474 



NA TURE 



[June 17, 1909 



])oys 



Girls 



1 he total number of pupil-teachers enrolled at these 

 -I hools is 9S69, and the total number of pupil-teachers 

 noted as at secondary schools or pupil-teacher centres is 

 4745 boys and ij.SoJ girls. 



Thus in 1907, 89,994 pupils out of 132.849 (6774 per cent.) 

 in 1906, 76,728 pupils out of 115,594 (66-38 per cent.) 

 in 1905, 53,309 pupils out of 85,358 (62-45 per cent.) 



were taking an approved course. The rise in numbers 

 and percentages is satisfactory, as it indicates the approach 

 of a time when the secondary school will have a complete 

 secondary character, and, when this is attained, we shall 

 have a rise in standard of performance. 



If we compare the schools discussed in Prof. Sadler's 

 county reports (of date 1004 and 1905) with the particulars 

 given in the Blue-book for 1008 about these same schools, 

 we find the following results : — 



Boys Under 12 Between 12 .-ind 16 Over 16 



ReP""s 997 ••• 4174 ... 374 



Blue-book ... 1127 ... 447S ... 417 



Increase... 13 per cent. ... 7-3 per cent. ...it -5 per cent. 



Girls 



Reports 698 ... 2049 ... 406 



Blue-book ... 752 ... 2494 ... 521 

 Increase... 8 per cent. ... 21-7 per cent. ...28-3 per cent. 



Here again a welcome improvement is recorded, and 

 the more w^clcome because it shows a large increase among 

 girls. It is interesting to note that whilst we are debating 

 what to do with children under five, the question is being 

 (Ir-bated in Germany whether school attendance might not 

 be postponed until seven, because, among other things, 

 the German mother has received such a good school train- 

 ing that she is able to give efficient elementary education 

 in the home up to the age of seven. 



.Secondary schools for boys may be divided into four 

 classes, according as they are, or are not, recognised by 

 the Board of Education or represented at the Headmasters' 

 Conference. 



The classes are : — 



(A) Recognised schools which arc represented. 



(B) Recognised schools which are not represented. 



(C) Non-recognised schools which are represented. 



(D) Non-recognised schools which are not represented. 

 The last tw-o, which trouble the calculator, mav be 



classed as " proud but probably cfTicient " and " mean and 

 probably inefficient." \Vith a satisfactory system of in- 

 spection, as is being evolved, these harsh epithets will 

 come more and more to be deserved. 



In class A. of the schools which take pupils between 

 eight and nineteen there is one pupil under twelve for 

 every four between twelve and siNleen and for everv one 

 nver sixteen. This proportion is nearly exact, the error 

 being slightly in favour of the oldest and against the 

 youngest pupils. 



To class C the " Schoolmasters' Yearbook " assigns 

 24,6,18 pupils, of w-honi 16,028 are at schools which take 

 Dupils under the age of twelve, and 7710 at schools which 

 have no pupils under twelve. The larger number we will 

 divide up in the ratio 1:4:1. The smaller we will divide 

 nn the supposition that there are two pupils under sixteen 

 for every one over that age. 



To calculate riass D we will compare with the totals 

 of classes A and B. Hero Mr. Sadler's renorls on l.iver- 

 p6oI, Newcastle-on-Tyne, Exeter, Essex. Hampshire, and 

 Oerbyshire, a representative list, will give us a standard. 

 This standard is : — 



Bel» 



en 13 .ind i6 Over i( 

 100 ... 100 



52 ... 41 



We promised to show where the Biirgerschiiler were. 

 Here they are, in non-recognised schools, which are prob- 

 ahly primary in character, and perhaps not efKrient at 

 that, yet aping the respectability of a sconrl.-irv ..rhnol. 



NO. 2068, VOL. 80I 



Our total for boys is thus : — 



I'nder 19 



Classes A and B ... 16,084 



Class C, 2,821 



Class C}... ... .. — 



Class D 54,042 



Pupilleachers .it schools — 



^cen 13 and \(> Over 16 



49,829 ... 5,478 



11,286 . 2,821 



5,140 ... 2,570 



25,911 ... 2,246 



60 .. 4,685 



Total 



72.947 



92,226 ... i7,8oO' 



Or, if we take the population of England as 32.ooo,oo«, 

 there arc in secondary schools 



2"28 boys, per lOoo inhabitants, under 12 



2-88 „ ,. ,, ,, between 12 and 16 



0-56 ,, ,, ,, ,, over 16. 



And, it should be noted, 26 per cent, of those over sixteen 

 arc preparing for work as teachers in primarj- schools. 



.\ similar calculation could be made for girls : but i» 

 would be much harder to work out. If the proportion 

 of five boys to four girls be taken, an error will be made 

 for older girls, as many girls remain at school from want 

 of a fixed occupation, and in many cases the secondary 

 school has still to perform for women the functions of a 

 university. 



If we take the number of boys in primary schools in 

 England as 2,800,000, these figures give, for every 100 

 bovs in primary schools, 6-53 in secondary schools, of 

 wtiom 3 93 arc more than twelve years of age. 



.'\gainst this we may set the following : — 



Higher Grade Secondary- 



Age Age 



54-7 (10-14) ... 45-3 (10-18) 



57-4(10-14) ... 28-2 (lO-!8) 



20-5 (8-14) ... 242 (10-19) 



21-6(8-14) ... 9-1 (10-19) 



Zurich Canton Hoys ... 17-0(12-15) ••• (j.j^ {jj'}!) 

 Girls ... 13-6(12-15) ... 1-91(15-18) 

 Boston, U.S..\. Boys and Girls 19-43 (14-19) 

 Wiirttemberg lioys 12-85 (8-14), 2-69 (1418) 



The figures for girls in Zurich apply only to pupils in 

 public secondary schools. Whatever exceptionally favour- 

 able circumstances may be put forward in these cases, 

 compulsory military service or social precedence, taken as 

 a whole they show that England is far in arrear. 



It is possible, though in some cases difficult, to con- 

 struct a table giving the number of secondary pupils in 

 various areas. If w-e take the figures for Prussia in the 

 " .Statesman's Year-book," 1908, we get, for boys antf 

 girls in public and private schools : — 



.S-iS pupils per 1000 inhabitants in secondary schools. 



451 pupils per 1000 inhabitants in Mittelschulen. 



The Mittelschulen may. for social distinction, rank as 

 intermediate, but many of them would be recognised by 

 us as secondary schools. 



Other figures for recent years which may be quoted are, 

 per 1000 inhabitants : — 



Basel Town... Boys 

 Girls 



Mannheim ... Hoys 

 Girls 



U.S.A 



Boston, (14-19) 



Connecticut (13-19)... 



Maine '13 19) 



Massachusetts (13-19) 

 German) — 



Colocne 



Hamburg 



Mannheim (IO-18) .. 



Boys 

 12-37 



Munic 



8-7 .. 

 1 1 -4 

 14-56 .. 



" 1 (16-18) 2-26 ( ■■ 



Su'ilzer/atiii— 

 Confederation : 



.\ge 12-15 (Hic^ier ('.r.-ide) 7-31 .. 

 Ape 12 19 (Secondary) — 



Basel Town : 



.Vge 10 14 8-71 



Age 14-lS 5-00 



8-01 

 3-43 



1332 



7 '4 



l6-7» 

 8-45 



