USA > Massachusetts > Norfolk County > Quincy > Inaugural address of the mayor, with the annual report of the officers of the city of Quincy for the year 1912 > Part 22
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Notwithstanding the large attendance at the evening trade courses, the city class in drawing has maintained an attendance but little below that of previous years before the industrial opportunities were offered. A great many young men sought instruction in trades or occupations where no group instruction
21
was offered in industrial courses, and a number of these attended the mechanical drawing class, where every effort was made to make the instruction as practical to the individual as a mutual understanding of needs and resources could bring about. The spirit of the drawing class was most admirable and the school department gladly granted its request for a second term of ten weeks to open in January.
The evening commercial class exceeds by a good percentage that of last year, both in registration, attendance and class of pupils enrolled. This class at its request has also been granted the privilege of a second term.
As the classes which were conducted in dressmaking last year were this year organized as State-aided industrial classes, and as no class was formed in cooking, there were no courses especially for women in the common evening school system.
No feature of school administration in this city has given more satisfaction and promise for the future than the varied work we are now doing in evening courses. The school de- partment in broadening its scope is coming nearer to fulfilling its responsibility for the educational progress of the city than ever before. With the very cosmopolitan population that Quincy now has, it is imperative that every effort be made by public effort to hasten the time when there will be a universal understanding on the part of those who are new to this land, of what American citizenship stands for. We must as a commu- nity spread abroad among these people our language and a knowledge of our institutions. We must let them realize the opportunities that a well-ordered republic offers and show them the path to these opportunities. The civic welfare of this country depends on the universal thoroughness with which this work is done.
HIGH SCHOOL
In June, Mr. James D. Howlett, the head master of the High School, resigned his position to accept a similar position in Medford. Mr. Howlett's resignation was received with regret as he had given the school energetic and intelligent service for the three years he had been in charge.
The position of head master was filled by the appointment
22
of Mr. Ernest L. Collins, who came to us from the sub-master- ship of the Everett High School, and his report will be found appended. It is a pleasure to record that Mr. Collins is main- taining the best tradition of his office and bids fair to give the city a most efficient administration of the school.
As is mentioned in his report, the greatest problem to face the city on the side of the High School administration is the matter of accommodations. The school is already at the point where little opportunity appears for a more extended utilization of its facilities; the entering classes from the grammar schools and the parochial school will undoubtedly increase appreciably each year, bringing to the city the important problem of pro- viding new accommodations as speedily as possible. The greatest problem that the school department has to face is the determination of the method by which future expansion can best be handled. This city is noted for the high ratio of its High School attendance to the school population; the city has been generous also in offering broad manual training, household arts and commercial courses to its young people, all of which tend to keep in school large numbers who would not be attracted by academic work. It is so easy to make a mistake in providing new accommodations for High School pupils that attention and discussion should be given the matter well in advance of the time when action is at last necessary. The report of Mr. Collins, the head master of the school, is given herewith:
MR. ALBERT L. BARBOUR,
Superintendent of Schools:
I herewith submit my report of the work in the High School for the year 1912 together with some plans and recommendations for the future.
The registration this year has been the largest in the history of the school. Below is a comparison of membership for the past three years.
1912
1911
1910
Whole number enrolled,
874
828
770
Whole number at date,
790
779
687
As will always happen, so long as the city continues to prosper, this shows a marked increase in the number of pupils
23
in the school. This increase from year to year has so taxed the accommodations of the school that at the present time we have reached the limit of efficiency of our present equipment. After this year, under the conditions of increase which have obtained for several years past, we can carry on the work according to our present courses of study only by overcrowding rooms and classes and limiting the opportunities of many of the pupils.
It may be wise to explain the condition of limited accom- modations a little more clearly. Nearly two-thirds of the pupils in the school are pursuing either the Commercial or Manual Art's or Household Arts course. In the College Pre- paratory and similar courses it would be possible for one room to meet all the needs of a class, while in the vocational courses above mentioned, from two to four rooms would be required to carry on successfully the work of a class. It will be readily seen that under the conditions of rapid increase of pupils, espe- cially when this increase is largely in the vocational courses, the demand for increased accommodations must be great and has to be met.
