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 1919 > Part 17
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The results attained in a little over two months have been most promising.
At the outset it was decided to approach the problem in three directions, two of them hitherto untried in this city: - through the evening classes; through factory classes; and through mothers' classes which would reach directly into the home.
Evening classes were opened as usual in the Washington and Willard schools. The opening enrollment was very small but by means of persistent publicity, personal solicitation and intelligent instruction, the attendance has increased steadily since opening, an unusual condition compared with the experience of former years. Classes will be opened also the first week of the new year in the Lincoln building to reach a group there which appears to be interested.
Factory classes were opened in November with the co-operation of the Fore River Company in the service building of that concern and are conducted every afternoon in the week at the close of work. These classes are graded carefully so as to provide not only for the man who understands no English at all but also for those who understand English fairly well but need preparation for their second naturalization papers. These classes should mean much not only for the making of Americans but for industrial efficiency.
The mothers' classes, at this writing seven in number with more in prospect, have been gathered together by the supervisor's personal solicitation and by neighborhood work. They include three different nationalities and meet one or two afternoons each week in the school buildings in their neighborhood.
These different classes have been supplemented by public meetings in various parts of the city; entertainments for the
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several nationalities and an earnest effort to make the foreigner feel that the city is genuinely anxious that he make this country his own.
In every way the School Committee and community may feel satisfied with what has already been accomplished and with the promise that the future holds out.
STATE SCHOOL LEGISLATION
These are times when educational history is making rapidly in proportion as the need and objects of universal education obtain wider attention. Each year sees the educational departments of the state and nation formulate a more ambitious programme than the year before and each year sees progress secured more and more ungrudgingly.
The past year has witnessed a wide variety of legislation pro- posed for action in the State Legislature and although a great deal that was very essential failed of passage, the amount passed has been noteworthy for its importance and its broad scope. It is worth while to mention briefly what some of this legislation is and what it means to this city.
First of all, the Massachusetts School Fund Law provides for the state-wide distribution of funds on a basis which puts a premium on adequate professional preparation for teachers and which establishes a minimum wage for communities to pay.
This distribution of the fund brings to the city treasury of Quincy for the current year over $40,000.
Its effects in general are already to be seen in the wide-spread movement to increase teachers' salaries by at least the amount received by the community from this fund and usually a little more. Its state-wide effect will be to equalize educational oppor- tunity by raising the standard of teacher-preparation.
Another constructive piece of legislation is Chapter 277.
The important part of this law is as follows:
"SECTION 1. The school committee of each city and town shall, within one year after the passage of this act, and annually thereafter, ascertain, under regulations prescribed by the board of education and the director of
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the commission on mental diseases, the number of children three years or more retarded in mental development who are in attendance upon the public schools of its city or town, or who are of school age and reside therein.
SECTION 2. At the beginning of the school year of nine- teen hundred and twenty, the school committee of each city and town in which there are ten or more children three years or more so retarded shall establish special classes to give such children instruction adapted to their mental attainments, under regulations prescribed by the board of education."
The immediate result of this law will be the formation of classes for retarded children. In a city of our size, there should be no difficulty in organizing several classes of children who will be benefited by education specially adapted to their mental capacity, and a vast amount of good should result therefrom.
Indirectly the benefit arising from a constant scrutiny of the pupil body to sift out pupils needing this type of instruction will result in the general good. The fact that this law goes into effect immediately calls our attention to our great need of proper accom .- modations in which to house the classes.
Chapter 229, an Act relative to Sight Saving Classes for Children, is another law in the interest of defective children. Its important sentences are as follows:
"There may be expended annually from the treasury of the commonwealth, under the direction of the Massachu- setts commission for the blind, the sum of ten thousand dollars, for the purpose of providing sight-saving classes ยท for children certified by any reputable oculist as fit sub- jects for instruction therein. The said classes may be organized and conducted, with the approval of said com- mission, by local school committees."
The School Committee has already accepted the provisions of this Act, has received $750 as the State's contribution for the first year and is awaiting from the State Commission for the Blind the formation of a group of pupils for this work.
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The great value of such a class as this to the children who are members of it is easily apparent.
Of wide importance to education was the passage of the Con- tinuation School Bill. Chapter 311, which abridged reads as follows:
"SECTION 1. (1) Every city and town in which, during a calendar year ending December thirty-first, two hundred or more minors under sixteen years of age are regularly employed not less than six hours per day by authority of employment certificates or home permits, shall, through its school committee, local board of trustees for vocational education, or both, establish at the beginning of the next school year and maintain continuation schools or courses of instruction for the education of such minors under six- teen years of age who are regularly employed not less than six hours per day at home or elsewhere within the city or town, and for such others as may be required to attend as provided in section three.
