Education Act 1851 (SA)

ANNO DECIMO QUINTO

VICTORIB REGINB.

No. 20.

An Act to promote Ed?~cat.ion in South Australia, bey aids towards

the erection of Schools and the payment of Stipends to Teachers.

[Assented to 2nd January, 1852.1

HEREAS it is expedient, from the General Revenue, to aid l3eamble.

in the promotion of education throughout the Colony:

Be it therefore Enacted, by the Lieutenant-Governor of South Australia, with the advice and consent of the Legislative Council thereof, That in schools established, or to be established, under the provisions of this Act, no attempt sllall be made to influence or disturb the peculiar tenets of any religious sect. 'be*y '-

established, under the provisions of this Act, the aim shall be to prohibited 2. And be it Enacted, That in schools established, or to be Religion8 wntroverey

introduce and maintain good secular instruction, based on the Christian Religion; apart from all theological and controversial differences on discipline and doctrine, and that no denominational catechism be used.

3. And be it Enacted, That schools established, or to be es- Educationandbooka not to be given gra-

tablished, under the provisions of this Act, when erected and tuitously,

opened, shall be conducted and maintained on the self'-sup-

porting principle, by periodical payments of school fees; and that

no books or instruction be given gratuitously: Provided always,

~1 .that

that although gratuitous education is, in generaI, inqwlitic and undesirable, nevertheless, orphans, or other destitute children,

Orpbans and other

destitute scholars to	without relatives bound in law, or other persons willing to nlaintain
be educated at the	them, shall have the right of admission, and shall be admitted into
public expense.	any school cstablishcd, or to be established, under this Act, ailcl that the school fees and cost of books, in the case of orphans or other destitute scholars, shall be charged to the public.
Education in Ade-
Central Board of	4. And be it Enacted, That there shall be a Central Board of Education, to be nominated by the Governor, by and with the advice of the Executive Council; the meilubers of the said Board, not exceeding seven ill number, to be selected by the Governor and Executive Council, without referexice to party po- litics, and indifferently from the different religions bodies not being ministers of religion; and that two of such board who have attended the least number of times retire annually, although capable of' re- appointment.
bide.

Powers of Centrd 5. And be it Enacted, That the Central Board of Educa'tion

I3oard of Education.	shall alone have power, for tlle purposes of this Act, to licence school-houses and teac2icrs, to witl.ldraw licences, to fix the increase of salary to teachers between the rnilzinluxn ant i maximum llereafter named in this Act, which increase may take place and be sanctioned with increased uunlbers of scliolars, and incrcascd efficiency of" teachers; and to determine the kind, quality, a d extent of instruc- tion to be iinpartcd at schools (other tllm the Norinal or Training School hcreinafter mentioned) established, or to be established, under the provision of this Act; and such instruction shall be given to all scholars, unexclusively, who shall be of age and capacity to receive it.
Normal or Training
School for future	6. And be it Enacted, That there shall be in the City of Ade- laide, or in some placc adjacent thereto, n Normal Sclmol or Training Institution, under the control and rr@ a ion of the Ccntrczl t'
teachers to be opened
in Adelaide.
Board of Educatiorl, for educating and training pcrsons of both sexes in the qudifications, intellectual and moral, necessary to make
good and efficient tcaclmv: Provided that education in such Normal School shall at no time be a necessary condition to the obtaining a licence from the said Central Board of Education.
N o m l School erected

at cost of public;	7. And be it Enacted, That the said Normal or Training School
thereafter to be self-

supporting.	shall be erected, and, during the first year after it is opened
and used, be maintained and furnished i ~ t the public expense with

Probable estimate, 20001.

books, and school apparatus, and material, for a suni not to exceed Two Thousand Pounds; and that ever thereafter. the principle of self-support shall, as far as practicable, be enforced as the general rule and condition of the existence of the institution.

Course of instruction

at Normal School, 8. And be it Enacted, That the education to be imparted at the Namlal or Training Institution for Teachers, shall be conferred on person of not less &an fourteen years of age, who shall have already acquired sonic proficiency iu writing, reading and arithmetic; and

the

the iinstruction ill the Normal School dull1 include, grammar, lo@c, elocution, geography, history, geometry, mechanics, mathematics, natural plnilosophy, drawiug, nmusic, and all tllose other requisites of'

L: persoilal nature, independently of scholarship, as the incalcstion of

temper, cliecrfulncss, and the art of conversational lectures or familiar illustration, whirl1 qualify for teaching by example no less t l~an by precept, and which may be useful in after-life, whether tlie person as a future teacher shall obtain the charge of a first or a second-rate scliool, or sllall enter into any other pursuit.

thorked to visit and report to the Central Board upon the various Education. 9. Ailcl be it Enacted, That the District Co~uicils shall be ;tu- District k w d s of

schools within t,lleir respective districts.