The Commercial course of the school is reaching a high degree of efficiency and is fitting boys and girls to go out into the business world to assume positions of responsibility. Of late, there has been an increasing tendency among business men, both of our own city and of Boston, to come to the High Schools for these graduates to use as stenographers, bookkeepers and office assistants of all kinds. In order that this school may more readily meet the demand from business men, it is the intention to keep on file in the Principal's office a complete list of the graduates with their qualifications and such other infor- mation as will enable the employer seeking assistance to get in touch quickly with available persons. The success of this undertaking will depend largely on the care employed by gradu- ates in keeping in touch with the school through the Principal.
In this connection it will be well to mention that there is on file in the head master's office a list of boys and girls who are available for afternoon work in stores, offices or homes.
The matter of regular and punctual attendance needs special emphasis at this time. There are a large number of absences, most of which are for trivial reasons. This works
24
great harm both to the pupil and the school. The work of the teacher usually must be duplicated in the case of each absence in order that the pupil may make up lost work. This alone brings a considerable and needless increase to the labor of the teacher. On the other hand, most of the failures of pupils to get satisfactory returns from the work are due to irregular attendance. For this reason, if for no other, there ought to be the strongest co-operation between the home and the school, in order that the pupil may always, except in the case of sick- ness, be in the school that he may have the benefit of all the instruction offered. Punctuality is a virtue which should be more constantly practiced, and a habit which, if firmly estab- lished, will be of inestimable value in the later life of the boy and girl.
This is an opportunity to speak of the excellent condition in which I found the school when I took charge of it and to ex- press my appreciation of the kindly and helpful spirit which the assistant teachers and pupils have shown toward me. From yourself and the members of the School Committee I have had loyal support and hearty co-operation for which I wish to express to you my sincere gratitude.
Respectfully submitted,
ERNEST L. COLLINS, Head Master.
December 30, 1912.
SCHOOL ACCOMMODATIONS AND FINANCES
The opening of two new school buildings in the north end of the city has relieved the conditions, which were rapidly becoming intolerable, and even so there is but one unoccupied room in the four districts of Wollaston, Montclair, Massachu- setts Fields and Quincy, so that little chance is allowed for future growth before the old condition of overcrowding will again be repeated.
The completion of the new Adams School will come at a time when it will be needed to take care of a section which is growing very rapidly.
The Atherton Hough School, which has been occupied only two years, is already filled and because of the rate of growth
25
shown since the building was opened, provision should be made at once to add the four rooms which were in mind when the original building was planned. This is the only district in the city where there is any congestion at the present time. These new buildings completed and under way, together with the new Quincy school hall, give the city modern equipment of which it may well be proud and which few New England cities can rival.
The school department has changed its system of account- ing to conform with the desires of the State Board of Education and the State Auditor and planned its budget and classified its accounts under new headings. For that reason it will be im- possible to make some comparisons in the financial report which have been of interest in previous reports, but by securing uniformity of accounting it will be possible the more easily to make comparisons hereafter, both with other cities and with our past years. All accounts are now card indexed in the office and an exact copy is retained of each bill paid by the School Committee.
In concluding this report, it is in no perfunctory sense that I express my pleasure at the support and co-operation which has been extended so generally. I realize fully that the success of the important work which we have undertaken this year in the line of industrial education could not have been brought about without the time and effort of the citizens' committees, which formulated the plans, and the support of the school de- partment and of the whole community. The organization of several voluntary associations among the teachers for profes- sional study and improvement is the best testimony that can be offered as to their loyalty and earnestness in the cause of public education. For their co-operation and for the support which the School Committee and the citizens have so freely given, I am sincerely thankful.