(2) When a city or town shall have established the said schools or courses, it shall require the attendance thereat of every minor under sixteen years of age who is engaged within the limits of the city or town in regular employment or business under the authority of an employ- ment certificate, or in profitable employment at home under the authority of a home permit: provided, however, that upon application of the parent or guardian of the minor involved, instruction in the regular schools shall be accepted as instruction equivalent to that provided for by this act.
(3) The required attendance at said schools or courses . shall be at the rate of not less than four hours per week for minors regularly employed not less than six hours per day at home or elsewhere, and at the rate of not less than twenty hours a week for minors who have secured employ- ment certificates, and who are temporarily out of regular employment or business, provided the school or course is in session twenty hours a week, and shall be between the hours of eight o'clock in the morning and five o'clock in the
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afternoon of any working day or days except Saturday.
(5) The time spent by a minor in a continuation school or course of instruction shall be reckoned as a part of the time or number of hours minors are permitted by law to work.
SECTION 2. Cities and towns maintaining such con- tinuation schools or courses of instruction as are approved by the board of education as to organization, control, situation, equipment, courses of study, qualifications of teachers, methods of instruction, conditions of admission, employment of pupils and expenditures of money, shall receive reimbursement from the treasury of the Common- wealth to an amount equal to one half the total sum raised by local taxation and expended for the maintenance of such schools or courses of instruction.
SECTION 3. (1) Any minor under sixteen years of age who has been regularly employed in a city or town other than that of his residence, and who is temporarily un- employed, may be required, under conditions approved by the board of education, to attend such a continuation school or such courses of instruction in the city or town of his residence.
SECTION 5. The superintendent of schools having jurisdiction, or a person authorized by him in writing, may revoke the employment certificate or the home permit of any minor who fails to attend the said schools or courses of instruction when so required by the provisions of this act."
Just what the effect of this Bill is going to be on the City of Quincy is not yet clear. Quincy has hundreds of boys and girls between the ages of 14 and 16 with employment certificates or home permits. Very few of the industries of Quincy, however, employ boys and girls under 16 years of age. As a result, there are apparently at the present time only a few more than 200 such minors employed within the city limits. Those who are employed in the city are widely scattered as to place and nature of employ- ment.
The result will be presumably the opening of two or three
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rooms in different sections of the city for the carrying on of this type of education.
Here again, we are confronted by an absolute lack of accommo- dations.
One other change in Section 9, Chapter 42, alters the law to the effect that domestic science hereafter becomes a part of the required grammar school curriculum for girls. This simply makes mandatory what many communities are already doing voluntarily and we shall find it necessary to add cooking to our elementary school course as soon as the needed accommodations are available.
Successful school administration depends to a very considerable extent on adequate accommodations and the problem of securing . these accommodations is frequently a most difficult one for a grow- ing community.
Where there is plenty of room for expansion, the inauguration of progressive school activities becomes usually a simple matter. On the other hand this same progress is most difficult when hamp- ered by lack of school rooms.
Not many people realize how rapidly the school population of this city is now increasing. For instance in December of the present school year, the average school membership was nearly 600 greater than in 1919, the equivalent of more than 15 rooms. A study of the property table in the appendix of this report will show only three buildings in the city with unoccupied school rooms, while in many buildings there are more teachers employed than there are rooms.
In a few months time the new school in Ward II will afford a much needed relief. There are other sections of the city, however, where no relief is in sight. Houghs Neck, Quincy Center, South and West Quincy and Ward V have all reached the point where ingenuity is required to house the pupils and where school work is suffering because of increased numbers. One after the other, these sections must be taken under consideration and provided with additional school rooms.
SCHOOL FINANCES
The cost of education increases regularly year by year very much as the cost of all else mounts. Thus far the percentage of
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increase has nowhere near approximated the percentage of in- crease in costs of other lines of industry. All materials used in education have advanced and teachers' salaries have also increased at frequent intervals. The latest increase in salaries by the School Committee to take effect with the new school year, while the largest in amount of any yet made by this city, merely serves to keep our salary level in line with other cities of the state.
CHILD WELFARE WORK
Increasing attention has been paid to the matter of Child Welfare, and the work of the dentist and the nurses has been better systematized than before. Beside our arrangements with the local hospital and the various dispensaries of Boston for treat- ment of children needing medical and surgical attention and who might not otherwise be provided for, a great deal has been done by local practitioners gratuitously for cases that could not be taken to Boston readily.
