USA > Massachusetts > Norfolk County > Randolph > Randolph town reports 1901-1906 > Part 20
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The same test was given in our schools under identical conditions, and the results have been carefully compared with those obtained by Dr. Rice. It is gratifying to be able to report that the comparison is, on the whole, favorable to our own schools. None of the papers produced by our pupils are as fine as some of those which he obtained, and none of ours are as poor as some of his. But our average papers are certainly better than his average papers, and the falling off from the best to poor is less rapid. These repro- duction stories of ours are, of course, children's work : but they are evidently the work of children who are in the habit of writing. They are for the most part natural, simple and direct and evince considerable ease and vigor of expression - qualities much more to be desired in pupils' work than stilted, affected attempts at fine writing.
THE SCHOOL AND THE HOME.
In education, as in other work, the first stages are the most difficult. They lay the foundation on which the subse- quent instruction must rest. But in teaching, as in all other
70
building, that which is most fundamental is least observed. The long years of patient work by the primary teachers attract little attention. The public knows or thinks nothing about them ; even the mothers of the little ones who throng the primary rooms have slight conception of the work which is done there from day to day. But great issues depend upon it, and it is impossible to exaggerate its importance.
Take, for example, the simple matter of learning to read. Until a pupil can read he is cut off from one of the principal occupations of the school ; he is cut off from many sources of information. When he can read with ease and appre- ciation, grasping the thought and enjoying the interest, he has a tool put into his hands with which he can do many kinds of work. He can read his number work and the ex- amples in his arithmetic ; he can follow printed instructions ; he can study his geography lesson and his history, his lan- guage exercises and his spelling. But the process of learn- ing to read is at best a long and tedious one. It requires constant tact and patience, and unnumbered expedients and devices on the part of the teacher. Slowly and timidly, with many mistakes and failures, the child learns to take the first steps, acquiring the use of a few easy words. Little by little he learns to connect them in his thought, and to read easy sentences. The pupil's eyes and voice must be trained as well as his brain; mistakes and defects must be corrected. The teacher's efforts must not stop with the me- chanical parts of the process; she must see that the pupil gains the full meaning of what he reads.
And teaching the little ones to read, with all which this involves, is only one item in the duties of the primary teach- er. And all her work must be done in a sympathetic, help- ful, motherly kind of a way, which will gain the confidence and best efforts of the little learner. The child is imitative. He catches the spirit, the manners and the ideas of those
71
about him, especially of his teacher. To a large extent she carries him along by her own nervous energy. He looks to her to solve the countless little problems which arise in the daily round of his school life. She needs, more perhaps than any other person, to be well and strong, even-tempered and cheerful, interested in her work and willing to give her- self unsparingly to it.
The first interest of a wise superintendent of schools is in his primary and intermediate grades. He is anxious to see the foundations well laid. Many pupils never reach the higher grades, and for those who do it is of the first import- ance that the earlier work should be well done. Otherwise pupils will be perpetually embarrassed and retarded as they advance in their studies, by the weakness and defects which result from poor training in the elements. For instance, in many grammar schools pupils will be found making frequent mistakes in simple arithmetical processes, and even count- ing their fingers in adding or subtracting, because their early instruction in numbers was not good. They will read with a tone, false inflections of the voice, and other habitual faults after they reach the high school, or perhaps as long as they live, because some teachers in their early school life per- mitted them to fall into these bad habits, or failed to secure their free and normal mental action. So inveterate are the results of poor or deficient instruction.
It takes a long time for the full results of educational work to appear. Improved organization and instruction in the primary grades soon bring visible improvement, but the full consequences are best seen years afterwards in the ease and rapidity with which the pupil's work is done in intermediate and grammar grades. While much improvement is still to be made, much has already been accomplished. Many pupils now read better in the second grade than pupils did in the third grade two years ago. The number work has improved,
72
and pupils are able much earlier to make the combinations without the use of objects. The improvement in oral and written language work has been gratifying. The introduc- tion of drawing has enabled pupils to learn to write earlier and more legibly, and makes the written work in number and language neater and more methodical. Beautiful extracts and useful maxims are committed to memory. The chil- dren are becoming familiar with trees, flowers, animals, birds and insects, and learning to see the beautiful things in natare which are displayed in such profusion all about them.