Respectfully submitted, ALBERT L. BARBOUR,
Superintendent of School s
26
REPORT OF THE PRINCIPAL OF THE QUINCY INDEPENDENT INDUSTRIAL SCHOOL
MR. ALBERT L. BARBOUR,
Superintendent of Schools:
I submit herewith my first report on the work of the Quincy Independent Industrial School.
The school opened September 3 in Room 5 of the High School building, with a class of fifteen boys from the machinists and joiners' trades of the Fore River Shipbuilding Company. The following week the other class of fifteen boys reported to the school.
The boys and the shop conditions had been carefully studied by the Principal during the month of August to make it possible to open the school on a carefully planned schedule and a suitable course of study.
The education and experience which these boys had ob- tained varied from the fifth grade to a three-year High School course with two years in the apprentice course at the Fore River. This made it necessary to give individual instruction, the method of which I will touch upon later.
The enrollment of the school remained at thirty pupils until early in November, when a pair of boys were admitted from the Boston Gear Works and another pair were admitted from the Fore River.
Late in November arrangements were made to place a pair of boys with the Pneumatic Scale Company, and on Decem- ber 2 a pair were admitted from the Couch Telephone Company.
Distribution of boys to date, January 14, 1913:
Fore River Shipbuilding Company 34
Boston Gear Works. 2
Couch Telephone Company . 3
Pneumatic Scale Company . 2
Total 41
-
27
Statistics as to attendance, truants, failures, etc.
Number enrolled residing in Quincy 31
Number enrolled residing out of Quincy 10
Number of truancies . 1
Number dropped because of failure to profit by work. 1
Average daily attendance to January 1, 1913, 16; per cent daily attendance, 96.8. These statistics you will note cover the first four months of school.
The course of study as outlined for the first year is as follows:
Hours per Week
Shop mathematics
10
Drawing (free hand and instrumental). 10
English . 4
Geography
2
Civics.
4
Physiology and first aid. 1
Total 31
The instruction is individual so far as possible to make the work more effective and to enable each pupil to get just the sort of information that he needs without being dependent upon the progress of others.
In a class of twenty boys it is found necessary to use seven different text books in mathematics, also many typewritten sheets and blue prints. The range of work covered in a single period would be about as follows: Common and decimal frac- tions, board measure, ratio and proportion, square root, men- suration, formulas, simple and compound gearing for lathe and milling machine, simple and compound and differential index- ing for the milling machine, cutting speeds and feeds, solution of right and oblique triangles, gearing, logarithms, graphs, etc. The instruction is so given that it will develop in the pupil's mind a quick and accurate method of solving problems which he is meeting or will meet in the shop.
The instruction gives him the method used to get results, not a method of proving and developing formulas.
28
Y
The drawing is principally freehand, aiming to develop in the pupil an ability to make freehand detail sketches of broken machine parts which in his future experience he is sure to en- counter. The sketches made in school are taken from the work, machine or machine parts which the pupil is working on in the shop. Each sketch is dimensioned and explained. This method serves to develop an idea of proper proportion and forms an excellent English lesson showing up the points in the boy's work which he does not understand, and makes him more observing. It teaches him also to be accurate and neat in the execution of his work.
English is also taught by using technical magazines, public library books, books from school library, and by making sketches on the blackboard and explaining them to the class orally.
Spelling lessons are given by taking the misspelled words from the papers and having the class write the word and give its correct meaning which they look up in the dictionary.
Geography is taught to give the pupils a more thorough knowledge of the physical and industrial surroundings in the United States. The work is started by studying the local surroundings, broadening out to the entire State of Massachu- setts, then the New England States, comparing the advantages or disadvantages of other States with those of Massachusetts.
Civics is taught to give each pupil a good knowledge of the government of the city or town in which he lives. A text book is used as a base of ideas which are to be developed by means of the pupils investigating the various branches of the local government, and comparing the local conditions with those of the surrounding towns and cities. For example, the boys from Rockland, Weymouth, Braintree, Abington, Co- hasset and Boston report on the government conditions of their communities, and the boys from Quincy make their report. The various points are talked over and made clear to all.
