164 KKPOKT — 1888. 



Report of the Committee, consisting of Dr. J. H. Gladstone 

 {Secretary), Professor Armstrong, IMr. Stephen Bourne, Miss 

 Lypia Becker, Sir John Lubbock, Bart., Dr. H. W. Crosskey, 

 Sir KiCHARD Temple, BaH., Sir Henry E. Eoscoe, Mr. James 

 Heywood, and Professor N. Story Maskelyne, appointed for 

 the purpose of continuing the inquiries relating to the teaching 

 of Science in Elementary Schools. 



When your Committee made their last report in August 1887, the 

 Government had just abandoned their Technical Instruction Bill for 

 England, but had expressed their intention of proceeding with the Scotch 

 BilL The latter passed the House shortly afterwards, and provides that 

 any School Board, after the next election, may provide and maintain 

 Technical Schools, or that two or more School Boards may join for that 

 purpose. A copy of the Act is given in Appendix 1. A circular was 

 issued by the Scotch Education Department in February last, calling the 

 attention of the School Boards to the matter, and discussing the subject 

 at considerable length. The defiiiition of technical education given in this 

 circular is set out in Appendix II. The Scotch Code of this year has been 

 considerably modified in consequence of this Act; besides which it has r. 

 provision which is very interesting in its bearing on your Committee's 

 previous recommendations. Instead of English being the subject whicli 

 must be taken as the first class subject, the article now runs : ' Not more 

 than three class subjects may be taken, and if any such subjects are 

 taken, one must be English or Elementary Science.' 



No alteration has been made in the English Code this year ; and the 

 disabilities under which the Brighton School Board and the Beethoven 

 Street School (London) were sufiering at the date of last report have not 

 been removed. 



Manual instruction has, however, been given by the London School 

 Board, through the assistance of the City and Guilds of London Technical 

 Institute, who have provided the sum of 1,OOOL for one year for the equip- 

 ment and maintenance of classes. A joint committee of representatives of 

 the School Board and Institute have selected six centres, three north and 

 three south of the Thames, and have appointed two special teachers and 

 two artisan assistants who devote all their time to the work. In this 

 way about 600 boys are receiving nearly three hours' instruction a week 

 in the scientific principles and the practical work of carpentry. The 

 School Board has asked for a further grant for a second year in conse- 

 quence of no legislation having taken place this session. 



The return of the Education Department for this year shows that the 

 diminution in the teaching of the science subjects, noted in previous 

 reports, still continues. The statistics of the class subjects for five years 

 are given in the subjoined table, which shows an actual decrease in 

 Geography and Elementary Science, notwithstanding the increase in the 

 number of departments examined. The growing practice of taking needle- 

 work in girls' schools as the second class subject (and thus obtaining for 

 it a larger grant than would be paid for it otherwise) is gradually 

 excluding geography. 



