we assume that every child may be reasonably expected to go to school for seven years, that there might be considerably over a hundred thousand scholars more than at present on the registers of aided schools. With the passing of the Education. (Scotland) Act, 1901, we look forward with confidence to a large increase in the average attendance in the near future.

The following Return gives particulars for certain years of the scholars in average attendance, and the numbers on the Registers of all schools in receipt of Annual Grants, and shows the proportion which they bear to the estimated population of the Country, together with the percentages of the scholars in average attendance to the total numbers on the School Registers :

In connection with this, it may be convenient again to Relief of recapitulate the steps by which fees have been almost entirely fees. relieved in State-aided schools. By the provisions of the Local Government Act of 1889, a large sum was made available for the relief of fees. Regulations stating the conditions under which this sum would be distributed were contained in a Minute issued by the Department on 26th August of that year. These regulations came into force on 1st October following and from that date fees were relieved, in all but exceptional cases, for scholars in all the compulsory standards of the Code. The Local Taxation (Customs and Excise) Act, 1890, applied a further sum of 40,000l. towards this purpose. By a Minute of lith June 1891, the conditions under which the amounts so available were distributed were so far varied as to substitute an age limit (5-14) in place of the previous limit to scholars who had not passed the 5th Standard, and in the Code for 1894 that age limit was extended (3-15). In 1892 a change was made, whereby a sum was voted by Parliament in lieu of the sum available under the Local Government Act of 1889. In 1901 the sum so voted was 317,250l. During the year ended 31st March 1902, besides the sum of 40,000l. available under section 2 (ii) of the Local Taxation Act, 1890, a further sum of 45,1917. is available under section 2 (6) of the Education and Local Taxation

Main
Subjects.

Account (Scotland) Act, 1892. The capitation grant paid in relief of fees is at the rate of 12s., of which 10s. is met from the Parliamentary Grant and 28. from the sums otherwise available; and arrangements have been made by which the amount necessary to allow this rate to be continued shall be provided in the Estimates, should the amount otherwise available not be sufficient to permit this.

The table below shows the amount granted to various descriptions of schools for the year ended 31st March 1901. The following is an approximate statement as to the extent of the relief granted :

Number of scholars on registers of schools
on annual grant list between 3 and 15
years of age

Deduct approximate number in fee-paying
schools and in schools not claiming the
grant in relief of fees

Extent of relief granted by the Code

760,627

17,000

These figures show that, except for a comparatively insignificant number of schools and scholars, free education practically prevails throughout the State-aided schools in Scotland.

III.-Subjects of Instruction, &c.

The main subjects of instruction are reading, writing, and arithmetic, and it is our view that the instruction in those subjects should be so arranged as to lead to the attainment of the Merit Certificate the requirements of which are stated in Article 29 of the Code (see also Appendix 4)-at or about the age of 13, in the case of children of average ability and regular attendance. This standard may be attained at an earlier age by a certain proportion of the pupils, but we have thought it right, with a view to preventing over-pressure or undue concentration upon the fundamental subjects to the neglect of other elements

* TABLE.

TABLE showing the amount paid by the Scotch Education Department in
Relief of School Fees for the year ended 31st March, 1901.

of a good education, to fix a minimum age of 12 for the granting of this certificate. But the formation of character and habits of obedience and good behaviour is no less the function of the school than the imparting of instruction, and should receive no less weight in the award of the certificate. We have recently had occasion to direct attention to this side of school work in Circular 347, to which we would again call the attention of Managers.

year ending

The number of Merit Certificates issued during the 30th September, 1901, was 23,239 as compared with 20,977 in the previous year.

While the subjects of reading, writing, and arithmetic naturally Auxiliary form the staple of work of the school, it has never been the practice Subjects. in Scotch schools to confine the instruction, even in the more elementary stages, to those subjects. It has been found that a reasonable infusion of other subjects, while adding to the interest of the work, stimulating the intelligence and developing the capabilities of the children, tends to further rather than to retard progress in the essential subjects. But these subjects, while rarely or never to be omitted, are to be regarded as auxiliary only. They are valuable for the discipline they afford, and the variety of means they offer for exercising the intelligence of the children, rather than for the amount of positive knowledge or proficiency acquired, though that may be not inconsiderable. It is no part of our requirement that they should be treated as independent subjects, requiring an equal share of the time table, or that the great objects of elementary school instruction, viz., the attainment of proficiency in reading, writing, speaking, and understanding English and facility in making useful calculations, should be in any way sacrificed to them. For these reasons we have

refrained from prescribing definite standards of attainment in these subjects, and consequently from giving corresponding statistics of passes. The efficiency of a school will be judged of, not by its percentage of pass in any subject, but by the extent to which it achieves the ultimate object of school work as embodied in the requirements for the Merit Certificate, and by the manner in which it turns to account the various subjects of instruction for the moral and intellectual discipline of the pupils.

