PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE
3
Reference :-
THCO 885
122
The Board also decided that the Inspector of Schools be requested to make the necessary arrangements for the lectures."
F. LENNOCK GODET,
I have, &c.,
Clerk to Board of Education.
No. 77.
42105
last.*
(No. 81.)
WINDWARD ISLANDS (ST. VINCENT). GOVERNOR WILLIAMS to THE EARL OF ELGIN,
(Received December 2, 1907.)
Grenada, November 5, 1907. FORWARDED with reference to your Lordship's circular despatch of 28th March
RALPH WILLIAMS,
(Saint Vincent. No. 59.)
Governor.
SIR,
Government House, St. Vincent, October 28, 1907. WITH reference to the Right Honourable the Secretary of State's circular despatch of the 28th March last,* covering the précis of reports from the Crown Colonies and Protectorates in the tropics, on the progress made during 1905 with the teaching of the rudiments of hygiene in the schools of those countries, and calling for a report on the progress made here in the teaching of hygiene during 1906, I have the honour to inform Your Excellency that this important class of instruction has received the hearty attention of the teachers in the primary schools of the Colony as well as in the Agricultural School.
2. The Acting Inspector of Schools, in his annual report, states that he found Dr. C. W. Branch's" Tropical Hygiene Primer" most readily appealed to the pupils, and that since several teachers are amplifying it with notes, as they go on, he antici- pates material progress from its use. In connection with this text book, I should add that as the present edition is now sold out, the author has, with my concurrence, made arrangements with a local publisher for the issue of a second edition; and it is hoped that the wider sale of this manual, which is written in very popular and simple language, will assist in promulgating, among the poorer classes, a knowledge of those important hygienic principles it is the intention of the author to instil.
3. The Resident-Master of the Agricultural School reports that he has, for some time, given considerable attention to the teaching of personal hygiene, as this subject is, in fact, inseparable from, and specially applicable to, the hygiene of plant and animal cultivation on the farm; and he expresses the confident hope that the pupils in his school will prove to be pioneers of more sanitary living among their companions and other labourers on the estates at which they will be engaged.
4. It is to be regretted that the finances of the Colony do not permit of this Government participating in the scheme for teaching hygiene by means of magic lantern demonstration, as suggested in paragraph 4 of the circular despatch; but, with the view of encouraging the teaching of sanitation and hygiene in primary schools, our Board of Education has awarded a special prize of £5 to the teacher of the school which gave the best result in the examinations on this subject; and prizes have also been awarded to children who have shown themselves most proficient.
5. I annex a copy of that portion of the annual report from the Acting Inspector of Schools (F. W. Reeves), which specially deals with hygiene.
I have, &c.,
His Excellency Ralph C. Williams, Esquire, C.M.G.,
Governor of the Windward Islands,
DANIEL T. TUDOR,
Administrator.
123
Enclosure in No. 77.
EXTRACT from the Annual Report of the Acting Inspector of Schools.
Education Department, Grenada, July 19, 1907.
*
19. Hygiene. This is a new but most important subject, and I am pleased to note that teachers and pupils in general appear to have entered heartily into its study.
The only school that did not offer it was the Belair Anglican for reasons set forth in the detailed report.
Results cannot be measured at this early stage, but if it is possible teachers might be encouraged to explain the necessity of this study to parents themselves in a few simple lectures given in the schoolroom. The subject is of such vital import- ance that I feel sure many managers will act on this suggestion. Another way of bringing it home to parents, and one which has been adopted by several teachers, is to make the children take notes, and carry their exercise books to show their parents. With the present dwellings of the lower classes, it is difficult to inculcate a love of fresh air, as no sooner does rain fall than the heavy shuttered windows have to be closed, and the house is immediately hermetically sealed. If the houses had jalousie windows, some ventilation would be possible under all circumstances. On the other hand, the necessity for the teaching of personal hygiene is all the greater, so as to nullify some of the ill effects of the overcrowding so prevalent in these huts.
The people are, however, very conservative, and must be cured of their liking for their present huts before consumption and other diseases common to the West Indies can be mitigated by the use of fresh air.
Constant effort must be made in the schools to eradicate from the minds of the children the future parents-the prejudices and superstitious ideas about the danger of fresh air and water. Only in this way will the object of the authorities be attained.
After careful consideration I recommend Mr. A. E. Davis, of the Barrouallie Anglican School, for the prize of £5. I must, however, place it on record that there were four or five other schools which gave results so near Mr. Davis's that I cannot but feel that it is a pity the prize could not have been divided in ratios more truly representing the difference in efficiency.
The object of the prize is to encourage teachers to disseminate the truths of hygiene as widely as possible. The offer of one prize of £5 has, I have reason to believe, not had the full effect expected. Some teachers have at once decided that they stood no chance against others of whom they hold an exalted opinion, and so, while not neglecting the subject, have not thrown their full energy into its teaching. The desired effect, I am convinced, will be better attained by the offer of three prizes of £2 58., £1 158., and £1. Each teacher will then feel that he is in the running for one of the prizes.
With regard to the prizes for children, I regret that I had no knowledge of the offer while in the Grenadines, so made no recommendations. In some schools of St. Vincent no award was made, in others only to a representative of one sex.
This must not be understood as denoting that any such schools were necessarily lacking in proficiency in the subject, but merely that, while often satisfacory work was done collectively, no individual child proved worthy of a prize. I have furnished a separate sheet (not necessarily to be published) of the children recommended for prizes.
The text book in use is written in plain simple language, which will most readily appeal to the children. Several teachers are amplifying it by notes as they go on, and by next year I expect to hear of material progress.
*
*
I have, &c.,
&c.,
&c.,
Grenada.
&c.,
•No. 51.
Qt
To His Honour Daniel T. Tudor, and
The Members of the Board of Education,
St. Vincent.
F. W. REEVES, Acting Inspector of Schools.
20ADS
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