THE MARCH OF THE SCHOOLS

School Age-limits, Grants, Evacuation Problems
From Our Educational Correspondent As regards public elementary education the past year has been of considerable importance for Catholics.
During the year negotiations have been concluded and agreements made for the provision of new Catholic senior schools under the 1936 Act.
No Publicity
Despite the importance of the year in this matter it has been quiet, as the negotiations have been conducted with marked absence of publicity-except, of course, in Liverpool, where political bias has been carried to, virulent lengths.
Fortu ?I ate' y, Liverpool is unique in this respect, and the political junta behind the attempt to wreck Catholic education has been pulled up sharply by the action of the Board of Education in withholding grants of tens of thousands of pounds.
Where the Blame Lies
This is a serious matter for the ratepayers of Liverpool, but the blame lies not with them or with the Diocesan Education Council or vdt'd the Board of Education, but with the power behind the administration of the city.
In no other areas has there been such violent opposition to Catholic education rights, but some authorities have been less ready than others
to accord the full measure of co-operation permitted by Parliament.
Not Known
At present, the full number of agreements which have been concluded between the Catholic representatives and the local authorities has not been officially announced, and no pronouncement has been made on the point by the Hierarchy, so that it Is impossible to assess whether Catholics have been considerably advantaged by the Act.
Enough es known, however, to show that the full intentions of Pariiament have not been translated into local action.
Unitary Evacuation
One unusual event of the year was the sudden making of plans for the evacuation of schoolchildren from the great cities under the threat of war.
In September those plans were hasty improvisations, but they had the advantage of being based on the principle of evacuating whole schools as complete units.
As previously mentioned in these columns, new evacuation plans are being prepared by a joint committee of the Board of Education and the Home Office. When these plans are issued they will be examined closely to determine whether they avoid certain very serious dangers mentioned by a correspondent In the CATHOLIC HERALD of December 9.
Raising the Age
Next year should mark a definite step forward in education in Great Britain. as from September the school-leaving age will be raised to fifteen for all boys and girls, except for those released to enter " beneficial " employment.
It will be interesting to learn to what extent the raising of the school age will raise the general standard of education and improve the chances of the pupils.