USA > Massachusetts > Norfolk County > Weymouth > Town annual report of Weymouth 1946 > Part 9
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7.15 a. m. No school all day All schools
7.45 a. m. No school all day Grades I through VIII
11.30 a. m. No afternoon session Grades I through VIII
In addition to the fire alarm signal, announcement will be made over Radio Stations WEEI and WNAC whenever possible.
GENERAL ANNOUNCEMENTS
Meetings of the Committee
Regular meetings of the School Committee are held on the first Tuesday of each month at the High School Building at 8:00 p. m.
Entrance Age
No child shall be admitted to school in September unless he has reached the age of five years on or before the first day of April pre- ceding.
A birth certificate is required for entrance to the first grade.
Children entering for the first time will be admitted only during the first two weeks of school.
Vaccination
No child shall be allowed to enter the first grade without a cer- tificate of successful vaccination.
Employment Certificates
Employment certificates, educational certificates, and newsboys' badges are issued at the office of the Superintendent of Schools in the High School Building from 9 a. m. to 10 a. m. every week day, except Saturday.
All persons must make personal application and present a birth certificate.
· REPORT OF SCHOOL COMMITTEE
To the Citizens of Weymouth :
The following is the report of your School Committee for 1946, together with the Annual Report of the Superintendent of Schools, Mr. Elmer S. Mapes.
The death of Mr. Prince H. Tirrell occurred on October 21, 1946. The School Committee regarded this as a real loss, even though Mr. Tirrell was not an active member of the Board at the time of his death. He had played such a vital part in Weymouth School Depart- ment affairs for so many years that we still looked upon him as one of
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our group. The Department has lost a friend and a staunch supporter who will not be forgotten.
The School Committee realizes that increases in our school popu- lation are inevitable. Surveys of preschool children which have already been made prove this conclusively. The Committee has, therefore, considered it advisable to enlist the aid of an expert in school building matters and Dr. William K. Wilson, Supervisor of Buildings and Plans in the New York State Department of Education, was hired for this purpose. Dr. Wilson's experience in such work is excellent, as in New York State expenditures in excess of $500.00 on school buildings must be submitted to the State Department of Education for approval. This rule applies to all cities and towns of less than 50,000 population. It is part of Dr. Wilson's work to check these plans and to make recom- mendations. We expect some beneficial advice from him for the planning of our future school building needs. The School Committee is apprecia- tive of the assistance given in this matter by the Post War Planning Committee.
At the end of the report will be found expenditures for 1946 and estimates for 1947. The School Committee and the Superintendent of Schools gave careful consideration to school needs in preparing the budget, a great deal of time having been spent on this phase of our work. No increases were asked for unless they were considered abso- lutely necessary. Nevertheless, the amount required to operate the schools for 1947 shows a large increase over the amount spent in 1946. The three reasons for this increase are: (1) higher salaries; (2) in- creased commodity and service prices; (3) added services, such as evening classes and an apprenticeship program.
We asked for salary increases for our teachers because we felt that they were entitled to them. Teachers' salaries are being increased throughout the country. If Weymouth lags behind in this respect, we shall lose many of our better teachers, and we shall be unable to fill vacancies with competent instructors.
As far as the price of commodities is concerned, there is very little - choice in the matter. Paper, which makes up a large part of our supply cost, increased in price 109% from January 1941 to January 1947. All other supplies have increased in price tremendously.
The Evening School Program of Adult Education, which was re- established in the fall, was the result of popular demand. We have an expensive school plant and the Committee feels that it should be utilized as much as possible. A part-time apprentice program was organized also. This was done at the request of the State Department of Educa- tion. The Commonwealth reimburses 50% of the instructional cost for Weymouth veterans, while the entire amount for the tuition of non- resident veterans is paid by the town of residence.
Before closing this report, we should like to point out that while the school budget has increased, Weymouth is low on a list of twenty Towns in the Metropolitan Boston area in its cost per pupil. This list contains such towns as Braintree, Hingham, Needham, Framingham, Arlington, and Wellesley. The Weymouth per pupil cost for the school year 1945-1946 was $130.02. The lowest cost on this list was $121.49, and the highest cost was $197.47. There are five towns in the group
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with a lower per pupil cost, and fourteen with a higher cost. We men- tion these facts to show that, while our costs have increased, our com- parative position is good.
The School Committee feels that the Weymouth school system is a good one. We hope to improve it, but realize that any fundamental change must come slowly.
