the State of Education. Mr. H. Cox, Reports on example is comparatively rare. Do teachers look at anything more than the answer? In the junior classes, the most frequent faults are counting instead of adding, and a want of neatness in the slate work. Notation and numeration are not taught; and mental arithmetic is Coleraine. almost wholly neglected. In this connection, I may express the opinion that the higher classes should know the multiplication table up to 20 × 20. District Inspector. Grammar. Geography. Agiculture and school gardens. Extra and optional subjects. Model chools. Grammar, though sometimes well taught, is the least satisfactory of the subjects. In the Third Class the need of thoroughly understanding the passage makes itself very evident, and the other prime cause of failure lies in the inability of the pupils to apply the definitions. In the fourth class the pupils are, as a rule, taken too quickly to syntactical parsing; and in the higher classes I often comment on the unsuitability of the exercises, and the want of accurate and intelligent supervision of the written work. There is a common form of expression in this locality which I cannot explain. "There were no rain"; "there are no hay." And was it conscious humour that made a pupil, a few weeks since, describe "must” as "a luxury verb"? As might be supposed geography secures more passes than grammar. The use of blank maps has improved the answering both with and without the pointer; but there is still need of more intelligent teaching. It seems to me that some book which contains something more than the dry bones of the subject-" Mill's General Geography," for instance-should be put on the Board's list of books. The knowledge thus acquired would enable a teacher to make the subject much more interesting to the pupils than is now the case. In agriculture the answering is generally satisfactory. There are three school gardens recognised in this district at present. It is not easy to arrive at the exact amount of good the pupils derive from them, from the fact that the examinations in these particular cases are held in the months of December, February, and April, respectively; and in only one case have I been able to visit incidentally in such a way as to be in a position to express an opinion on the work done. In that one case, however, I can say that I was much pleased with the garden itself, the variety, suitability, and appearance of the crops, with the lesson I saw given, and finally with the interest the pupils took in it. My own personal opinion, however, is, that the examination of the pupils in this practical subject should be held by an expert, just as in the case of a school-farm; and I say this although I am accustomed to a garden and to working, as an amateur, in one. Not a great deal is done in the direction of extra subjects; so far, however, as they are taken up, the result is satisfactory. Algebra is taught in 35 schools; geometry in 17; drawing in 29; book keeping in 15; vocal music in 14; physical geography in 2; kindergarten in 1; and domestic economy in 1. The Model Schools, having three departments in each, are in Coleraine and Ballymoney. In point of usefulness and efficiency, I put them in the very front rank; one proof of this is to Le found in the regularity of the attendance, which is well maintained, although school fees are charged in most cases, whilst in the other schools in these towns no fees are charged. In addition to the extra and optional subjects mentioned above, Latin and French are taught; and in the girls' school in Coleraine classes have been formed for calisthenics and elocution, in both of which subjects good work is being done, both supply a necessity, and both are much liked by the pupils. the State of The school accounts are generally honestly, accurately, and neatly Reports on kept. I remember only one bad case of falsification, though I have Education. found mistakes, more or less culpable. The most usual error has arisen from want of care in seeing that the Roll and Report Book were in Mr. H. Cox, exact correspondence. District Inspector. I should be sorry to find that this report gives the impression that Coleraine. the standard of the work in the district is not satisfactory. I have been Accounts, now in a good many districts, and I am bound to say that the efficiency Estimate of the schools here is certainly not second to that I have found else- of teachers where. And I have pleasure in saying that I think highly of the and their teachers as a body. I believe that they work conscientiously, and to the best of their ability, work. Act. The opinion as to the efficacy of this Act is by no means unanimous. Compulsory The teachers think that it has not done much good; on the other hand, Attendance those who are entrusted with putting it into effect think that it has. I think that some good has been done, though greater stringency in carrying it out is needed. The following return to hand from the Secretary to the Coleraine Commissioners, is of interest :- Number of children in the town between the age of 6 Number of children in the town between the age of 6 Decrease, 1,084 1,051 33 Increase in number of children on school rolls at end of Increase in average attendance at end of 3 years, 84 81 53 Of this return the compiler speaks with considerable complacency. My own opinion is, as I have already remarked, that there is room for improvement. This report will not be complete if I do not make reference to the liberality of the Honourable the Irish Society in giving to the Academical Institution four scholarships, of £14 a year each, to be competed for by the pupils attending the National school for boys, in this town, of which they, by their agent, are managers. The first of the scholars was selected by me on the result of the annual examination in 1896; this year two scholarships were given, it being the Queen's Jubilee year. If this step may be regarded as supplying a link between the Primary and Secondary schools, I am bound to say that I am not very hopeful of its success. I suppose wider experience is