The years of childhood are the most precious years of one's life, and it is a great thing to make them more produc- tive. If by better grading, better teaching, better adapta- tion of subjects, more sympathetic methods and management, we can enable a pupil to learn more of any subject in a year ; if we can make his mind more alert and intelligent; if we can improve his habitual forms of expression ; if we can in- crease his desire for knowledge and guide it to useful ends ; if we can cultivate in him habits of obedience, self-control and industry ; if we can teach him the virtues of fair play, truthfulness and patriotism, we are rendering a service whose importance cannot be over-estimated. And this is precisely what the quiet, faithful teacher is seeking to accomplish with the unformed minds and characters committed to her care. Surely her work ought to be better understood and appre- ciated by the community.
Parents, older brothers and sisters, and all in the home circles can do much to aid the teacher in her work. There should be a mutual understanding. Teachers and parents alike desire the pupil's progress and improvement. Hearty and intelligent co-operation between the school and the home is of the greatest value to the child. The Super- intendent of Schools earnestly asks parents, on behalf of the schools and for the sake of their own children, to aid in pro- moting the interests of the schools.
73
1. See that your children are constant and punctual in attendance. An occasional absence inflicts an injury, per- haps an irreparable injury, upon your child. Every day has its work in school. If a pupil misses the lessons of a day a broken place is left in his work. A few lost days make him a drag upon his class and endanger his promotion at the end of the year. In the monthly reports it is usually found that the lowest third or quarter of the class have two or three times as many absences marked against them as the same number of pupils at the head of the class. Absence brings restlessness and discouragement very demoralizing to a pupil's best interests. Sickness cannot always be prevented, but absence for other reasons should be strictly avoided.
2. Visit the schools occasionally. See your children in their every day work. Know what they are doing. Let them see how much you are interested. It will help and encourage their teacher and enable her to do better work. It will stimulate the pupils and fill them with interest and ambition.
3. Ask your children about their studies. Examine the language exercises, the drawings and other work which they bring home. Commend improvement. Inquire about their difficulties. Magnify the school in their minds. Ask about their reading. Have something for them to read aloud at home. Tell them about your own school days. Praise them if their names are on the Roll of Honor for a month, a term, a year.
4. The Superintendent will be glad to be of service to any parent in promoting the welfare of a pupil. He has office hours in the Selectmen's room, and can be consulted at any time with reference to school matters. A few parents have already availed themselves of the opportunity to consult him, but he would be glad to be of service to others.
The gradual change, which should come as a pupil ad-
74
vances in his grade, from the simple exercises and oral in- struction of the primary room to the more studious and self- reliant work of the grammar grades, often proves discourag- ing to him. He can listen to his teacher, follow her direc- tions, and in an imitative kind of a way solve little problems and write little exercises, but he hesitates and finds difficul- ties when more independent work is expected of him. He is apt to become discouraged when he is required to prepare a lesson from a text-book or from topics assigned. He has no initiative, no ability to think for himself. Many pupils do not overcome this difficulty until long after they reach the high school; indeed, many never overcome it at all. But it is precisely this end that education should accomplish. The school should teach its pupils to think. Its aim is the development of mental power. Knowledge and information are but secondary means to this great end. The school should awaken the latent capacities of its pupils and give them the ability to work alone, to solve their own problems, to gain information for themselves. Many men and women have never gained this capacity. Their education failed in this important particular. And if the school is to make its pupils self-reliant and train them to think, they must begin early in their school life to conquer difficulties. This ele- ment in their education must not be deferred too long. They must learn what it is to study. They must learn to work out problems with paper and pencil, to see the relation of words to one another, to read a paragraph in their history or geography and so grasp its meaning that they can recite it in their own words.