We submit the budget for 1947, together with expenditures for 1946 :
Expenditures Estimates
Account Classification
1946
1947
Administration
$ 17,553.62
$ 19,600.83
Teachers' Salaries
426,257.40
506,898.86
Supplies
17,300.00
TextbooksS
24,380.38
15,000.00
Transportation
26,612.94
26,832.00
Support of Truants'
50.30
300.00
Tuition
920.52
1,400.00
Health
*
9,013.07
Janitors
43,518.79
48,156.26
Fuel
13,198.28
1 5,800.00
Light, Power, Water
6,011.45
6,800.00
Maintenance
51,965.92
58,417.51
Other Expense
1,962.89
800.00
Day Household Arts
5,153.05
7,603.17
Day Industrial
49,829.32
61,338.48
Evening School Program
1,850.00
Traveling Expense :
Out of state
135.31
250.00
In state
War Veterans' Retirement
1,350.00
1,350.00
1946 Expenditures
$668,995.39
$800,710.18
*Health items included in "Teachers Salaries" and "Other Expense" for 1946.
Respectfully submitted,
Joseph W. Mahoney, Chairman
Ethel G. Taylor, Secretary
(Mrs. Arthur R.)
Wallace H. Drake, M.D.
Clayton W. Nash
William F. Shields
Harold A. Spalding, M.D.
At a meeting of the Weymouth School Committee held on Novem- ber 5 the following resolution was adopted unanimously :
BE IT RESOLVED by the School Committee of the Town of Weymouth that its profound sorrow on the death of Prince H. Tirrell be inscribed in the records of the committee.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Committee express its sympathy to Mrs. Tirrell and the sons and daughters who survive.
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95.22
200.00
Part-time Apprenticeship School
1,800.00
1947 Estimates
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a page be set apart in the permanent records of the Committee, and printed in the annual report of the department, giving the important developments of the Weymouth school system during the years Prince H. Tirrell served on the Committee, particularly during the years he served as Chairman with a devotion to his duties unexcelled, and during which period his foresight, wisdom, and leadership contributed in large measure to the building of the school system in which the town takes justifiable pride.
List of school buildings and additions constructed during Prince H. Tirrell's period of service on the Weymouth School Committee :
Building
Year Built
Addition to Athens School
1913
Hunt School
1916
Edward B. Nevin School
1917
Addition to High School
1923
Vocational School
1926
Bicknell School
1926
Addition to High School
1927
New Pratt School
1928
Pond School 1928
Addition to Bicknell School 1931
Addition to Hunt School 1931
Cafeteria Wing at High School 1931
Abigail Adams School 1932
Auto Mechanics Building
1934
Addition to Edward B. Nevin School
1939
REPORT OF THE SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS
To the Members of the School Committee :
· I respectfully submit my second annual report as Superintendent of Schools, the sixty-first report in such a series.
As it was during the war years, it is still considered essential to condense the length of the various town reports. Therefore, it will not be possible to print in full the annual reports of all directors and super- visors, but I feel that the highlights in these excellent reports should be brought to your attention and to the attention of the general public.
1. Art
""The emphasis in the teaching of art is first and always to encourage the child to give expression to his own ideas and learn- ings in his own childlike way. The teacher guides, but does not dictate. She realizes that the young child speaks with symbols in his drawings and she accepts his honest efforts. No one lesson should bring uniform results, for each child in expressing himself interprets each idea from his own point of interest .. .
There are many bright spots in the work throughout the town and the trend of the art as taught is progressing well. The course of study has not been followed closely for some years now. It was necessary to adapt to war conditions, and that was done freely.
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Now, however, as we are settling down to a steadier pace the entire art course of study is in process of reconsideration. It is being rewritten with the hope of bringing it up to date with the best of the more modern educational concepts. It should be ready by next September . .
The High School art work has become increasingly interesting due to the fact that the senior 'Design for Living' class has worked out so satisfactorily . . .
The art classes as a whole are running larger this year than since before the war . . .
Our crowded room situation in the High School still exists and it makes teaching conditions very difficult. Every available corner is used and things are of necessity piled upon each other. There is equipment enough to use efficiently in three rooms at least. When and if a building program gets under way some better accommodations should be provided. We need the physical chance to give the students rich and well organized courses."
2. Music
"The music department has made gains in all the different phases of music with few exceptions. The bands, orchestras, choir, and choruses are improving rapidly and are beginning to help in the many activities of the community.
