230 



EDUCATION AND ILLITERACY. 



England and Wales, to go into effect at the be- 

 ginning of 1883, which simplifies to some extent 

 the administration of the board-schools, but is 

 taken up chiefly with the grades of instruction 

 and requirements for examinations. Elaborate 

 instructions were sent out from the Education 

 Department to " her Majesty's Inspectors." 

 These are taken up with minute directions about 

 the details of studies, the methods of instruc- 

 tion, and the scope of examinations, the gen- 

 eral purpose being to secure thoroughness in 

 elementary studies and a close application to 

 the business of the school. On the result of 

 the inspection depends the amount of the grant 

 to be received from year to year by particular 

 schools. The circular deprecates all resort to 

 corporal punishment, and directs that it shall 

 never be administered by another than the head 

 teacher, and that every instance be recorded 

 in the "log-book." 



INDUSTRIAL SCHOOLS. Attention has been 

 directed strongly of late to industrial and tech- 

 nical education. The City and Guilds of Lon- 

 don Institute has established a college for this 

 special object at Finsbury, and has begun the 

 establishment of the central institution. The 

 Technical College at South Kensington is con- 

 stantly extending its usefulness, and the estab- 

 lishment of a technical school in each consid- 

 erable town, and of industrial classes in the 

 elementary schools, is advocated in England. 

 A Royal Commission was appointed in 1881, 

 and visited France and Italy for the purpose ot 

 studying the means of improving the taste and 

 skill of artisans. One of the subjects on which 

 they reported were the apprenticeship schools 

 of France in which trades are taught. There 

 is a very successful establishment of this kind 

 in Paris, in which 250 pupils are taught at an 

 annual cost of $15,000. Three other municipal 

 schools of the kind for boys and one for girls 

 are contemplated in Paris and one at Boulogne. 

 One already exists at Havre, and the system 

 seems likely to extend rapidly. The Clock-mak- 

 ers' Guild of Paris has an apprenticeship school 

 of its own, and there is a watch-making school 

 at Cluses. The Government maintains similar 

 institutions, one at Sevres for porcelain-deco- 

 ration, and another at the Gobelins factory. It 

 is generally admitted that the superiority of 

 French workmanship is due to the attention 

 given to technical education and training, and 

 a perceptible improvement in the quality of 

 manufactures of various classes is said to have 

 resulted already from what has been done in 

 that direction in England. 



FRENCH SCHOOL LAW. An important event 

 in the educational field in Europe is the adop- 

 tion of the new law in France regarding pri- 

 mary instruction, which took effect on the 28th 

 of March. Its chief purpose was at once to 

 secularize elementary education and to make it 

 compulsory. The first article of the act defines 

 the scope of primary instruction, which is char- 

 acterized in general as moral and civic. It 

 comprises reading and writing ; the language 



and elements of the literature of France ; ge- 

 ography, particularly that of France ; history, 

 particularly that of France down to our own 

 times ; some familiar ideas of law and political 

 economy; the elements of natural science, 

 physics, and mathematics ; their application to 

 agriculture, hygiene, the industrial arts, man- 

 ual labors, and the use of tools; elements of 

 design, modeling, and music ; gymnastics ; mili- 

 tary exercise for boys and needle- work for 

 girls. Article second declares that the public 

 primary schools shall have one vacant day each 

 week, besides Sunday, " in order that parents 

 may give to their children, if they desire, relig- 

 ious instruction outside of the school-rooms. 

 It is declared that religious instruction in pri- 

 vate schools is a matter of option. Sections of 

 the law of 1850 are abrogated which gave 

 to ministers of various denominations a right 

 of inspection, supervision, and direction in 

 public and private primary schools. Article 

 four makes primary instruction obligatory for 

 all children from six to thirteen years of age, 

 either in public or private schools or in fami- 

 lies. A school commission is instituted in each 

 commune, to have charge of the schools and 

 look after the attendance of children. This 

 commission is composed of the mayor, who 

 shall be its president, one delegate from each 

 canton, and, in communes comprising several 

 cantons, as many delegates as there are can- 

 tons, designated by the inspector of the acad- 

 emy, and members designated by the munici- 

 pal council in number not exceeding one third 

 of the council itself. At Paris and Lyons there 

 is a commission for each arrondissement, pre- 

 sided over by the mayor at Paris, and at Lyons 

 by one of the adjuncts. It is composed of one 

 cantonal delegate designated by the inspector 

 of the academy, and members designated by 

 the municipal council to the number of three 

 to seven for each arrondissement. The term 

 of office of the commissioners appointed by 

 the municipal councils expires at the election 

 of new councils. The primary inspector is a 

 member ex-officio of the school commission. 

 Provision is made for a certificate of primary 

 study to be granted after public examination to 

 children of eleven years or more, and those 

 obtaining certificates are thereafter free from 

 the compulsory requirements of the law. The 

 parent or guardian of any child is required to 

 give notice to the mayor of the commune, fif- 

 teen days before the time of entering the 

 classes, of his intention of having the child 

 taught at home, or sending it to a public or 

 private school. Every year the mayor in con- 

 junction with the school commission must pre- 

 pare a list of all children from six to thirteen 

 years of age, and notify the persons having 

 charge of them, of the time of entering classes. 

 In case no declaration is made by the parent 

 or guardian, the child is entered in the public 

 school, and notice is given to the person re- 

 sponsible for the child. Lists of the children 

 enrolled are furnished to the directors of pub- 



