23 JUNE 1923, Page 9

In addition to these periodic Imperial Education Conferences, the last

of which was held in 1919, two equally important stimuli to Empire co-operation in educational matters arc the interchange of teachers, with which the name of the League of the Empire is so honourably associated, and the frequent visits to this country of parties of teachers from overseas, largely through the efforts of Major F. J. Ney, of Winnipeg. As regards the interchange of teachers, there seems to be a very definite need for the display of a little more imagina- tion on the part of our legislators. Everyone is agreed as to the vital importance to the Empire of enabling British teachers to spend some years in the Dominions and of letting oversea teachers come to work among us. Yet the payment of pensions to teachers, " in respect of one or more years of service in schools overseas," is not provided for in the provisions of the School Teachers' (Superannuation) Act, 1918. Therefore any teacher who is enterprising enough to take up such service overseas forfeits the right to a pension from the Home Govern- ment whilst teaching outside Great Britain. Surely this is a matter for the Imperial Conference to take up.