Beginning students have been greatly hindered by the shortage of instruments. They have been scarce as have many articles and the cost is all out of proportion; hence many students have been unable to begin the study of instrumental music ...
The vocal music in the grades is of the same level as in the past."
3. Physical Education
"In September the following changes in personnel and changes in duties were effected : Miss Taimi Salo replaced Miss Inez Hoag who resigned her position as High School physical education in- structor for girls; Mr. Leo Hayes was added to the system to set up an individual corrective program, to assist Mr. Oral Page with the expanded physical education classes, and to assist in the High School athletic coaching; Miss Dorothy L. Peterson was assigned the work of conducting a program for the boys and girls of Grades 1 through 6. In addition to coordinating the entire program, the Director took over the responsibility of conducting the instruction of the 7th and 8th grade boys. and girls, working in conjunction with teachers assigned from the schools.
The program content for the various grades has been designed to meet our three general objectives, namely: (1) to provide for better health through big muscle activities; (2) to teach and de- velop desirable ideas and attitudes toward physical activity; (3) to teach skills and games that may be carried over into free-time play periods."
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4. Health
"In September of 1946 Miss Rita Leonard and Miss Mary Rose Sheehy started work as full-time nurses for this department. Health is of paramount importance to all, especially school children. Realizing this, a sincere effort is being made to improve the general health program which briefly is as follows: Each year pupils in the 1st, 3rd, 5th, 7th, 9th, and 11th grades are examined by the school physicians assisted by the school nurses and by the boys' physical education instructors in the High School. Following this examination the parents are notified if any defects are dis- covered.
Schools are visited on schedule and all children are examined at intervals by the school nurse, who also administers first aid and takes charge of all accident cases. Hearing and sight tests are given and an effort is made to have corrected defects which later may cause students to be permanently handicapped. The new method of vision tests recommended by the State Division of Child Hygiene has been used by the School Health Department this year. This method takes more time than tests hitherto used but many cases of poor eyesight are discovered ... An audiometer was bor- rowed from the Massachusetts Department of Public Health. This is the best known means at present to test the hearing in schools. I hope that the time will come when the School Department feels able to purchase one so that all pupils may have routine hearing tests
Diphtheria clinics, sponsored by the Board of Health, are conducted by this department every year and efforts are made to reach every child over six months of age who has not been im- munized against this disease . . . During the war X-ray clinics conducted by the Norfolk County Tuberculosis Association and held in the various schools had to be discontinued. This year they were resumed and senior students, football players, and school , personnel who desired this service were X-rayed. Two cases of pulmonary tuberculosis were discovered in the senior class. With- out this clinic, these might have gone undiscovered until too late to make a good recovery."
5. Guidance
"The services of the guidance department during the past year were expanded to include two factors not emphasized in previous years. Over three hundred veterans, most of them former students and graduates of Weymouth High School, came to the department for assistance in making their educational plans. At the same time, many of our senior students visited the office of the department in order to obtain assistance in making out their appli- cations for admission to college or university. Because of the crowded conditions in most of these institutions of higher educa- tion, the members of the department gave more time than usual to these seniors, furnishing every possible aid to them, not only in making out applications, but also in helping them to prepare for entrance examinations.
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In addition to the added attention given to veterans and the extra effort made in the college placement of high school seniors, the work of the guidance department continued as in the past in connection with other students. This work, in accordance with standard guidance procedure as practiced in established guidance departments, may be divided into six functions; namely, the col- lection of educational and vocational information, individual testing and the collection of personal data concerning each student, coun- seling, educational and vocational planning, job placement, and the follow-up of graduates. The counseling function, which includes individual conferences and interviews of all types, is the heart of the program. All other functions exist for what they contribute to it . .
Since the beginning of organized guidance in 1942, almost all the work has been confined to the high school. However, last spring it was decided to extend educational and vocational guidance to grade eight. Therefore, a plan was organized and group guidance activities in this grade were started last fall. The plan is based on the fact that eighth grade students are concerned in part, at least, with choosing their courses of study in the high and voca- tional schools, for that is where they expect to be in the following year. Before making this choice, however, a student should know something about himself, his own interests, abilities and aptitudes. He should know something about the contributions that the school can give him in preparing himself for his life work and he should know something about the advantages and disadvantages of various occupations. These items are included in the plan of activities. Although it is not contemplated that young students will make a definite choice of occupation at this time, they will have more information about many types of work and groups of related occupations. In short, they will have more 'job wisdom' and they will be more occupation minded. The result should be an improved selection of courses of study in the high and vocational schools and a keener awareness among students of the various occupations opened to them .
