§ MR. J. WARDI beg to ask the President of the Board of Education whether he has received a petition from the parents and parishioners of Oldbury against the dismissal of Mrs. Hewitt, head mistress of the local national school whether he can give the grounds for the termination of her engagement; and whether his Department is satisfied that the reasons given justify the action of the managers.
§ THE PRESIDENT OF THE BOARD OF EDUCATION (Mr. MCKENNA,) Monmouthshire, N.Yes, Sir, I have received the petition referred to. The teacher's engagement was terminated in accordance with a regulation made by the local education authority, requiring 76 female teachers to resign their appointments on marriage. The Board's jurisdiction is confined to determining whether the marriage of a female teacher does or does not constitute an educational ground for dismissal, and I am bound to hold that it is an educational ground.