10. And be it Enacted, That whenever there s h l l be snbmitted District Boards of

to the Central Board of Eilnention, from a District Council, a plan,	sistcd with funds.
estimate, and slvcificntioil for the erection and furnishing of a
1)istrict School, togetller with :1, copy of :L proposed deed of trust, for
the management, nmiiitenancc, and condut:t of the same, tliell it

shall and nnay he lawful for the Ceiitral h a r d of Education, if they rrohrale E<~ti?mt+-

10 tluhuols at 2OOl-.S2000

approve of tLc project, to assist in tlie erection of tlie said District in d.. at m- m 0

20 do at 1001- 2000

Seliool bv an nppnpht ion of mon~y, books, and school appiiratus 30 no. at m - lrno --

and nlirtcrial, not exceediiyg in all one-half of tile approved estimate

27760

of the cost of erecting and ftmiishing the said School: Provided

always, that for or oil account of any such District School there

shall not, in any event, be paid more than Two l-Iuii&ed Pounds

in aid of the sanie.

1 l. Aud be it Enacted, That where no such District Council When,no District Council, two Justices

exist any two of Her Majesty's Justices of the Peace for this Pro- ,,

,,

$rice slmll htve m d exercise a11 the power and authority, and be

entitled to perform all the duties conferred by this Act upon such

District Couiicils.

12. And be it En:wteci, That in all Schools, except tlic Normal Salaries of teachers

or Training School for Teachers in Adelaide, establislied or to be T cacher) besldes (other than Normal

establislled under this Act, the mini~nuin salary of every licensed

Teacher, having the charge, of u Scllool, shall be Forty Pounds per ,0;;;~;~;;~~;70no

annum; and the n~i~xiluuln salary shall be One Hundred Pounds per g $ 3 13

annum, exclusively of school fees. 30 do. at 4 0 d i9oo

54250

13. And be it Nnacted, That the salary of the teacher at the Salary o f ~ o r m d

h-ormal or Training School in Adelaide shall be Three Hundred clusive of school fees.	School Teachm, ex-
Pounds per annum, exclusively of school fees.	~300.

14. And be it Enacted, That tlne Central Board. of Education I ) c J J ~ ~ of school

shall establish a t the Normal or Training School in Adelaide, or books, &c. Probable estimate,

elsewhere in Adelaide, a depdt for books, apparatus, and school tsuo.

material in general, to be procured a t the public expense, and

thereafter to be issued on pre-payment of the prime cost and

charges to thc schools, or thcir scholars, throughout the Province.

15. And

Inspector of schools,	15. And be it Enacted, That the Inspector of Schools for the time being shall correspond with all District Boards of Education, and shall personally, and not by deputy, but attended by an assistant, wheie necessary, visit, insp&, and report on all scliools established, or to be established, under this Act; and that such reports be ad-
$300.
dremea to the Central Board of Education, rand be published for
g a d information.
Redeemable bonds to

be issued for raising 16. And be it Enacted, Tha,t in order to provide funds for the

L10,000 from time to	purpose of promoting the erection of schools under this Act, the
time, as it may be re-
quired.	Central Board of Education for the time being sllnll have power and authority to isme bonds for the several amountri of One Thousand pounds, Five Hundred Pounds, Two Hundred and Fifty Pounds, One Hundred Pounds, Fifty I'ounds, Twenty Pounds, and Ten Pounds, according as tliere may be a demandbfor either amount of

rr

bond: Provided that the bonds so issued shall not, in thc agqregate, 4-

exceed the sum of Ten Thousand Ponnds.

Interest of bond

6 per cent. 17. And be it Enacted, Tlrat the said bond shall bear interest at and after the rate of six per centum per anmm for each and every Hundred Pounds, or lessor value of the amount thereof'; and

Interest ppctyehie half- that the said interest shall be and become payable half-yearly,

yearly, quarterly,

monthly, weekly,	or quarterly, #by the Colonial Treasurer, out of the General CO-
or daily.	l o n a Revenue, at one of the local banks in. the City of Adelaide, or at such other place, within the Colorly or elsewhere, as may be appointcd in such bond.

Interest secured on 18. And be it Enacted, That the Colonial Treasurer, for the

general Colonial re- time being, shall and he is hereby authorised out of the

anapa~ab'eOut

venue.	General Colonial Itevenue received or to be received by him ori the first day of' January and the first day of July in each and every year, for fift,een sucressive years from and after the date of this Act, pay in advance into one of the Local Banks of thc
such bond, a sum, in the whole, of Five ~ u n d r k l Pouiids, bcing City of Adelaide, and at such other placcs ss may he mentioned in
ten per cent. on the capital sum of Tcn Thousand Pounds, for the six months preceding the said first of' January and first of July of each and every year respectively.

Interest and redemp-	19. And be it Enacted. That the said sum of Five Hundred
tion fund to be de- -

posited, in advance,	Pounds so to be deposited'half-yearly, shall form and constitute s
in o n of	f&d hr the paplent of the iuterest due on the bonds i&wd by
Banks*	the Central Board of Education as aforesaid, and the surplus of
the said fund, after paying the said interest, shall form a d be a sinking fund for the redemption of the capital of the said loan of Ton Thousand Pounds, hereby autllorised to be raised by the Central Board of Education as aforesaid; the said'surplus fund to be applied by the Central Board of Education in the redemption and extinction of any and all of the said bonds as hereinafter specified.

