USA > Massachusetts > Essex County > Ipswich > Town annual report of Ipswich 1915 > Part 7
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ever changing methods and needs of public education. He should also keep in touch with what other towns and cities are doing. Thus the work of the superintendent is no longer con- fined to being a genial influence. In Ipswich with approximately
17
HIGH SCHOOL.
forty classes and 1100 pupils the full time of one man is none too much to perform the important and varied duties of super- intendent.
B. "The High School is on the Class A List:"
Let me preface to you my report about the High School with a letter of the State Board of Education:
October 25, 1915.
Massachusetts State Board of Education. Mr. Frederic B. Knight,
Superintendent of Schools, Ipswich, Mass.
Dear Mr. Knight :-
I take pleasure in informing you that the Ips- wich High School has been approved in Class "A" for the priv- ilege of certification to State Normal Schools for the year 1916. Very truly yours,
Clarence D. Kingsley.
This letter should be of the utmost satisfaction to the com- mittee and to the town in general. Our diploma with the writ- ten recommendation of the principal will admit our graduates to enter any one of the seven State Normal Schools without ex- amination. In one year the High School has been brought from a condition in which the State Board would not recognize us at all to one in which the Board rates us as high as any school in the State. This amount of improvement in a year could hardly have been required of us by the town. Such rapid progress is somewhat unusual. To accomplish this much work and thought has been necessary. Three things account for this remarkable record:
1. Renovation of the High School building. In a private conversation before the renovation an agent of the State Board gave the superintendent to understand that we could never
18
THE HIGH SCHOOL.
again be a Class B school, much less Class A, until much was done to improve the facilities for teaching. This same agent upon inspecting the High School after renovations had been made, said, in substance, that although he had been in every High School in the State, he did not recall any renovations that were made as complete and satisfactory as those done here.
2. The second essential which has been provided is a suf- ficient number of properly qualified teachers to carry on a Class A High School. The following teachers began work in the High School in September:
Mr. Charles Goodwin,
Miss Mildred Emerson,
Miss Amy Lindsay,
Miss Dorothy Richardson,
Miss Gladys MacLay,
Miss Dorothea Whitney,
Science
Mathematics
Commercial Subjects
German and History Latin Supervised Study and Government
Mr. Frederic W. Porter resigned as sub-master of the High School in June to take up larger responsibilities as Principal of the Northboro High School. Miss Ruth Mobley also resigned. Mr. Ralph Westcott became principal of the seventh and eighth grades. I wish to state that our present teaching force is as well balanced and experienced as our ability to pay will allow. All but four of our teachers have at least one year of successful experience. The teachers who have had no previous expe- rience possess such training as to promise effective work. Such effectiveness is now being rendered.
3. The third qualification of a Class A High School re- lates to the school's better organization within itself. I shall dis- cuss this subject under the following heads:
A. A principal in fact as well as name.
B. Course of study.
C. General study room.
19
THE DUTIES OF THE PRINCIPAL.
D. Friday p. m. assembly.
E. Reasonable work assigned to the teachers.
F. Supervised or directed study.
G. Commercial Course.
A. The work of the Principal:
This year the principal has been relieved of enough of his teaching work to allow him time to properly administer the af- fairs of the school. The many details such as absences, tardi- ness, failures, cases of discipline, etc., unless strictly attended to eat into the very life of any organization. To strictly handle these details requires time. Hitherto the principal has not had time to do these things. Now he has. But the major useful- ness of a principal is in guiding his teachers in methods of in- struction and class-room management; in observing the work throughout the school so that his counsel and advice in teach- ers' meetings and private conference may be based on detailed information rather than vague opinion. He must have time to actually study pupils who seem to be in need of help. He must really know his school and be connected with all its busi- ness. This takes time. Until this year the principal simply could not do much of this work. He had not the time. Such is not now the case. This provision in time which allows a man to be principal in fact as well as name is a real advance in ed- ucational efficiency. The value of the provision cannot be measured in dollars and cents or weighed in pounds, but its value is already seen in an increased spirit of industry and or- derliness apparent even to a casual observer. B. Course of Study:
A second way in which the organization has been improved is in respect to the course of study. Last July the School Com- mittee adopted a new course of study in the High School. This course of study was recommended to them by the Superintend- ent and Principal of the High School. It was a substantial revision
20
COURSE OF STUDY.
