The
Grammar Schools Act 1860 was passed by
QueenslandQueensland is a state of Australia that occupies the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory to the west, South Australia to the south-west and New South Wales to the south. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
's first parliament in 1860 and allowed for the establishment of a grammar school in any town where
£The pound was the currency of Australia until 1966. It was subdivided into 20 shillings, each of 12 pence.- Earlier Australian currencies :The history of currency in Australia could be said to begin in 1800, when Governor King issued a proclamation setting the value of a variety of foreign coins in...
1000 could be raised locally. Between the years 1863 and 1892, ten
grammar schoolA grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and some other English-speaking countries, originally schools teaching classical languages but more recently academically-oriented types of secondary school.The original purpose of...
s were opened under the auspices of the Act. The first of these was
Ipswich Grammar SchoolIpswich Grammar School is an independent, non-denominational, day and boarding school for boys, located in Ipswich, a city situated on the Bremer River in South East Queensland, Australia....
, which opened in 1863.
The Grammar Schools Act was the fourth bill of first
parliament of QueenslandThe Parliament of Queensland is the legislature of Queensland, Australia. According to the state's constitution, the Parliament consists of the Queen and the Legislative Assembly. It is the only unicameral state parliament in the country, the upper chamber, the Legislative Council, having been...
. Along with the
Primary Schools Act (Qld) 1860, it aimed to bring
QueenslandQueensland is a state of Australia that occupies the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory to the west, South Australia to the south-west and New South Wales to the south. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
under one general and comprehensive education system without prejudice.
In the early years of Australian education, denominational schools (particularly Anglican schools) had a large influence.
The
Grammar Schools Act 1860 was passed by
QueenslandQueensland is a state of Australia that occupies the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory to the west, South Australia to the south-west and New South Wales to the south. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
's first parliament in 1860 and allowed for the establishment of a grammar school in any town where
£The pound was the currency of Australia until 1966. It was subdivided into 20 shillings, each of 12 pence.- Earlier Australian currencies :The history of currency in Australia could be said to begin in 1800, when Governor King issued a proclamation setting the value of a variety of foreign coins in...
1000 could be raised locally. Between the years 1863 and 1892, ten
grammar schoolA grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and some other English-speaking countries, originally schools teaching classical languages but more recently academically-oriented types of secondary school.The original purpose of...
s were opened under the auspices of the Act. The first of these was
Ipswich Grammar SchoolIpswich Grammar School is an independent, non-denominational, day and boarding school for boys, located in Ipswich, a city situated on the Bremer River in South East Queensland, Australia....
, which opened in 1863.
History of the Act
The Grammar Schools Act was the fourth bill of first
parliament of QueenslandThe Parliament of Queensland is the legislature of Queensland, Australia. According to the state's constitution, the Parliament consists of the Queen and the Legislative Assembly. It is the only unicameral state parliament in the country, the upper chamber, the Legislative Council, having been...
. Along with the
Primary Schools Act (Qld) 1860, it aimed to bring
QueenslandQueensland is a state of Australia that occupies the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory to the west, South Australia to the south-west and New South Wales to the south. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
under one general and comprehensive education system without prejudice.
In the early years of Australian education, denominational schools (particularly Anglican schools) had a large influence. These schools were criticised over a number of decades for proliferating a social divide, and providing poor and biased education. By the time of the first
parliament of QueenslandThe Parliament of Queensland is the legislature of Queensland, Australia. According to the state's constitution, the Parliament consists of the Queen and the Legislative Assembly. It is the only unicameral state parliament in the country, the upper chamber, the Legislative Council, having been...
in 1860, there was a general feeling that any system of education established in
QueenslandQueensland is a state of Australia that occupies the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory to the west, South Australia to the south-west and New South Wales to the south. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
should be free of
denominationalismDenominationalism is the division of one religion into separate groups, sects, schools of thought or denominations.-Christianity:Christianity can be divided into denominational families and individual denominations ....
.
The Act received little opposition in either House of
ParliamentThe Parliament of Queensland is the legislature of Queensland, Australia. According to the state's constitution, the Parliament consists of the Queen and the Legislative Assembly. It is the only unicameral state parliament in the country, the upper chamber, the Legislative Council, having been...
– revealing its popularity. It found the approval of the public in general, and even amongst sections of the Anglican community. The Act marked a departure from the education systems in place in
VictoriaVictoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales to the north, South Australia to the west, and Tasmania to the south, across the Bass Strait. Victoria is the most densely populated state, with over 70% of...
and
New South WalesNew South Wales is Australia's most populous state, located in the south-east of the country, north of Victoria, south of Queensland and east of South Australia...
, where schools were generally tied up with respective religious bodies or (in the case of schools such as
Sydney Grammar SchoolSydney Grammar School is an independent, non-denominational, selective, day school for boys, located in Darlinghurst, Edgecliff and St Ives, all suburbs of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia....
) being provided massive, ineffective endowments, with little effort required from the community.
The main points of the Act are summarised below. Basically, the Act allowed for the establishment of a grammar school in any town where
£The pound was the currency of Australia until 1966. It was subdivided into 20 shillings, each of 12 pence.- Earlier Australian currencies :The history of currency in Australia could be said to begin in 1800, when Governor King issued a proclamation setting the value of a variety of foreign coins in...