Aided by charts provided by the U. S. Government, beginning in September the pupils of the grades have had their weights and heights recorded and special attention has been paid to the pupils who appeared below the norm for their age.
In several schools, arrangements have been made to sell milk at recess time and the demand for this form of lunch has been very large. Entirely aside from providing a nutritious lunch, this has had the indirect and important effect of interesting the children in the right kinds of food for proper nutrition and stressing the importance of a well nourished body.
The report of the school nurses gives a summary of the amount and range of work done by this department.
The amount of work done by the school dentist has been largely increased as a result of systemization and at the present time twenty patients a day are being cared for.
The local chapter of the Red Cross has just notified the Com- mittee that for the next year it will furnish an additional school dentist and dental nurse and provide the necessary equipment for the same and also pay the salary of an additional school nurse. This will be a welcome increase to the service that we are able to give and will be productive of an immense amount of good.
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The work which for a year or more past has been done in the direction of remedying speech defects has been interrupted tempo- rarily because of the resignation of the teacher who was carrying it on. We hope in the near future that we may be able to resume this work which had already shown its value.
SCHOOL WORK
The work of the schools for the last 12 months has had no serious interruptions because of fuel shortages or epidemics as in other recent years and has profited accordingly.
An unusually large number of resignations have taken place in the teaching corps, however, due to various causes and a corre- sponding number of new teachers have been introduced into our system.
In spite of the many changes and the congested conditions under which work in many instances is carried on, steady progress has been made in the direction of putting the schools on a better social basis and allying the instruction with the currents of everyday life. Too much credit for this work cannot be given to the two super- visors, Miss Wesley and Miss Dellicker, who now assist me in the work of supervision and whose province in the system is really that of helping teachers.
It goes without saying that the Superintendent of Schools with the many departments of the school system to direct can give but little time to the actual work of class room supervision. The masters of the various districts with a large amount of administra- tive work are also limited though not to so great a degree.
The supervisors, however, with no administrative duties to hamper them can give every hour of the day to the duty of helping the individual teachers both by precept and by example and for all teachers who will accept their aid they are most valuable helpers. The young teachers direct from Normal Schools, the teachers longer from school but not yet sure of their strength or of the correctness of their methods and the older teachers of proved strength are all able to profit by the modern viewpoint and the unifying directions which the supervisor is able to give and does give in full measure. The result of their influence has been plainly apparent to me in the school room visiting that I am able to do.
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A desire to make some effort to evaluate the result of a teacher's work and at the same time to recompense the progressive teacher for time and effort spent in advance professional preparation led to the adoption by the School Committee of a Rating and Pro- motion Plan which has already been printed in leaflet form.
Both the rating card and the plan for promotional increases have been based on the best tested theory and most approved practice. They were discussed with a committee of teachers before adoption as well as with the State authorities and they represent a sincere attempt to place a proper estimate on the analyzed characteristics of a teacher's work and to reward in an adequate financial way the teacher who is evidently a studious member of her profession for the time and money expended on her professional development.
Naturally the system has been variously received by the teachers. It is needless to say, however, that there has been little criticism or objection to the plan on the part of teachers who are earnest students of educational problems and who are correspondingly efficient.
The promotional plan of salary increases provided for a possible increase of $300 above the regular maximum salary on the basis of 90 college hours advanced work for each $75, this advanced work to meet the approval of the Superintendent and two-thirds of it at least to be of a professional nature.
The promptness with which a considerable number of teachers are proceeding to take advantage of the provisions of this rule should guarantee its success.
HIGH SCHOOL
The growth of the High School in numbers during the year has been most pronounced. Because it has now outgrown its building, the school was divided into two platoons in September, the Fresh- man class coming in the afternoon at 1:15 and remaining till 4:45. This plan will be continued until new accommodations have been provided.
Notwithstanding the division of the school into groups meeting at different times, the spirit and the work of the school as well as the efficiency of the teaching corps was never better.
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It has been possible to increase the number of men teachers in the school and the number should be increased still more as oppor- tunity offers.
The report of the Head Master, Mr. Collins, speaks of the work of the school in greater detail.
MR. A. L. BARBOUR,
Superintendent of Schools.
Herewith I hand you my annual report of progress in the High School.