of the old course of study and included a commercial course. I shall not print the new couse of study, as it is printed sepa- rately. It may be obtained by anyone at the office. This course of study I believe is varied enough to meet substantially the dif- ferent interests and needs of the pupils. The pupil on the whole can now take what seems of actual benefit to him. An increased interest in the work, a willingness to do more and bet- ter work which is very evident among the students this year, is largely accounted for by giving them such work as is outlined in the course of study. The course is not so varied that it re- quires an unjustifiable expenditure to maintain it. I do not feel that we are making the mistakes suspected of some High Schools of giving so many different subjects demanding much equipment that the yield is not an adequate compensation. You will notice in this course a definite attempt to actually connect the High School with the every day life and the requirements of good citizenship. The underlying reason for this is the be- lief that as the community pays for the High School, the High School should in turn yield back to the community young men and women trained as definitely as possible for intelligent citi- zenship. For years the only clear cut aim of the High School has been to prepare for college or Normal School. Those who were not going farther after graduation were put in general courses or non-college courses. The tendency was to give the best instruction to the college classes and let the new teachers practice on the general course pupils. I believe the emphasis should be changed. We should still prepare for college and Normal School, and we do, but preparation of this type should be but a secondary aim. Our first aim should be to prepare for life, and by this I mean intelligent citizenship, training to earn a living, and such cultural study as will develop a preference for the beautiful and the worthy rather than the common and cheap. Our course of study has begun to shift the emphasis
21
GENERAL STUDY ROOM.
from meeting college requirements only to preparing for useful- ness first and for college second. Evidences of this shift are:
Lectures for freshmen.
Economics for the juniors and seniors.
A thorough going commercial course.
By the institution of a commercial course a thorough going training for business life, as far as such training can be provided by a public High School, is open to our High School pupils. This course is pursued by over sixty per cent. of the pupils in the first two years.
A series of lectures on hygiene and physiology is given to all first year pupils. This type of work, although it receives no recognition by the colleges, does much to inform the pupils about the laws of health and proper habits.
The work in manual training and domestic science has been extended in an attempt to bring the school life a little closer to practical duties.
A comprehensive study of modern Europe has been put into the second year, and a course of citizenship into the last year.
C. General Study Room:
Perhaps the most direct service which the plan of remodel- ling the building yielded us was the provision of a general study room. In the past when a pupil had a free period in which to study he was given a seat in a room where some recitation was going on. Thus, we often found that in a room of fifty seats a class of twenty-five were reciting and twenty-five were studying. The conversation of the recitation disturbed those who were studying. And often the teacher had to give her attention to those studying to such degree that her best teaching of the reci- tation was out of the question. This practice was a recognized evil Now we have a general study room where pupils not reciting during a period are assigned a seat. Here they are not
22
FRIDAY AFTERNOON ASSEMBLIES.
disturbed by a recitation. And in the recitation room the teach- er can now throw her energy and thought into her proper work. This arrangement is considered essential to an effective High School. I believe it is developed most advantageously here. D. Friday P. M. Assemblies:
The last period on Fridays the whole school goes to the as- sembly hall. Here we have the deliberate attempt to develope school unity. From time to time addresses are made to the school by representative men. This practice is of undoubted benefit to the pupils. The following gentlemen have addressed the school:
G. E. MacArthur, ɔ
C. M. Kelly,
Start the Year Right Banking Little Things
Arthur Stroud,
Paul G. Macy,'
The Bull Without Horns
Chester Stacy, After School - What?
Augustus Norwood, The Value of an Education
P. E. Pitman, Opportunities in Salem Normal School Pres. W. E. Huntington, Character Lee's Surrender
C. W. Bamford,
E. The Work of the Teachers:
Another indication of Class A High School is the fact that we are not asking our teachers to do so much work or to handle so many pupils that we know hefore hand her work must be more or less of a pretense. This year we require twenty-five recitations a week of the teachers and they have approximately twenty-five pupils in each recitation. It is generally agreed among educators that the teacher if given much more work than this can not handle it properly. On the other hand, if the aver- age teacher has much less than this the High School becomes unjustifiably expensive.
F. Supervised Study is Another Indication of a Better High School:
23
SUPERVISED STUDY.
We do not expect that the average pupil in the High School will give in his oral and written work the evidences of a natur- ally skillful thinker. Our aim is to so condition or influence the mental development of the pupil that he will from month to month improve his mental habits of accuracy, diligence and consecutive thinking. We should see to it that the pupil as he goes on through High School becomes more and more adept in attacking his lessons and in perfecting himself in proper meth- ods of study.
There is some justice in a rather common criticism of the American High School-that somehow or other the average pu- pil does not know how to study, does not know what he wants to do in life, has no definite goal toward which to press with en- ergy and decision.
There is an adequate explanation for such ignorance of the methods of study on the part of our pupils. But our present concern is how to remedy the evil. I wish to report to you di- rect and substantial gain in this matter during the current year. The conditions under which real study prospers were provided by the general study room. However, many High Schools which have had a general study room for years complain of the same fault among their students as exists among ours. We have this year instituted a practise which promises a proper solution of this problem.