This capacity to study and to think comes little by little under helpful influences. It is especially important at this period of a pupil's progress that the school and the home should work in harmony. Teachers sometimes give too much, sometimes too little assistance. Sometimes the home fails to
75 .
co-operate ; no effort is made to keep pupils interested in their school work ; their little complaints are encouraged and magnified. But, in due time, the child must begin to prepare his lessons. Kindly and helpfully the teacher and the parent must require it. The child should feel an honest pride that he can do something. The school and the home should never be so far apart in interest and sympathy that they can- not unite in helping a pupil to learn his lessons. It is hoped that parents will know the teachers and feel free to consult them with reference to their children's work. The children should see and feel that the home and the school are alike interested in their progress. Teachers will always welcome information concerning the needs of their pupils.
TYPEWRITING AND STENOGRAPHY.
The High School graduates every year a class of bright, earnest young people, full of energy and ambition and eager to turn their education to profitable account. A few continue their studies in a college or a normal school, but the major- ity of them wish at once to find remunerative employment. In many cases this proves to be difficult and discouraging, and often, after waiting long, they go to work at very low wages. It is this obvious fact which has led to the wide- spread introduction of manual training, now required by law in the larger towns and cities of this State. It is this fact also which has led to the introduction of typewriting and stenography into the high school courses all over the coun- try. Business men depend more and more on the type- writer in conducting in their business. Good typewriters are in demand. Ten type-writing machines are used now where one was used a few years ago. Their multiplication is likely to increase.
It is right that our educational work should take note of changes in business methods and recognize the new demands
76
which they make upon our schools. If but few of our high school graduates enter higher institutions, ought not the high school to do all that it can to equip the majority to meet the demands which are to be made upon them ? Young men and women, competent to do good work as typewriters and stenographers, readily obtain positions where they can earn from eight to twelve dollars a week. Without this special training they can earn less than half as much and often have difficulty and delay in obtaining employment. It has thus come about that many young people enter business colleges immediately after graduating from the high school and pay high rates of tuition in order to prepare themselves for positions in stores and offices. Their most important acquisition in these commercial schools is shorthand and the use of the typewriter.
There are few high schools in this vicinity which have not already incorporated typewriting and stenography into their courses. They have recognized the business demand and are endeavoring to respond to it. The method of conduct- ing the work varies in different schools. In some, a full commercial department has been organized ; in some, type- writing and shorthand have been added to the course as elective branches of study. There can be no doubt that they are a full equivalent to other school studies. Many who intend to go to college learn stenography, and find it valu- able in taking notes of lectures as well as an excellent mental discipline.
In view of these considerations, the committee decided to introduce typewriting and shorthand into the High School at the beginning of the current school year. By uniting with other towns in the employment of a teacher the expense is very small - only $108 a year for teacher's salary. Miss Margaret A. Powers, a graduate of the Chandler Normal School of Stenography and Typewriting in Boston, has been
77
engaged as special teacher of the subject. The eagerness of the high school pupils to learn typewriting and shorthand and the rapid progress most of them have made in the sub- ject illustrate its practical value.
NEW BUILDINGS.
Before concluding this report, I must ask your attention to a matter of great importance. The time has come for the citizens of Randolph to realize that increased and improved facilities are required for the proper education of the chil- dren. Recent events have shown that the people of Ran- dolph are not lacking in public spirit. They desire to promote the general welfare and are not indifferent to the condition of the schools. The fathers and mothers in this town have no fonder hope, no higher ambition, than to see their children growing up into intelligent, well trained man- hood and womanhood. For this, they are willing to deny themselves many things, and no taxes are more cheerfully paid than those which provide for the support of the schools .
A considerable period has passed since any new school building has been erected in this town. The School Com- mittee have kept the old ones well freshened up and, as far as possible, in good repair. They are entitled to the thanks of the community for accomplishing so much with so little expense. But the last quarter of a century has been a period of great advance in education as well as in other departments of social and business progress. There are few towns throughout the whole country which have not expended large sums for new school houses during these twenty-five years. And they have found that these expenditures have proved to be valuable investments. For thoughtful people, who have children to educate, do not choose a place of resi- dence without inquiry with reference to school privileges. Many towns have thus attracted large numbers of the most
78
desirable class of residents by the excellence of their schools. The recent organization of a Citizens Association in this town for the promotion of local improvements makes this suggestion timely. Randolph is favorably situated for sub- urban residence. It has many attractive features. There is a constant tendency in all our large cities towards sub- urban residence. Improved electric and train service have greatly stimulated this tendency. We see the movement going on all about us. There is no reason why Randolph should not share in it and benefit by it. And it would be difficult to name anything which would contribute more to Randolph's advantage in this particular than attractive school buildings.