First Aid is taught to warn pupils against accidents and show them how to take care of an injury should an accident occur.
FLEXIBLE PROMOTION
On account of the extremely wide range of education and experience which pupils have when they come to us, it would
29
seem advisable to maintain a very flexible method of promotion that will allow each pupil to advance as rapidly as he is capable without any thought of the remainder of the class. This method of promotion would enable the good, bright, energetic boy to complete the three years' course in much less time; this condition would place him in the shop full time, with full credit from the school and the same degree of supervision by the school as the boys in the school would receive. It is the inten- tion of the school to watch over its pupils for eight years; three years in the school and five years in the shop.
The work in the shop is arranged so as to give the boy the best experience. The course of training in the Fore River Shipbuilding Company would be about as follows:
Machine Shop: Office work, tool room, bolt-cutting ma- chine, hand milling machine, key seater, cold and hand saws, erecting, outside work, drill work, engine lathe, planer, slotter and shaper, boring mill, milling machine.
Wood Shop: Glue room, mill work, bench work, outside shop work, drawing room, mill work, laying out work, special form work.
The time allotted for each branch depends somewhat upon its importance; that is, on the more important machines a pupil would get about three months' actual shop experience and three months of relative work in the school. On the less im- portant machines the actual shop experience would be about six weeks with six weeks of relative work in the school.
Each boy will have good experience on the most important machines and a general all-round experience on the others. In the other shops a definite course has not yet been mapped out, but the boys have been given the best of experience. The shop experience the boys have received in the past two months follows:
BOSTON GEAR WORKS. Machines: Speed lathe, hand mill- ing machine, gear hobbing machine, bench lathe, bench work.
PNEUMATIC SCALE COMPANY. Bench work, speed lathe, screw machine.
COUCH TELEPHONE COMPANY. Bench work, bench lathe, forming press, drill press.
30
The school is running at its limited capacity and applica- tions are continually coming in. There are several opportuni- ties to place the boys in the shop, but there is no place to take care of them in the school. It is hoped by next September that a building will be at our disposal to take care of the incoming class of machinists and joiners, and another class embracing two more trades.
We hope to have an enrollment of about eighty which, of course, will require more room and more teachers.
Respectfully submitted,
J. GOULD SPOFFORD, Principal.
December 30, 1912
STATISTICS
-
34
ADMINISTRATION
Barbour, Albert L.
$2,760.38
Hallowell, Lucy M.
650.00
Johnson, Charles H .
805.05
American School Board Journal
5.50
Babb, Edward E., & Co
5.18
Bay State Paper Company
15.41
Brown-Howland Company .
26.50
Bureau of Municipal Research.
3.00
Green, Fred F ..
29.00
Greenough, W. A., & Co.
3.00
Library Bureau .
82.97
Macmillan Co., The.
4.00
New England Tel. and Tel. Co
341.19
Patterson, William
10.00
Penniman, S., & Son. .
1.00
Prescott, George W., Publishing Co
133.00
Quincy Electric Light and Power Co.
22.63
Quincy Real Estate Trust.
360.00
Quincy Telegram .
16.75
Spargo Print.
129.85
Teachers' College
1.00
Town, Clara H.
1.00
University of Chicago Press
1.35
United States Post Office.
59.28
Ward, Samuel, Co
7.50
Willard School Press, The .
3.45
Yawman & Erbe Manufacturing Co ....
41.11
Total
$5,519 10
INSTRUCTION -SALARIES HIGH SCHOOL
Ernest L. Collins .
$880.00
James D. Howlett.
1,370.00
Edgar H. Parkinson
540.00
Robert S. Schoonmaker
870.00
Arthur Ray
1,620.00
Frank L. Mansur
940.00
Ivan G. Smith
1,240.00
35
Isaac Goddard
$1,100.00
John F. Roache.
900.00
Harold L. Fenner
480.00
Raymond E. Fenner
360.00
Arthur E. Staff.
540.00
Robert J. Streeter.
