PREPARATORY BOYS' SCHOOLS UNDER LADY

PRINCIPALS.

THE Compiling of this paper has been attended with considerable disappointment. From several districts in which inquiries were instituted for the names and addresses of ladies keeping boys' schools came back the answer: "There used to be several such schools here, but they have now ceased to exist, or have been handed over to men.' Nevertheless, 114 names and addresses were obtained, and questions bearing on the details of school management were sent round to all of these.

Two or three of those who replied had schools of a different type. Two or three sent word that their schools had existed but were now given up. And in the end only 24 sets of answers were received to the questions submitted, or to some of them, from schools of the kind specified.

Of these 24 schools the oldest has been established 62 years, the youngest two; their average age is a fraction under 20 years. They contain an aggregate of 597 boys, which gives an average of nearly 25 apiece.

Of the 24, six receive boys at four years of age, eight at five years, seven at six years, and three at seven years or over.

They keep boys-one till 10 years of age, three till 11, six till 12, three till 13, nine till 14, and two till 15.

Of the 24, one invariably, two rarely, three generally, and the rest sometimes send on boys direct to one or other of the Public Schools. In other words, there is only one out of the 24 which never sends a boy first to some other Preparatory School kept by

a master.

Six of these schools take girls as well as boys, with an average of 13 girls apiece in addition to the boys.

For the 597 boys, 67 girls, and 21 children in one school whose sex is not specified, there are 18 regular masters, and, reckoning the 24 heads, 81 regular lady teachers, which gives an average of one master for every 38, one mistress for every 8, or more than one regular teacher for every seven children

Besides the regular staffs there are in all 43 visiting masters and 24 visiting mistresses for music, singing, dancing, drill, and so forth.

The chief authority-educational, moral and disciplinary-is

in 21 cases kept entirely in the hands of the lady principal. One keeps it chiefly in her own hands, one delegates the "educational authority" to her senior master, retaining the rest in her own hands; one makes an exception as to games which she leaves altogether to the "games' master.”

All 24, with perhaps one exception, make provision for games. Five record the fact that they have a field (many of the others, no doubt, have a field also), nine speak of a "games' master" or "a master with a special aptitude for games," or at least a master who plays games with the boys. Two mention a cricket professional, one in addition to cricket and football mentions boxing as a regular institution, one swimming, one "hare and hounds," one "field sports," which is somewhat ambiguous. One energetic head mistress herself goes out regularly into the football field as referee.

Of 20 ladies who replied to the queries having special reference to health and physical training, four have each a detached sanatorium, which has existed for 6, 12, 13, and 16 years respectively. Two state that they have so few boarders that a private sanatorium is unnecessary. Most rely apparently on the expedient of taking lodgings in case of any outbreak of infectious illness. One happy school of 20 boys has had "no illness of any kind since the school began nine years ago." At 13 of these 20 schools boys are always under supervision; at 7 they are allowed some leisure time to employ as they please.

There is nothing special to notice in the meal times. They seem to be very much the same at all the schools. Every one breakfasts at from 8.0 to 8.30, and dines at from 1.0 to 1.30. Tea time is more variable, ranging from 5.0 to 6.30.

Biscuits or light luncheon of some kind is generally provided at 11.0; and those who have tea early give the boys something before sending them to bed.

As regards the length of lessons, most of the ladies seem to have adopted three-quarters of an hour as the normal period; some 40 minutes, and some few, in certain cases, only half an hour. But very few still adhere to the old-fashioned length of a full hour.

Questions were also asked as to the curriculum, and lady principals were invited to fill up schemes of all their working hours, showing the length of time allotted in the week to each subject in the various classes. So many of the schemes were incompletely filled up that it is difficult to formulate the results satisfactorily. But the accompanying table of the average weekly period given to each subject in each class will, it is hoped, give some idea of the work being done. In considering this table it must be noted (i.) that class I. is always the lowest; (ii.) that all the schools naturally do not contain the same number of classes, e.g., Class VII. exists in one school only of those who filled up schemes; (iii.) that the number of schools of which the average is taken varies with almost every subject.