20. And

20. And be it Enacted, That the Central Board of Education Bonds, how and whon redeemolle.

shall, at the expiration of tt~elve calendar months after the loan hereinbefore mentioned shall have been contracted, redeem or reduce bonds to the amount of the then existing sinking fund; and after that there shall be another similar redemption or reduc- tion every six calendar months in like manner; and the bonds to

be so redeemed or reduced s h d be determined by lot in the fol-

lowing manner, that is to say, the Centrsl Board of Education shall cause all the bonds to he numbered with a different number for each bond, and one ticket for each sum which may be in the amount of bonds actually and for the time being in existence, to

be prepared, and the number borne by each bond shall be written

upon aa many tickets as there are sums of Ten Pounds in said bond; the Central Board of Education shall then cause a fixed number of their tickets to be drawn at random in the presence af proper witnesses, and shall then cause b be made out and published in the Government Gaxsttt., within one week after such drawing shall have taken place, a list of the numbers appearing on the tickets so drawn, and shall call, at the same time, on the holders of the bond bearkg the said numbers to come forward at a certain place to be named in such bond to be there named, and receive payment of the amount to be re- duced or redeemed on a certain day to be also named, after which day interest on the bond so distinguished shall cease: Provided however that the drawin of lots, by which the numbers of the Fond to be

redeemed or re wed shall be determined, shall take place on a day P

not more than three nor less then two calendar months before the

day fixed for that on which the bonds are to be redeemed or re-

duced.

2 1. And be it Enacted, That it shall be incumbent on the Central NO part the bonds

Board of Education and on the Colonial Treasurer to redeem and :U pay off the said capital sum of Ten Thousand Pounds, herein autho- rised to be raised on bond within fifteen years from the date of this Act. . ; : , unrrdsemed in

22. And be it Enacted, That in each and every year for fifteen Annual A~pro~ria-

yeam, successively from the date of the passing of tE& Act, there shall ~ ~, " a ~ ~ o f ? ~; ~; i -

be appropriated from the General Colonial Revenue a sum of One nue o f f l o ~ o, or sllcll

~ h o & n b Pounds, being ten per cent. on the capital sum of Ten ~~~~~~~; ~ : ~ ~ ~ C ~ ~

Thousand Pounds hereby authorised to be raised, or such lesser est and final liqui-

sum than One ~housana Pounds as shall equal ten per cent. of the ~ $ $ ' d; ~ i $ $ $ ~

amount of the mid capital. then being arid remaining unreduced der thie ~ c t.

or unredeemed; and tnde said One ~ho';sand Pounds, or such lesser sum as aforesaid, shall be applicable, and shall be applied in the mode and manner hereinbefore directed, to the payment of the in- terest and to the h a l liquidation of the said capital of Ten Thousand Pounds.

23. And be it Enacted, That it shall not be lawful to the Cen-

tral Board of Education, under this Act, nor without further and

other legislative sanction, to expend on school buildings, or to enter

~1 into

into any liabilities on account of school buildings, which shalI be in exccss of the Ten 'l'housand Pounds herein authorised to be raised on loan, or of such lesser portion of the said loan as may then have been raised; nor to expend or incur liabilities on account of salaries of teachers, any larger sum than Six Thousand Pounds per snnum, or such other spec& sum as shall or may hereafter be in-

clad@ and proxded for in the Annual Appropiation Acts of the

lature of the Colony; nor to conmenfie any expenditure on account of the Normal School to be constituted under this Act, until a sun1 of not less than &5,000 shall have been borrowed and expended for other purposes mentioned in this Act.

24. And be it Enacted, That it shall be Iawful for the Got

verrnor to authorise the payment from the Colonial lEevenue of re- mm~mtion to the Members of the Central Board of Education of One Guinea to each Member, for the purpose of inducing a regular aftendance; provided always, that such remuneration shall not extead to more than one ~ n e e t i q in each month; and provided also, tbat such remuneration shall only be payable to those Mem- bers of the Romd who shall be present at the time of the com- mencemellt of thc business, signing their names in a book to be kept for that purpose, and remain till the procecdings are ter- minated.

25. And be it Enacted, That fiom and after the first day of May next the Ordinance Xo. 1 1 of 1847, " For the encouragement of public: Education," shall be repealed.

JOHN MORPHETT, Speaker.

Passed the Legislative Council this Twenty-

ninth day of December, One Thou-

sand Eight Hundred and Fifty-one.

WM. B. GILRERT,

Pro Clerk of Council.

In the name and on the behalf of Her Majesty I assent to this Act.-

H, E. F, YOUNG,

Lieutenant- Governor.

Government I-Iouse, Adelaide,

, 2nd Jagwwy, 1852.

1

ADELAIDE: Printed by authority by W. C. Cox, Government Printer, Victoris-sp- .