The auxiliary subjects, as described in Article 19 of the Code, are: Physical exercises, singing, drawing, nature knowledge, geography, history, and, for girls, sewing. Certain of these subjects, e.g., nature knowledge, geography, history, may be, and ought to be, made to subserve in large degree the purposes of the main instruction in English and arithmetic, and instruction in the former class of subjects need in no way interfere with the attainment of due proficiency in the latter. Drawing, if properly taught, is a valuable instrument for nature study, and may indeed be reckoned as part of the same subject. Other subjects, e.g., physical exercises and singing, while less intimately allied with the main instruction,

Drill.

Inquiry into
Physical
Training.

are desirable concomitants of it, while sewing is a subject in which some degree of expertness must be acquired during school life if it is to be acquired at all.

For these reasons we regard the foregoing subjects each in due measure, and with due regard to the age of the pupil, as integral parts of the curriculum in the elementary stages of every school, and we regret that, from various causes, but chiefly from the lack of duly qualified teachers, it is not as yet possible to insist that no part of this comprehensive discipline shall be omitted.

The subjects in which the lack of expert teachers is most felt are physical exercises (including military drill) and drawing, but it is to be hoped that this defect will be remedied at no distant date through the agency of the classes for the further instruction of teachers, which we have established under Article 91 (d) of the Code. After allowing sufficient time for the operation of these classes to have its due effect, it will be our duty to consider whether any school should continue to be recognised as efficient whose staff is not specially qualified in respect of some one or other of its members to give efficient instruction in all the branches of the normal curriculum.

Military drill (as distinguished from the ordinary school drill, which is a part of the organisation of every good school) is systematically taught in 1,025 schools. We attach much importance to this part of the instruction, and to its beneficial effects, both as regards the discipline of the school and the physical development of the scholars. In connection with this we issued a circular in February, 1900, which met with a cordial reception from school managers generally. We are glad to find that managers appear to be ready, especially in continuation classes with which the subject may very well be connected, to take advantage of the new opportunities now given for carrying on systematic instruction on this subject. Not only is it one of vital importance to the country and to the individual scholar, but we are convinced that the interest it would create in school work, on the part of parents as well as scholars, would be of the greatest benefit to the schools. We shall welcome any further opportunity of encouraging its development, but we would like to point out that we attach more importance to the systematic training of the whole of the children according to a sound method of drill, than to the proficiency in gymnastic or athletic exercises of a few.

A Royal Commission has recently been appointed to enquire into the opportunities for physical training now available in the State-aided day schools and other educational institutions of Scotland, and to suggest means by which such training may be made to conduce to the welfare of the pupils, and, further, how such opportunities may be increased by continuation classes and otherwise, so as to develop, in their practical application to the requirements of life, the faculties of those who have left the day

:

schools, and thus to contribute towards the sources of national strength. We shall look with interest to the result of this enquiry, and to the recommendations which the Commission may be able to make.

Grants for instruction in drawing were made to 2,560 schools Drawing. out of 3,141, but this does not represent the complete number of schools in which some amount of instruction in drawing was given. The grant was withheld (or was not claimed) in many cases, either because of the insufficient amount of instruction given or because the character of the instruction was not such. as to warrant the payment of a grant. Means whereby instruction in this subject may be extended and improved are engaging our attention.

Singing is taught in 3,541 departments of schools, out of Singing. 3,642, and in all but 168 of these cases it was taught from notes. From the reports of our Inspectors we may reasonably hope that even this small residuum of schools in which singing is not taught, or taught incompletely, will be further reduced. The other auxiliary subjects (nature knowledge, geography, history, and needlework) are practically universal in all schools which possess the complete organisation of junior and senior departments. The character of the instruction in these subjects will be gathered from the Inspectors' divisional reports; but generally we have to express our satisfaction with the progress made, while the various points of criticism. contained in the reports will receive our attention with a view to effecting further improvement.

In addition to providing for Elementary Education up to the Instruction beyond the stage of the Merit Certificate, provision is also made in Article Merit Cer21 and Chapter IX. of the Code for the further instruction of tificate pupils who remain at school after obtaining the Merit Certificate. Stage. The Education (Scotland) Act of 1901 will, it is hoped, have the effect of greatly increasing the number of scholars who will so remain at school, and the question of how best to make provision for their further instruction is at present engaging our attention.

ments.

During the past year grants were paid under Article 21 on Advanced an average attendance of 7,648, and under Chapter IX. of 3,270, DepartThe advanced departments under Article 21 provide, as a rule but with some notable exceptions, for the instruction of children who remain only a short time at school after obtaining the Merit Certificate, and do not, as a rule, possess a staff or an organisation suitable for giving a more extended curriculum. The instruction given is of a supplementary nature, and aims at deepening and broadening the instruction already received in elementary subjects, while adding in certain cases the elements of languages or mathematics, instruction in book-keeping or shorthand, or instruction in certain practical subjects, e.g., manual instruction, cookery and laundry work, dressmaking, &c.