674 PROCEEDINGS OF SECTION I. 



3.— SOME NOTES ON SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION. 

 Dr. REUTER E. ROTH, D.S.O. 



During the last few years, in my capacity as Chief Medical 

 Inspector to the Department of Public Instruction, I have had 

 many opportunities of visiting schools. It is easy to criticise ; 

 it is difficult to originate. 



The school site should be most carefully chosen. It can never 

 be too large, as later it may be used as a recreation reserve 

 for children. It should be situated opposite a public reserve or 

 park, in order that it can have plenty of light and air and be free 

 from dust and noise. If the above is not possible, it is better to have 

 the site surrounded by back streets in preference to a frontage on 

 a main street or road, where a nuisance will be caused by noise and 

 dust as the result of traffic, besides the danger to the children 

 from trams and other vehicles. It should be levelled, otherwise 

 it is not a playground. Many schools have sloping grounds, 

 which are a constant source of danger. It speaks well for 

 the care taken by the teachers that so few accidents happen. I am 

 of opinion that the asphalted playground is the most suitable of 

 all. It can be readily kept clean, and, if properly levelled, dries 

 very rapidly. It allows of the playing of lawn tennis, basket ball,, 

 hockey, and other suitable games. The turfed, grave :ed or clay 

 grounds are always unsuitable. They are never clean, and are 

 always most unsatisfactory after wet weather ; wounds caused by 

 falling on the asphalt are less troublesome than those caused on 

 gravel ; in the former case little foreign matter gets in. Instead 

 of the usual shelter-shed, which is generally improperly used as a 

 class-room, it would be better to have an 8 ft. verandah on two 

 sides of the plaj^ground ; this would provide shelter from rain and 

 sun during playtime, and would also during wet weather shelter 

 those going to the out offices. In front of these covered verandahs 

 flower beds could be established. I would also advocate the planting 

 of good shade trees, e.g., plane trees, especially in front of the school 

 building, to help to strain off the street dust and minimise noise. 

 To prevent accidents, all corners of the school building should 

 have a 3 or 4 ft. trellis projecting about 4 ft. outwards. 



I am of opinion that the buildings so far erected are not always 

 suitable ; they are very expensive, and there always appears a 

 difficulty in expanding the building to meet a larger enrolment of 

 children. Sometimes we find three separate buildings, one for 

 infants, one for girls, and a third for boys. This causes a difficulty 

 where it is necessarj^ only to increase the accommodation for one, 

 two or three departments. At other times one department is wedged 

 in between the two other, so that it is impossible to increase the 

 accommodation of one department without interfering with the 

 others. This is modified to a certain extent by co-education. 