Instead of having different teachers do monitor service in the study room as an odd job, we have arranged our program to allow one teacher to be there a large portion of her time. She is there not primarily to keep order but to direct study. She is to keep run of the pupils, especially those who seem to be getting little from their high school life. Pupils with difficul- ties, who do not understand, can now have more direction and aid. For all we know many a man who flunked out of High School would have remained to his advantage had it been
24
COMMERCIAL COURSE.
someone's specific duty to help him over the rough places which are so discouraging. This teacher will not do the pupil's work for him and thus make him lazy and lacking in self-re- l'ance. The idea is to see to it that actual supervision and di- rection be given to the study habits and methods of the pupils.
The American High Schools have been noted for good English teachers, good History instructors, etc. But it has been weak on pupil teachers, instructors of boys and girls. Ipswich has suffered for this prevalent weakness. I feel that this provis- ion of a director of study, one whose duty is not to teach a sub- ject but pupils, is a sound advance in our system. I look for a general improvement among our pupils because of it. G. Commercial Course:
)
Another evidence of a more useful High School is the com- mercial course. This was established September, 1915. The plans of the course were most carefully laid out. The content and method of the several subjects were the subject of much debate. The question of a proper instructor for this course was a most troublesome one. .Twenty-eight different candidates were interviewed and investigated before we decided upon the present teachers.
This course if earnestly taken is intended to prepare for ac- tive business life. Only the first two years of this course is now given. Another year will be added in September, 1916. It is distinctly the most popular course offered.
There are other tendencies working at present which are gradually building a more vigorous spirit among our pupils. Most of these tendencies are directly traceable to the improve- ments noted above. These are in closing an improved course of study, a renovated building, a sufficient number of teachers, adequate time allowed to the principal for administration of the school, a general study room, a teacher whose specific work is to direct and improve the students' study habits and methods,
25
JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL.
a commercial course instituted. ' For these reasons the Manning High School in one year has improved from a condition such that the State Board would not rate it at all to a Class "A" School.
The Seventh and Eighth Grade:
In my report last year I recommended to you the institution of departmental work in the seventh and eighth grades. In that report the reasons and probable advantages of this change were stated together with expert opinion on this matter. The com- mittee saw fit to make this change. Under somewhat difficult circumstances the departmental plan, or as it is called Junior High School, is in working order. It has been in operation too short a time to make a dependable estimate of its success or failure.
A Communication from the Principal, Mr. Westcott:
The re-organization of the seventh and eighth grades under the so-called Junior High School system has proved quite suc- cessful, in the two months in which it has been tried out. To remove any doubt as to the reasons for this kind of a school a brief outline of the plan is here given. The principal feature is the departmental work which enables the teacher to specialize on two or three subjects to a single class. The pupil also gains the broadening contact with different teachers. A start has been made to help the individual learn what he really needs for his future. One class of pupils is given special work in manual and domestic arts, and their other studies are planned to meet as nearly as possible the requirements of the business world. Most of these pupils will leave for work within a short time or will enter the commercial course in the High School. Those who are planning to take Latin in the High School are given the priv- ilege of electing it here. In other studies those who are expect- ing to attend the High School are taught with the definite pur- pose of preparing for that school. Other innovations, such as
26
MANUAL TRAINING.
the weekly general assembly in the High School hall, eighth grade civics classes to study the needs and responsibilities of the community, a supervising principal, men teachers, promo- tion by subjects rather than by grade, and the developement of these two grades as a stepping stone between the elementary and High schools, have already proved their worth in many ways. It will take two or three years to perfect such a system, but the start this year has been very encouraging. The parents and friends of the children are invited to visit the school at any time and an open invitation is extended to attend the assembly in the High School hall on Fridays at 2:30.
Ralph Westcott.
Another significant improvement has been the provision of more instruction in manual training, music and drawing. Manual Training:
Until this year we had been employing a manual training instructor but three days each week. In September this instruct- or began to give his full time to the work. The growth of the fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth grades in size and the instituting of advanced manual training in the High School made this ad- ditional time practically imperative. At present this work has not reached its maximum usefulness. Lack of proper accom- modations and an absence of any machinery for best work hampers us severely.
When the manual training quarters in the new building are available and some machinery such as a saw bench and a pla- ing machine are provided for the High School classes, the work in manual training will begin to function much more vitally in our school life. That practical work of this nature is of direct value to the boys is no longer disputed. The only problems are the best arrangements of the work. The present plan is an approximation of our aim.
Plan of Manual Training Work:
27
MUSIC.
Starting the work with the fifth grade we aim to give the boys a thorough knowledge of the simplified tools and models.
In this class we intend to start a course of lectures, using charts to demonstrate the sizes of nails, screws and bolts, and the proper use of them in construction.