1000 could be raised locally. The Queensland Government then matched that figure. The Schools were to be administered by a seven member Board of Trustees, of which four members were appointed by the Governor. The Act also made provision for public scholarships for students to attend university in
BritainThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was the formal name and the state form of the United Kingdom from 1 January 1801 until 12 April 1927...
or the southern states of
AustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the continental mainland , the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans...
.
The act was repealed in 1975 and replaced with the Grammar Schools Act 1975.
Schools opened under the Act
There were ten grammar schools opened under the Act – eight of which remain open today. In chronological order, they were:
- Ipswich Grammar School
Ipswich Grammar School is an independent, non-denominational, day and boarding school for boys, located in Ipswich, a city situated on the Bremer River in South East Queensland, Australia....
(1863)
- Brisbane Grammar School
Brisbane Grammar School , is an independent, non-denominational, day and boarding school for boys, located in Spring Hill, an inner suburb of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia...
(1868)
- Toowoomba Grammar School
Toowoomba Grammar School is an independent, non-denominational, day and boarding grammar school for boys, in Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia....
(1875)
- Brisbane Girls Grammar School
Brisbane Girls' Grammar School, is an independent, secular, day school for girls, located in Spring Hill, an inner suburb of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia....
(1875)
- Rockhampton Grammar School
The Rockhampton Grammar School is an independent, co-educational, non-denominational, day and boarding school located in Rockhampton, Queensland, Australia....
(1881)
- Maryborough Grammar School (1881)
- Maryborough Girls Grammar School (1883)
- Townsville Grammar School
Townsville Grammar School is an independent, co-educational, day, International Baccalaureate and boarding school, located in Townsville, Queensland, Australia....
(1888)
- Ipswich Girls Grammar School (1892)
- Rockhampton Girls Grammar School (1892)
When it opened in 1881,
Rockhampton Grammar SchoolThe Rockhampton Grammar School is an independent, co-educational, non-denominational, day and boarding school located in Rockhampton, Queensland, Australia....
was co-educational. Only four years later, the Board of Trustees decided to exclude females from the School, leading to the construction of Rockhampton Girls Grammar School. The latter opened on 11 March, 1892 – one day after the official opening of Ipswich Girls Grammar School. (Females were readmitted to
Rockhampton Grammar SchoolThe Rockhampton Grammar School is an independent, co-educational, non-denominational, day and boarding school located in Rockhampton, Queensland, Australia....
in 1977 after a 92-year absence).
In 1936, hit hard by the effects of the
Great DepressionThe Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
, the Maryborough Grammar School and Maryborough Girls Grammar School were forced to close. They were subsequently taken over by the Department of Education, Queensland Government, and renamed the Maryborough State High and Intermediate School for Boys and Maryborough State High and Intermediate School for Girls. In 1974, these schools merged to become the
Maryborough State High SchoolMaryborough State High School is a public high school located in Maryborough, Queensland. The school is run by the Queensland State Government, and is split on either side of Kent Street. The school colors are blue and brown...
.
Main Points of the Act
The main aspects of the Act were as follows:
- That where £
The pound was the currency of Australia until 1966. It was subdivided into 20 shillings, each of 12 pence.- Earlier Australian currencies :The history of currency in Australia could be said to begin in 1800, when Governor King issued a proclamation setting the value of a variety of foreign coins in...
1000 was raised by donation or subscription in any district for the purpose of establishing a Grammar School, then the Governor (with the advice of the Executive Council), if satisfied with the proposed School, paid to the Trustees "a sum not exceeding the amount raised".
- That when fees to the amount of £
The pound was the currency of Australia until 1966. It was subdivided into 20 shillings, each of 12 pence.- Earlier Australian currencies :The history of currency in Australia could be said to begin in 1800, when Governor King issued a proclamation setting the value of a variety of foreign coins in...
250 per annum were promised for a period of not less than three years, the Governor (with the advice of the Executive Council) shall pay out of the general revenue of the Colony £The pound was the currency of Australia until 1966. It was subdivided into 20 shillings, each of 12 pence.- Earlier Australian currencies :The history of currency in Australia could be said to begin in 1800, when Governor King issued a proclamation setting the value of a variety of foreign coins in...
500 to the credit of the Trustees, towards the upkeep of the School.
- A body of seven persons, to be called the Trustees of the School, were to be elected. Four of those seven were to be nominated by the Governor (with the advice of the Executive Council), whilst the other three were to be elected by vote of subscribers of over £
The pound was the currency of Australia until 1966. It was subdivided into 20 shillings, each of 12 pence.- Earlier Australian currencies :The history of currency in Australia could be said to begin in 1800, when Governor King issued a proclamation setting the value of a variety of foreign coins in...
5 to the funds of the School.
- The Governor (with the advice of the Executive Council) was permitted to, in any one year, reserve 10% of the amount payable to a School to provide for scholarships to any British
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
or Australian universityA university is an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees in a variety of subjects. A university provides both undergraduate education and postgraduate education...
. Such scholarships were awarded after public competitive examinations.