that this contribution does not in any way compensate for the difference between the two ratios.
11.15 The provision of Inspectors for secondary education has proved reasonably satisfactory. It is however difficult to see why the provision for primary schools should be so low compared with that for secondary schools. The basic reason for the difference appears to lie in the overlap of responsibilities between two departmental divisions in this area and a historical undervaluation of the role of primary education.
11.16
It is proposed to remedy this situation by substantially increasing the number of inspectors for primary schools and to place these inspectors in the Advisory Inspectorate.
11.17
It is intended that this increase in the Inspectorate staff should be phased in over a period of about 5 years with the ultimate aim of a ratio of Inspectors to teaching periods comparable with that in the secondary sector provided it can be shown during the intermediate stages that the increases are providing the improved services required.
11.18
In order to be sure that further additional staff are justified, new staff should be concentrated in specific areas where the increase would be sufficient to be effective and where the results of the increase could be assessed. Phasing in the scheme will have the additional advantage of avoiding a sudden dilution of quality in the Inspectorate by an influx of untrained inspectors. The full implementation of the new staffing ratio would cost an additional $2.2 million per annum.
11.19 With the proposed expansion of the primary inspectorate it is essential to maintain and even improve the standards of Inspectors. In order to achieve this, efficient selection is essential. In selecting inspectors, considerable importance should be attached to teaching experience in primary schools. Normally, primary inspectors are recruited from Government primary schools, but as a result of the steps that have recently been taken to solve the redundancy problem in these schools many of the best teachers have been transferred to other duties. It would therefore appear essential to broaden the base of recruitment by opening the basic grade posts to candidates from both within and without the Government sector simultaneously. It is considered that this principle should also be applied to the recruitment of College of Education lecturers.
11.20 The in-service training of Inspectors is another very important issue and the establishment of a departmental training section is being con- sidered. However, it is often thought that when a teacher is appointed as an Inspector, he rapidly loses touch with the classroom and becomes less effective as an Inspector. It is suggested that a pilot scheme should be introduced to see whether it would be practicable to replace by Inspectors, some of the teachers released for training courses, so that the Inspectors could return to the classroom for a short period in order to keep in touch with teaching at first hand. Similar arrangements should apply to lecturers in Colleges of Education.
11.21
Generally speaking, it would appear necessary for primary Inspectors to be trained non-graduate teachers, since this is the normal status of those with primary school teaching experience. However, it is considered that a
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