory, which numbers
IA children under the tuition of one male,
and one female Teacher, assiSted~by such
Monitors as the Teacher deems necessary-a
state Of things which can go but a very little
way, if any, in accounting for the notorious
failure of the Schools in accomplishing their
work with the children really in attendance.
In reference to the other cause alleged as
an "abSolWte hindrance" to the success of the
Schools - namely "Irregmlar attendance"
(the real cause of which, and its only remedy
we have pointed out in s Ill we feel bound
to say, that, while sincerely deplOring its ex-
~istence, and recognizing its fulleffect in him
dering the work of universal education, we
yet cannot, even in it, find a sufficient ex-
PLANTATION Of the general failure of our Rural
Schools. According to the statistical tables
submitted by the Superintendent to the Com
mission, we find that, out of a total Of 1903
children registered on the School Lists as
bound to attend, the average actually attend
ing daily is Sal, or within a fraction of !, of
which total SOB, or about 20 per cent, are re-
ported headers; while, from authorised Go
vernment Reports, we find that in the Island
OF Antigua, in the Church Of England, and
Wesleyan Schools, of GALS registered on the
School Lists, the average in daily attendance
is l446, or only about 95 and yet, if we mis-
take not, His Lordship the Bishop of Antigua
declared at a meeting of this Commission,
that if his Schools did not turn out at least
SO per cent good Readers, he would consider
it desirable to close them at once. While
again at Barbados, where education is neither
gratis nor compulsory as it is here, and where
the irregular attendance Of the children is
never ending cause Of complaint, we have
the very best authority to prove that-'not
'less than IS per cent of the Scholars can,
Got %h1 49, Sc I n x,oon1 ~aaI tOlnro hIu n