The comparative figures given below will show that the return to school on the part of large numbers of pupils has begun and we may expect to see hereafter rapid increases in membership. In- deed, I should make note of the fact that the following figures will be increased by the entrance of 200 more pupils in February.
1919
1918
1917
Whole number enrolled,
1112
1004
1100
Whole number at date
1023
930
1018
Our increase in numbers is only a part of a large movement all over the country. Colleges and schools are full to the doors. The value of higher education is more clearly seen than ever before and financial prosperity is allowing more young people to have the advantages of such education. This means that we shall have boys and girls thronging to us and we have no room for them.
Present and prospective numbers forced us because of lack of room to conduct the school with two sessions during the day in- stead of one; the upper classes coming in the morning and the entering classes in the afternoon. On the whole, this scheme does not present so many difficulties as might be expected. The ad- ministration becomes much more complicated, especially when associated with semi-annual promotions which reached into the school during the past year and the most economical use of teachers' time is perhaps not possible. Moreover, there has been a greater percent of loss from the entering class than usual, but this fact may be due to economic conditions rather than to the hours of the session. The two session arrangement, on the other hand brings
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about a continuous use of the building throughout the day and allows the pupils to have a greater range of subjects and more flexibility in the hours of attendance. It is not the best arrange- ment when everything is considered, however, and should be regarded only as a makeshift.
We have been able this year, because the pupils were attending in two sessions, to use one of the large rooms for the library. This room has been made attractive and the proper atmosphere for such a place has been secured. The library had proved its worth and now it is possible to increase its efficiency greatly. At this time I wish to commend the spirit of co-operation shown by the Public Library of the city. The facilities of this library are placed freely at our disposal and classes are given instruction and information regarding its resources by the authorities in charge. Every possible effort has been made to help us in our work of getting before our boys and girls the resources of books and enabling them to find these resources for themselves. We should also acknowl- edge with gratitude the gift from the Public Library of a set of Encyclopedia Brittanica and Grangers Index to Poetry and Recitations.
Our courses in the theory of music have begun to produce tangible results. At the annual school concert last spring a considerable part of the program consisted of original compositions of pupils in these courses. It will not be long before we shall be able to produce longer and more pretentious works, the original compositions of other pupils. Our concert was not only an artistic success but financial as well. With the proceeds we have pur- chased orchestral instruments which are loaned to pupils who will agree to study the instruments under competent instructors and to play in the school orchestra. It is our intention to continue this policy in order to furnish greater facilities to pupils interested in orchestral work. During the present year, we have broadened our work in music by offering diploma credits in music studied outside the school under certain conditions regarding lessons and practice and provided an examination is satisfactorily passed at the end of the year.
Because of our good fortune in having several competent instructors, we have been able to broaden considerable our athletic activities. We have been able, too, to connect them closely with
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the physical training department of the school. Larger numbers of boys than ever have found some form of sport that interested them and have derived the benefits coming from healthful exercise and from close association under proper conditions. It is to be hoped that the time is not far distant when we shall have sufficient facilities an dsuitable instruction to extend this work to every boy and girl in the school.
The time has come to take note of the extraordinary rush of pupils into the Commercial Course. This is due, of course, to the great demand for young people trained in this line of work and to the high wages which are obtained in some instances. The fact remains, however, that large numbers of pupils are insisting on this Course when they are absolutely unable to master the commercial subjects included in it. A study of the graduating class shows that a large part of those who have left school before the present year were taking the Commercial Course, and of these about half were failing in the distinctly commercial subjects. A similar state of affairs could be shown to exist in any of the other classes. More- over, when these pupils go to work, they obtain exactly the same jobs that they would have obtained had they taken any other Course in the school. I believe more of the boys should be in the Manual Arts Course and more of the girls should be in the House- hold Arts Course. Both of these Courses have fewer subjects requiring outside preparation and thus allow a pupil to concentrate his efforts rather than spread them out too thin. Besides, there is usually opportunity for a pupil to take one or more addi- tional subjects, commercial or otherwise which he knows he can do well. There would be fewer cases of discouragement and failure under these circumstances than there are at present in our compre- hensive and intensive Commercial Course. Of course, some of the previous statements could be made about other Courses, for instance, the College Preparatory Course, but pupils here usually soon recognize the state of affairs and get into another line of work. In the Commercial Course, on the other hand, pupils will hang on for years, failing constantly until they finally fall off entirely. It is time pupils and parents recognized conditions and ceased to hold ambitions absolutely beyond the power of attainment.
It would not be proper to close this report without acknowledging the growing interest in the school and spirit of helpfulness on the
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