326.25
Frank V. Gordon .
280.00
Emden F. Van Amburg
90.00
Clara E. Thompson
897.00
H. Anna Kennedy
900.00
Norma C. Lowe
900.00
Grace A. Howe
900.00
Alice A. Todd .
900.00
Marie C. Bass.
540.00
Robert F. Aschenbach
320.00
Evaline A. Salsman
895.50
Mary G. Brown
900.00
Marjorie Fay .
900.00
Louisa R. Holt.
895.50
Harriet B. Whitaker
731.88
Bertha M. Kirmayer.
740.00
Frances M. Whitcomb
740.00
Edith A. Grant. 880.00
Elizabeth M. Douglas 870.00
Elizabeth G. Crane.
934.00
Elizabeth I. O'Neill .
840.00
Victoria M. H. Zeller
626.25
Edith L. Abbott.
900.00
A. Louisa Sanders
220.00
Mary N. Whitcomb.
280.00
Dora S. White.
180.00
Elfrida V. Callister
135.00
Jennie F. Robinson .
36.00
Juliette C. Bostwick
360.00
Luna E. Bigelow .
15.00
Ellen Stevenson 3.00
Margaret A. Lennon, Clerk
449.00
.
.
.
Total
$29,424.38
36
ADAMS SCHOOL
Arthur S. Townsend . $770.00
Mary L. Egan.
750.00
Eliza C. Sheahan. 328.25
Beatrice H. Rothwell 650.00
Jennie F. Griffin.
650.00
Bessie E. Roberts.
650.00
Elizabeth W. Ross
.
650.00
Lucy B. Page
650.00
Eliza F. Dolan
650.00
Ruth Kemp.
452.50
Euphrasia Hernan
650.00
Mabel D. Reardon.
55.40
Total
$6,906.15
ATHERTON HOUGH SCHOOL
James S. Perkins
$310.00
Elizabeth A. Garrity
748.13
M. Alice Kennedy .
520.00
Gertrude M. Burke 570.00
Margaret C. Carey
562.50
Elizabeth M. Powers
207.00
Anna D. Larkin .
144.00
Alice W. Chaplin
16.80
Total
$3,078.43
CODDINGTON SCHOOL
James S. Perkins .
$1,240.00
Jennie N. Whitcher 750.00
S. Elizabeth Pope. 200.00
Mercedes F. O'Brien 465.00
Ethel F. Marsh . 107.00
Mary D: Bragdon .
570.00
Elizabeth H. Litchfield.
520.00
Gladys L. Flieger.
620.00
Katherine F. Larkin
. 650.00
.
37
Bella H. Murray
$620.00
Mary E. Costello.
650.00
Bertha F. Estes
390.00
Mary A. Geary
650.00
Grace Elcock .
570.00
Christina McPherson
650.00
E. Gertrude Drislain
196.50
Alice W. Chaplin
16.80
Total .
$8,865.30
CRANCH SCHOOL
Arthur S. Townsend.
$770.00
Carrie A. Crane.
736.88
Nellie E. March.
650.00
Elsie E. Turner .
650.00
Helen F. Burke.
570.00
Annie C. Healy
650.00
Marie Fegan
650.00
Alice M. Igo 345.00
Annie R. Birnie .
505.00
Elsie B. Martin .
650.00
Ruth M. Eldridge
141.00
Alice W. Chaplin
33.60
M. Irene Rolley
33.00
Total
$6,384.48
GRIDLEY BRYANT SCHOOL
Austin W. Green
$1,280.00
Margaret E. Sweeney
720.00
Lucy L. Hennigar
537.50
Emma G. Carleton
650.00
Annie E. Burns
650.00
Mary A. Coyle .
620.00
M. Frances Talbot
650.00
648.38
Augusta E. Dell.
.
38
Catherine C. McGovern
$650.00
Lurena M. Ronney. 90.00
Total .
$6,495.88
JOHN HANCOCK SCHOOL
H. Forrest Wilson $795.00
Marion S. Strange
640.00
Alice D. King .
