1870 — Page 162

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE

Reference :-

COPYRIGHT PHOTOGRAPH-NOT TO

REPRODUCED PHOTOGRAPHIC-

TTC.O. 133 / 27 ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON

No. 45.

297.

149

GOVERNMENT NOTIFICATION.

The following Annual Report on the state of the Government Schools in Hongkong for the Year 1870, is published for general information.

By Command,

Colonial Secretary's Office, Hongkong, 13th March, 1871.

J. GARDINER AUSTIN, Colonial Secretary.

HONGKONG, 28th February, 1871.

S-I have the honour to forward to you the Annual Report on the Schools in this Colony

under Government supervision during the year 1870.

2. The state in which these schools are will be best seen by considering them under the following division:-The Central School, The Village Schools supported by Government, and The Schools receiving Grants-in-aid.

3. A reference to the Tables which are subjoined will show that the Central School continues to maintain its ground in point of numbers, the average for the year being a little higher than for any previous year. Apprehensions of a falling off in the attendance may be said to have disappeared. The commercial prosperity of the Colony can hardly fall to a lower ebb than it has been at during the last few years, and, this being so, and the boys looking forward solely to mercantile employment, depression of trade, unless carried to a much further extent than has yet been experienced, can hard- ly be expected to interfere with the prosperity of the school. It is to be hoped that this is an indica tion of some appreciation of the school for its own sake rather than for any mere money-making for which it may be considered a preparation.

4. The highest attendance was in June, when there were 248 on the roll for the month. The lowest was in January when the number was 208. The average for the year was 237. There is very little cause for complaint about irregularity. It would be "difficult to find, anywhere, a school of the size more regularly attended. Sickness is the principal cause of absence, but even that prevails to a very small extent. The only absences which cause annoyance are those necessitated by some family matter, a marriage or a funeral. In such a case, nothing less than a month is thought suffi- cient, and, sometimes, no persuasion, not even a threat, avails to reduce the period of leave below six weeks. Nothing could more clearly show the extraordinarily little value which the Chinese set upon time, except, perhaps, what is seen at some of the villages, where any of the children leave school at the end of the Tenth Month, because it is then the end of the year. Of recent years, the number of long absences has been decreasing and this is probably due, in a great measure, to the fact that the school holidays are fixed to suit the two most important Chinese Holidays, those, namely, at the New Year and the Tomb Festival,

5. The greatest number of absentees was in August, when they amounted to 17; but, of these 13 were absent from continued illness. The snmllest number was in February, when there were 5, of whon 3 were sick. The average number of such absentees for the year was 12 per month. Taking all things into consideration, this number is exceedingly limited.

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6. The result of the year's work was, as usual, tested by written examinations in all the classes. paper

is set on each subject which the class has been taught during the year and those who get less than one third of the total number of marks assigned to the subjects of their class are considered as having failed. The total number of such failures in the six English classes was 20, or an average of about 3 to each class. Even this proportion, though small, is not due entirely to idleness, but arises, in the majority of cases, from promotion to a higher class but a few months before the exami- nation. Another cause of fuilure is found in the case of boys other than Chinese. These, knowing but little of Chinese, lose the marks assigned for translation from and into that language.

7. It would occupy too much space either to give the examination lists and papers or to analyse them minutely. They are, however, all recorded and are available at any time when required. The boys themselves take great interest in these lists. They carefully note the number of marks they have gained in each particular subject and take them as a guide to future study. The masters, too, look forward to the results with no little anxiety, as they find in them a test of their success or failure in teaching. The work of examination is necessarily very laborious, but what is guined by it mo than compensates for the unusual exertion.