necessary; but I must say that the paucity of the candidates from so large a school, with a large Sixth Class, is disappointing. of National Education. It remains to add that the Managers and the better teachers are un- The system animous in the opinion that the system of National Education is doing good work; they cannot see, any more than I do, how there can be secured, in any other way, what must be the grand object of all such education--the certainty that every child shall be taught to read and write. The Secretaries, I have the honour to be, Your obedient servant, Office of National Education, Dublin. H. Cox, District Inspector. H Reports on the State of Education, Mr. P. M'Glade, Inspector. Donegal. Supply of schools. Accom. character of buildings, improvements, &c. Mr. P. M'GLADE, District Inspector. Donegal, February, 1898. GENTLEMEN,-I have the honour to submit a general report for the year ending 31st December, 1897. Since my last report (for 1895) no changes have taken place in the boundaries of the district. The school supply is liberal. The district area is divided into two well-defined belts of territory, one of which is the eighty miles of seaboard washed by the waters of Donegal Bay; the second is more inland. Throughout the former the population is more or less congested, and schools are numerous and thick set. Opened as most of them were at times when the population was denser than at present, they are generally speaking, accommodating a diminished and diminishing attendance. Yet still the schools multiply, and the disproportion between the supply and the number of school-going children is becoming more pronounced, as well by the establishment of new schools as by the decrease in population. One new school, Mullaghmore No. 2, was taken into connexion in May, 1896. Its attendance has been, and must necessarily remain, very limited; but it is due to it to say that, unlike many others of the same size it is (so far) doing very useful work in its locality, and promises to attain a high standard of efficiency. Thus already in this section of the district the facilities for the diffusion of knowledge are very ample indeed; and it is to be hoped that for reasons which it is unnecessary to enter into here we shall have no more of them in the shape of additional school centres. In the second or inland belt a different state of things obtains. The surface of the country is one characteristic of the county Donegal—a bleak extensive moorland broken by the occasional presence of small lakes, oftener by river valleys, and by oases of arable soil. Here small schools become a necessity; for, hemmed in by bogs, lakes, rivers, and occasionally by torrents (which, though they may not "go on for ever," are quite impassable in wet weather), may be found scattered communities of peasantry, not, perhaps, far distant in a straight line from established schools, and yet, by access, very far removed; inasmuch as the communicating roads are extremely circuitous. To bring the means of education within reach of certain of these sequestered localities two new schools have recently been under consideration. One was opened last May at Croaghbrack, on the northern shore of the far-famed Lough Derg (Donegal), and has since been placed on the roll of operative schools. The second will shortly be in full working order, as the building for it is approaching completion. It is situated at a point two miles east from the village of Carricknahorna, and will accommodate numerous families scattered round the shores of Loughs Lee, Golagh, and Tullynasiddagh. It is quite possible that other schools may be added in various portions of the same extensive belt. In the matter of school accommodation as distinguished from supply modation, the district is fairly well forward. Since 1895 the work of superseding old and unsuitable houses by new and workable buildings has been continued, though, I am sorry to report, at a slower rate than previously, in consequence chiefly of the check officially, and of course necessarily, imposed on the amount of the annually available buildings grants. Had it not been for this intermittent clog, which delayed the works in some instances and put off their commencement in others, the improvement on this head would have been practically complete. However, a good deal has been done, and the only reason for not accepting the Education. Mr. P. progress made as entirely satisfactory is the urgency for reform, on Reports on sanitary and other grounds, in several of the existing houses. The the State of change needed is not of the advance in educational machinery. It is not that costly edifices are to be provided, as being superior to existing Glade, tolerable structures, or that improved modern equipments are to replace District useful but old-fashioned furniture-what is wanted is the substitution Inspector. Donegal. of decent and workable fabrics for hovels, several of which have still the primitive clay floor and thatched roof. Of the freedom with which building grants should be sanctioned for the benefit of the district it is not my province to speak; but, perhaps, I may be permitted to say, that timely aid in several cases, while enhancing very much the value of the gift, would not mean increased expenditure ultimately, as when the few buildings now needed are provided, the school accommodation will be such as to entail comparatively little expense for the greater part of a century. ments, &c. There are a few instances of unwilling applicants for aid, to whom Details of official advices of obstacles or necessary delay come as the gentle dew improve. from heaven, but when I state this I must also say that the managers of the district as a body have made or are making spirited and successful efforts to provide better accommodation. Standing proofs of their zeal in the matter of school building are to be seen in the great majority of the parishes-notably in those centreing in the towns or villages of Cliffoney, Bundoran, Pettigo, Ballyshannon, Ballintra, Donegal, Kilcar, Glencolumbkille, and Ardara. In two parishes only has nothing