570.00
Mary C. Parker
650.00
Helen M. West.
650.00
May Kapples . 650.00
Mary E. Burns
650.00
Isabelle Moir
648.38
Ellen McNealy
648.38
Mary P. Underwood.
650.00
Helen M. King.
68.20
Total
$6,619.96
LINCOLN SCHOOL
H. Forrest Wilson $795.00
Alice T. Clark.
750.00
Aliene B. Wright. 516.25
Mary G. Anderson
570.00
Esther J. Viden . 557.63
Minnie E. Donovan
650.00
Ruth C. Murray
570.00
Elizabeth Sullivan
650.00
Grace M. Lamb.
620.00
A. Gertrude Reardon 650.00
Olive V. Bicknell 648.38
Ruth Gurdy 520.00
Helen M. King
115.60
E. Gertrude Drislain
209.00
M. Irene Rolley
143.00
Helen C. Sweet.
81.00
Frances J. Elcock. 69.88
.
39
$33.00
Ruth M. Eldridge
2.40
Alice W. Chaplin
Total
$8,151.14
MASSACHUSETTS FIELDS SCHOOL
David H. Goodspeed .
750.00
Ruth A. Taylor.
620.00
Annie L. Blacklock .
650.00
Margaret I. Shirley
650.00
Cassandana Thayer
520.00
Grace D. Fisher
650.00
Lillian Waterhouse
650.00
Grace M. Spinney
650.00
Florence C. Gammons
650.00
Annie M. Bennett
648.38
Martha E. Jenkins
133.00
Alice M. Sheehy
72.00
Ellen C. Shyne
72.00
Ethel F. Marsh .
91.20
Elsie M. Downing
45.00
Eva V. Adelson
$7,621.58
Total
MONTCLAIR SCHOOL
Austin W. Greene
280.00
R. Grace Warshaw
220.00
Lydia B. Randall
97.50
Lucy L. Hennigar
.
Alice M. Sheehy
220.00
Ruth S. Ferguson
250.00
Alice M. Igo.
260.00
Bertha F. Estes
200.00
Elizabeth M. Powers
144.00
Velma A. Henderson.
.
Total.
$2,115.25
.
.
$320.00
123.75
$770.00
-
40
QUINCY SCHOOL
Charles Sampson
$1,600.00
Laura B. Tolman
750.00
Mabel L. Teel
281.20
Helen J. Hunt.
520.00
C. Gertrude Eddy
650.00
Ethel Vogler
650.00
Mabel E. Lovejoy
570.00
Mary A. Keefe.
650.00
Margaret M. DeAvellar
650.00
Josephine Kelley
650.00
Florence M. Howe
648.90
Ellen D. Granahan
650.00
Jennie W. Seaver .
518.75
Ethel R. Humphrey
518.75
A. Grace Emery
208.60
Grace E. Smith
130.20
Alice M. Sheehy
77.00
E. Gertrude Drislain
37.60
Total .
$9,761.00
WASHINGTON SCHOOL
Thomas B. Pollard .
$1,600.00
Elizabeth G. Anderson 720.00
Myra E. Otis.
60.00
Nellie C. Lamphear
450.00
Mary Marden .
195.00
Alice S. Hatch .
650.00
Eugenia A. McColl.
520.00
Anna J. Lang.
650.00
Mary F. Sampson
648.90
H. Frances Cannon
650.00
Ida F. Humphrey 648.38
Mary G. Murray .
620.00
Sarah A. Malone.
650.00
Charlotte F. Donovan
650.00
Mabel D. Reardon.
153.40
41
Elsie M. Downing
$33.00
Edythe Pratt.
4.40
Alice W. Chaplin .
2.40
Total .
$8,905.48
WILLARD SCHOOL
Henry L. Upton
$1,530.00
Lucy H. Atwood.
750.00
Harold Dempsey .
360.00
Helen Dempsey .
200.00
Lydia B. Randall. .
300.00
Katherine M. Coughlan
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