NRS-16551 | Observation Book [Broke Public School]

Full description

The purpose of the observation book was for the Inspector to record general remarks about the management of the school, the relationships and discipline within it and the range and effectiveness of the teaching. The Regulations under the Public Schools Act, 1866 noted “The Inspector’s remarks upon the state of the school visited by him, will be entered in the “Observation Book” of the school, which, as a School Record, should be carefully preserved. Entries therein are not to be erased or altered.” (Regulations adopted by the Council of Education on 27 February 1867, s. 83)

The majority of entries made in this volume are entered on a specifically designed form, which is then pasted into the observation book. The form details the school and the inspection date, and is divided into three main areas: organisation, government and instruction.

The ‘organisation’ section pertains to the school’s equipment, beautification programs, staff direction, records, educational agencies, smoothness and effectiveness of general management, and the standing of the school in relation to the general community.

‘Government’ comments on relations between staff and students, effectiveness of discipline in fostering ideals of conduct and stimulating independent thought and activity, and the socialising influence of the school on its pupils.

‘Instruction’, or general survey evaluates the co-ordination of lesson courses, preparation, general speech-training, teaching methods and their effectiveness in promoting intellectual growth and development, and an appreciation of the higher cultural values.

The frequency of inspection was normally every second year, except that between 1956 and 1968 reports are entered only in every fourth year. The school Visitors’ Book [NRS 16554], however, indicates that the Inspector visited the school in some of those years for which reports are not provided.

The volume of this series currently held concludes with the report for 1970, but more than half of the book remains unused.

This decision to start a new volume of records in 1971 is found in other series from this school, and may reflect the fact that the school celebrated its centenary in 1971. The centenary commemorated the establishment of the original school in Broke, a provisional school which operated between August 1871 and July 1873.