But aside from considerations of this kind, which we can- not afford to overlook, even if there were no prospect of growth the people of Randolph owe it to themselves to see that their school children are well housed. I believe that, without exception, they wish their school buildings to be adequate and suitable. They do not intend to be outstripped in the general march of improvement. They wish their own children to enjoy the best advantages and to gain their education under favorable conditions.
Convinced that such is the fact, I wish to offer two recom- mendations :
1. A small enlargement of the North Grammar School building. The Third and Fourth Grade room in this build- ing is seriously overcrowded. Its size is utterly inadequate. Every available foot of floor space is occupied with pupils' desks, and yet during this year eight or ten pupils have had to be seated in chairs around the teacher's table and in the corners of the room. The air space is not half what it should be, and ventilation by opening the windows is almost impossible in cold weather because the children sit so near to them. Fortunately the number of pupils is not so large
79
but that one teacher can care for them if additional space can be provided. This is not difficult to accomplish, by the addition of a small projection to the building costing, it has been estimated, eight hundred dollars ($800). Even if the expense should be somewhat more, I recommend that this improvement be made.
2. Some more suitable provision for the Stetson High School. This school occupies a few rooms on the lower floor of the Town Hall. As is well known, they are dark, inconvenient and entirely inadequate to the needs of the school. What shall be done for the proper accommodation of the High School, has long been a burning question in this town. It has resulted in driving many pupils away, pre- venting some from receiving the benefit of a high school education, and sending others to a neighboring town to obtain the education which they might and should receive at home.
Various plans have been proposed. The best, of course, is the erection of a new building suitable for its purpose and appropriately located. Such a building would be a credit to the town, a source of great satisfaction to its people and an attraction to suburban settlers. Its cost need not be beyond the financial capacity of the town if distributed over a period of, say, ten years. Another suggestion has been to erect a one-story building in the rear of Stetson Hall which should be well lighted and well ventilated and afford space for a good study-hall, with cloak-rooms and closets, and be connected with the main building by passage-ways. The present rooms would then afford fairly good space for recita- tion rooms and laboratory. Still another plan has been pro- posed, which would perhaps involve less expense than either of these, but may meet with other objections. This is to move the engine house and lock-up to some more eligible site and provide more adequate office room for the town offi-
80
cers elsewhere. Sufficient light would thus be obtained for the study hall, additional space would be gained for recita- tion rooms, and a few other changes would secure a fairly good provision for the school.
Of these various plans, no doubt the first one, the erection of a new building, is the best. Consultation with the Select- men and other parties interested will be necessary in order to determine which plan should be adopted. The essential point is that something should be done ; that we should no longer defer the important duty of providing a proper place for the Stetson High School. The high school is the crown of the public school system. It is the key-stone of the arch. Its influence is felt in every other school, not only uniting them into one system but also stimulating the effort and the ambition of every pupil. Whatever detracts from its ascend- ency weakens the system. Pupils in the grades below should look forward with eager interest to the time when they will enter the high school. It should be one of their first ambi- tions to be enrolled among its graduates.
The Stetson High School has borne an honorable part in the history of the town of Randolph. Public spirited citizens, recognizing its importance and its intimate relation to the general welfare, have given generously for its endowment. They wished that it should forever remain a source of strength and of pride to the community. Many of the fathers and mothers of the pupils now in the schools are among its grad- uates. They wish and every loyal citizen wishes that the children and youth of Randolph should enjoy advantages equal to the best which are now afforded in the surrounding towns. The schools of this town are dear to the people's hearts. Progress will assuredly be made. The people will gladly furnish the means necessary for the growth and im- provement of the schools.
81
I wish, in conclusion, to express my deep appreciation of the constant support accorded to me by the School Committee and to thank the corps of teachers for their steadfast co-op- eration.
Respectfully submitted, JOHN E. BRADLEY, Superintendent.
