Tuesday, 18th-25th January, 1881.
Members of the Board :
The Hon. NG CHOY.
Rev. Dr. CHALMERS.
Rev. R. LECHLER,
P. R. SMITH, Esq.*
Dr. Wong, and
Dr. EITEL.
Dr. CHALMERS said that he presumed the Inspector of Schools would ex officio act as Chairman, whereupon Dr. EITEL, as such, opened the meeting by reading to the Board all the documents in C.S.O. 29 of 1881 which explained how His Excellency the Governor came to appoint the Members of the Board as Examiners of the Government Central School on the present occasion, after the Masters of the School had, without the knowledge of the Governor, begun and nearly finished their own examination of the School.
Dr. EITEL specially mentioned, that in 1879 the Governor had informed the Secretary of State of his intention not to allow the continuance of the system of having the Central School annually examined by its own Masters only, but that both in January 1880 and in January 1881 the examination was held in the same way as before, without the knowledge of the Governor, until the circumstances detailed in C.S.O. 29 of 1881 drew His Excellency's attention to the matter.
Dr. EITEL further mentioned that after ordering the Masters' own examination to be stopped, the Governor had been asked by the Acting Head Master to allow the Masters to finish their examination for their own satisfaction, but that the Governor had decidedly refused to allow this examination to be continued, as he wished the present Board, appointed for the purpose, to institute an independent examination of the School de novo.
With reference to the order of the Governor that the Inspector of Schools should arrange the preliminaries of the examination to be held by the Board, Dr. EITEL laid before the Board, and explained in detail, a scheme he had drawn up, in consultation with Dr. STEWART and the Acting Headmaster, Mr. ARTHUR, for the examination of the Central School,—1stly in English, 2ndly, in Chinese, and 3rdly, in certain special subjects, on the basis of the provisions laid down in the Grant-in-aid Schedule.
Dr. CHALMERS said that whatever the object of the Governor might or might not have been in ordering the examination by the teachers of the School to be stopped and in appointing separate Examiners, he wished to propose the following resolution for adoption by the Board :
“That we, finding the teachers of the Central School were in the middle of a process of examination, nearly finished, permit them to finish that, and then take further measures to test the School.”
Dr. EITEL reminded Dr. CHALMERS that the documents he had read to the Board showed that the Governor had appointed the Board for the purpose of instituting an independent examination on the basis of the Grant-in-aid Scheme, and that the Governor had twice ordered the discontinuance of the Masters' examination.
Mr. NG CHOY said he would second Dr. CHALMERS' motion, in consideration of the shortness of time and of the difficulties in the way of the Board examining the boys independently.
Dr. EITEL stated that this resolution, if passed, would put the Head Master into a false position, necessitating his disobeying the explicit orders of the Governor.
Dr. CHALMERS asked if the Members of the Board were forbidden to put the questions again, which the Masters, orally or in writing, had already put, to the boys.
Dr. EITEL replied that the Members of the Board had been asked to conduct a new and independent examination on the basis of the Grant-in-aid Schedule, that the examination begun by the Masters was not in accordance with the rules laid down in that Schedule, and that therefore the Board was not asked to finish what the Masters had begun and then to test the School somehow, but to conduct an entirely new and independent examination on the principles of the Grant-in-aid Schedule.
Dr. CHALMERS said that he maintained that, as a Member of the Board, he was free to ask the boys again the same questions which had been asked by the Masters, or which they were about to ask.
Dr. CHALMERS wished to know decisively whether or not he and the other Members of the Board could do so.
Mr. NG CHOY said that when he seconded the proposition he did not consider the words “permit the Masters,” and would suggest that Dr. CHALMERS should substitute the words “ask them to help us,” in which case he would second Dr. CHALMERS' motion.
Dr. CHALMERS said what he wished was that the little portion of the examination held by the Masters which was left unfinished, be finished for the convenience and help of the Board.
Mr. LECHLER remarked that the Board could not ask the Masters to continue an examination which the Governor had twice ordered them to discontinue.
Dr. CHALMERS said he wished to amend his previous motion, and moved :
“That we, finding the teachers of the Central School were in the midst of a process of examination, nearly finished, instruct them to finish that, and then take further measures to test the School.”
Mr. NG CHOY declined to second this resolution.
* Added to the Board, on account of the illness of Mr. Justice SNOWDEN.