been done for the last five years, and the managers concerned are in a position at present to shift responsibility for the stagnation on the shoulders of others. To enter into details: the houses at Tamlaght, Laghey, Rossinver, Crove, and Mullaghmore, referred to in my previous report are now finished; those at Leckonnell, Largynaseragh, and Carricknahorna, are in the hands of the builder; the rooms of the Ballyshannon Convent School and of the Drimnahoul National School have been enlarged and improved and a non-vested house has been built at Croaghbrack. These improvements have reduced the unsuitable houses to twelve. Six of them will doubtless disappear in the next three years; the remainder belong to the two unprogressive parishes just referred to, and they will be used for school purposes as long as they are officially tolerated. of pupils during year, During the past year few circumstances arose to disorganise the work Attendance of the schools. The opening months and the greater part of the spring were rather wet and otherwise unfavourable to the attendance of the &c. smaller children. The same conditions of weather, however, prevented for lengthened periods any active work in the fields, and were indirectly favourable to the continuance at school of the older pupils, and for a considerable time beyond their traditional winter term. In the early autumn similar weather set in; but for the remainder of the season the fine weather, the harvesting of the crops, and the closing of the schools for vacation coincided very nearly. It has been remarked that whatever tends to disturb the normal condition of the people is prejudicial to the attendance at the schools. If this statement is to be accepted, the long continued rains of the past spring, which threatened a return of distress in the poor districts, should have a very bad effect. I confess I am not in a position to reason in this connection, by either process. The attendance in country places, voluntary as it is, is the resultant of many forces, and it is only ten.pciary disturbing causes that can, from their marked effects, be properly estimated. Threats of coming distress are, unfortunately, not merely temporary in the poorest localities. The Reports on the State of Education. health of the children was fairly good throughout the year, and seldom interfered with their school-going. Occasionally it was less favourable. In February an epidemic of measles necessitated the closing of some schools in the Kinlough parish; whooping-cough was prevalent in the parish of Templecarne during autumn and winter; and from some three districts cases of fever were reported. The effect of the outbreaks was temporary and on the whole insignificant. Mr. P. M'Glade, District Inspector. Donegal, Attendance Comparing the returns of samples of schools taken in various parts compared with that of of the district, I cannot see anything to point to an improvement past years. in the attendance in general. Some schools appear to have gained; others to have lost. The numbers on rolls, too, vary considerably in different years. If, however, a group of neighbouring schools be taken the total number on their rolls will be found to be pretty steady. This fact suggests that the gains or losses experienced at some centres are often no more than the results of a readjustment of the school areas, which, owing to various causes, frequently takes place. In a former report I have referred to the more permanent causes of irregularity of attendance. Amongst these, to judge from the complaints of the teachers and some of the managers, neglect of the parents is assuming a primary place. If, with the beneficial effects of a sound education before their eyes, with the facilities of a liberal school supply, with better accommodation and free schools, parents only grow indifferent, they are casting a heavy vote against the time-honoured policy of laissez-faire. For my own part I am inclined to think that the number of delinquents is greatly exaggerated by, or appears to be increasing to those, who, sensible of the advance of education and the greater time and attention it demands, keep before their minds a standard of regularity abreast of the changes rather than any standard of the past. The managers, it goes without saying, do much on the side of regularity of attendance. In some places special measures are adopted, such as school fetes, excursions, half-holidays, prizes, competitions, &c., and with excellent results. These are most attractive to the children, and, combined with appeals to the parents, are always very effective, and, indeed, must always be so, even when the universal compulsion of the future is most zealously enforced. Attendance of infants of school life. It is a matter for regret that the school life of the young children influenced is not always such as would induce them to attend regularly. Our by physical infants, in particular, must be anything but happy in ordinary rural discomforts schools. There is, as a rule, no special accommodation for these helpless little ones. Not unfrequently they remain for hours daily packed in one corner or end of the room, where they should soon grow tired if through nothing else than the monotony of protracted reading or spelling lessons. When the longed-for hour of dismissal comes, they return to their homes, where their exhausted appearance shows that they are unequal to the strain of a constant attendance, and that some holidays are necessary. Remedy. Punctuality Short lessons, frequent intervals of rest, suitable desk work, object lessons, simple infantile exercises, approaching those of the kindergarten, out of a simpler kind, could, without difficulty, be provided for almost everywhere and would do much towards making the school-room pleasant, and attractive to the little children; and their attendance, in consequence, more regular. In the matter of punctuality we are losing ground considerably. In of attend- many schools the majority of the pupils are seldom present at the hour for commencing instruction, and in a few districts unpunctuality ance. |