SCHOOL STATISTICS FOR THE YEAR COMMENCING SEPTEMBER 8, 1902, TO AND ENDING JUNE 6, 1903.
TEACHERS.
SCHOOL.
GRADE.
Number
enrolled.
Average
membership.
Average
attendance.
* Per cent of
Pupils neither
absent nor
Grade
Promotions.
F. E. Chapin
Stetson High
99
91.10
86.24
94.67
3
62
Nellie G. Prescott
Katharine V. Fletcher
.
Alice R. McGann
Katharine F. Garrity S
Nelson Freeman
Prescott
8
37
33.19
31.82
95.86
2
26
Katharine A. Kiley .
7
51
42.30
39 80
94.00
37
Mary A. Molloy
6
17
45.00
43.00
95.70
46
Katharine A. Sheridan
5
38
37.00
34.00
94 00
31
Mary E. Wren
·
.
·
4
41
39.00
36.00
92.40
36
Ellen E. McLaughlin
3
33
31.80
30.40
95.60
1
32
Fannie A. Campbell
38
36.00
33.00
91.70
2
34
Kittie R. Molloy
·
North Grammar
.
7 and 8
49
46.00
43.00
93.60
1
43
Ellen P. Henry
5 and 6
38
34.00
31.00
91.00
1
35
Sarah C. Belcher
3 and 4
43
35.00
31.00
89.00
35
Clara A. Tolman
1 and 2
37
31.00
28.00
90.00
0
32
Hannah F. Hoye
'Tower Hill .
4, 5 and 6
22
21.00
19.00
94.00
1
20
Katharine J. Riley
1, 2 and 3
25
19.00
17.00
87.80
2
17
Emma D. Stetson
.
.
·
1-4
20
20.00
18.00
90.00
1
19
Lucie W. Lewis
West Corner
1-4
30
23.50
20.70
87.80
0)
25
·
·
·
APPENDIX TO THE REPORT OF SUPERINTENDENT.
* Per cent of attendance is based upon average membership.
82
·
·
·
.
1
47
41.00
37.00
90.00
0
34
Joseph Belcher
·
·
Number 1
.
.
·
2
·
4 0) COAC
attendance.
tardy.
SCHOOL STATISTICS, SEPTEMBER 8 TO DECEMBER 8, 1903.
TEACHERS.
SCHOOL.
GRADE.
Number
enrolled.
Average
membership.
Average
attendance.
* Per cent of
Pupils neither
absent nor
tardy.
F. E. Chapin .
Stetson High
92
89.00
85.20
95.70
12
Katharine V. Fletcher
·
.
·
Prescott
8
39
34.23
33.64
98.20
12
Katharine A. Kiley .
·
.
7
48
45.40
44.20
96.00
11
Mary A. Molloy
.
·
5
50
48.00
46.00
96.00
10
Mary E. Wren
.
.
4
44
38.00
37.00
97.37
13
Ellen E. Mclaughlin
3
40
37.60
36.30
96.50
7
Fannie A. Campbell
2
43
40 00
38.60
96.50
11
Kittie R. Molloy
·
North Grammar
7 and 8
48
47.00
45.00
96.00
4
Ellen P. Henry
·
·
5 and 6
40
39.00
37.00
95.00
10
Sarah C. Belcher
3 and 4
44
38.00
34.00
90.00
5
Clara A. Tolman
·
1 and 2
44
39.00
36.00
92.00
2
Hannah F. Hoye
Tower Hill .
4-6
22
21.00
20.50
97.60
8
Katharine J. Riley
·
·
1-3
16
15.96
15.08
94.50
2
Emma D. Stetson
Number 1
1-4
22
22.00
20.00
90.00
0
Lucie W. Lewis
·
West Corner
1-4
38
36.00
33.00
91.00
5
* Per cent of attendance is based upon average membership.
83
.
·
·
·
1
40
35.00
34.00
97.00
12
Joseph Belcher
·
·
·
·
.
·
·
Katharine F. Garrity
Nelson Freeman
·
6
32
31.12
30.41
97.75
15
Katharine E. Sheridan
·
attendance.
84
ROLL OF HONOR.
The following are names of pupils who were neither absent nor tardy during the school year, 1902-1903 :
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