The sixth grade is then ready to take the more advanced work which will be given them, putting into use their knowl- edge of tools, etc., learned in the fifth grade. In this grade they will also take up the care and adjustment of the different tools, the charts used, dealing with their proper uses, and the care and adjustment of their parts.
The seventh grade boy should come to the instructor ready to take up the tools and produce a model in workmanlike man- ner. At the end of the third year's work we aim to have him familiar with all the common tools, their use and care, able to make all the joints used in simple work and to construct any or- dinary model. This class will be given talks on lumber, ways of preparing it for use, the kinds of wood suitable for different models, and also board measure.
The work of the eighth grade will be a review of the lower . grades, and this class will be ready to do the repairing work about the buildings, and to make simple pieces of furniture, the work being done on the machines, giving the class the privilege of observing the proper manner of using machinery to do the same work they have been doing by hand. Boys showing any marked ability are allowed to assist as far as they are capable without danger to themselves. These boys are taught to sharp- en and care for their tools and, in their repair work, the use of paint, varnish and finish. Music:
The music supervisor has been retained for three days in- stead of two days each week. With the evident trend toward commercialism in modern life it was thought wise to strengthen
28
DRAWING AND TEXT BOOKS.
the cultural influences in the educative period. Although music as now taught is quite as exacting and disciplinary as are other more conventional studies, it also possesses apparent cultural features. The work in music in the grades is about the same as last year. The work has been extended into the High School where its value is great. A High School Chorus has been estab- lished and is already doing excellent work. A class in the ap- preciation of music is conducted. A Girls' Glee Club has been organized. I am convinced that this increased interest in music is a wholesome tendency which should be persistently encour- aged by the school committee.
Drawing:
An additional day's instruction in drawing is more than demonstrating the wisdom of this provision. Clay modelling for the smaller children has been introduced. Creditable and interesting work is done. This work is of such a kind that en- . gages the respect of educators in general. The drawing classes in the upper grades have time and again surprised me with their skill and appreciation of the artistic. The spring exhibit will doubtless reveal to the visitors work which is quite the equal of much larger school systems. The work in the High School shows substantial advance. The permanent interests of a large number of pupils have been engaged. The classes are twice as large as last year. Many of our pupils possess real tal- ent in design and color work. The desirability of inculcating a love of the better and a knowledge of artistic correctness can not be measured objectively. A careful inspection, however, of what is actually being done will, I am certain, convince one of the good sense of even a further extension of the work. Text Books:
Within a few minor exceptions each pupil is now provided with a proper number of text books well suited to the work he is attempting to do. This has not been the case in the past.
29
TEACHERS' MEETINGS.
Our bill for text books has been large this year.
Much care and time has been expended in selecting the text books best adapted to our needs. I feel that the problem of proper text books selected is not fully solved. Several sets of books, especially the arithmetics and grammars used in the fifth, sixth and seventh grades, are not the best available. They were not changed this year because they were in usable condi- tion. I did not feel that we could afford to throw out any text books until they were worn out. Several sets, however, will have to be replaced in September. Before you purchase books to supply the deficiency I shall recommend books more suited to our present needs. The more important changes in text books have been:
The adoption of the A'dine Readers as a basal text in read- ing through the grades in place of a miscellaneous collection used.
The adoption of Dickson's United States History in the sev- enth and eighth grades in place of an over technical and dry book previously used.
The adoption of Bookman Business Arithmetic for eighth grades in place of a theoretical book.
Kellogg & O'Shea Physiologies. A series admirably ad- apted to forcing home the good points of good health. No ad- equate provision was previously made.
Brigham Commercial Geography. A new text for the com- mecial course in the High School.
West's Modern World. The course in modern history in the High School was changed from a chronological treatment of English History to an attempt to understand and appreciate modern English as a whole.
Teachers Meetings:
The teachers meetings during the last year have been helpful. They have been addressed from time to time by
30
SCHOOL GARDENS.
experts in the different subjects. Miss Bragg, associate superin- tendent at Newton, and Mr. Brewer, instructor of English in Los Angeles, were especially helpful. The meetings in the fall have been devoted to discussion of a new course of study now in the process of construction.
School Gardens:
During the summer a school garden was conducted. Over sixty children were in attendance. The ground, as it was new for garden purpose, was somewhat of a handicap. Those who inspected the garden at the close of the year must have been - impressed by the ability of even little tots in the way of garden- ing. A successful exhibit was held.
The Woman's Club supplied the teacher's salary, thus yielding a splendid service to the community. I wish to thank the Club for this service. Mr. Albert Elwell by time, labor and counsel aided in no small way.
Commercial Evening School:
Mr. Leslie Millard discusses the subject in the following letter:
Ipswich, Mass., Dec. 16, 1915.
Mr. Frederic B. Knight,
Superintendent of Schools.
Dear Sir :-
In compliance with your request I herewith submit my report of the Commercial Evening School to date."
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