In September the guidance department was moved to a room on the ground floor of the high school. This room was refurnished and designed to meet the requirements in carrying on all phases of guidance work. There is now sufficient equipment for collecting and filing all personal data and for collecting educational and vocational material. There is also an opportunity to display certain items of this material at appropriate times. There is ample space in the room for group work whenever necessary and two smaller rooms have been partitioned for counseling and for individual testing."
6. Manual Arts
"The year's work for the seventh grades consisted of the fol- lowing projects: propeller, key-rack, pencil stand, and broom holder. These projects were essentially exercise work; their pur- pose, the development of basic skills with hand tools. In the eighth
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grades each boy made a desk lamp and a corner shelf. A few made serving trays. Unlike the seventh grade work these projects were on an individualized basis. Some boys made lamps with a simple electrical circuit, while more advanced students cut in switches. Some made corner shelves with plain sides, while others, more skillful, did filigree work on the sides. Thus each was allowed to work at his highest level of ability.
I find it necessary to mention the difficulties encountered in obtaining any materials to work with."
7. Domestic Arts
"In the seventh grade, the students are learning the funda- mentals of sewing and how to operate a sewing machine. Their first project is making an apron which is mostly done by hand. Their second project is making a simple blouse by machine. The eighth grade reviews the use of the sewing machine and makes skirts, blouses, and slacks.
I should like to suggest the attaching of electric motors to the treadle machines now in use in the schools. This would not only speed up production, but also would familiarize the students with the type of machines in most homes today."
8. Penmanship
"The Functional Handwriting program was introduced into the first three grades of the Weymouth Schools in September, 1942. The handwriting pre-tests administered at the beginning of the program showed that 19.7% of the pupils made a score of "A" (Excellent) ; 17.5% made "B" (Good) ; 62.8% were graded less than "B." In the tests of June, 1946, 84% of the pupils scored "A" (Excellent) ; 7.6% made "B" (Good) ; and 8.4% were graded less than "B." During the school year approximately 20,000 formal handwriting test papers were diagnosed and graded. A monthly analysis of the handwriting achievement and needs was sent to each teacher. This diagnosis was made the basis for remedial instruction."
9. Clubs and Gardens
"The number of pupils' gardens listed in 1946 was the largest that we have ever had. This was unexpected. During the recon- struction period following World War I there was a definite decline of interest in gardens, especially in vegetable gardens. It may be that the decline will come in 1947 although the clubs being organized in December give no sign of it. There has been no change in the course of study. There has been, however, as usual, the adaptation of the lessons to the needs and interests of the pupils. Classroom work has centered in the seventh and eighth grades, with occasional visits, on request, to other grades."
10. Home Instruction for Physically Handicapped Children
"Twenty-three pupils have been enrolled in the class this year, from January second to December twentieth, forty weeks of
95.
school ... Each child has received three lessons a week unless prevented by some good reason. Of the four polio cases two re- turned to school and the others are on the mend though it may take several years in one case . . . Eight pupils were promoted in June and five pupils returned to school in September . .. Of the twelve children now in the class five may be able to return to school before next June . . .
The children have made satisfactory progress in spite of their disabilities and with their parents appreciate the advantage of home study which has prevented loss of a grade in most cases."
11. Agriculture
"Thirty-four boys worked on 16 farms or agricultural enter- prises in Weymouth, 2 in Avon, 2 in Hanson, 2 in Hingham, 2 in Walpole, and 1 in each of the following: Abington, Boston, Brain- tree, Bridgewater, Holbrook, Barnet (Vt.), Hardwick (Vt.), Passumpsic (Vt.), Peacham (Vt.), and St. Johnsbury (Vt.), rep- resenting 10 dairy farms, 5 general farms, 3 for tree warden, 3 greenhouses, 1 egg auction (2 boys employed), 2 poultry farms, 2 general landscape, 1 greenhouse and turkeys, 1 market garden, 1 animal hospital, 1 landscape and tree work, 1 nursery and green- house, 1 poultry and turkeys, and 1 food preparation."
12. High School Library
" 'The library the heart of the school.' This is the aim of every school librarian and the goal toward which she works. With this in mind, the Book Club, made up of thirty students from the four classes, held an Open House at the library on November 15 ..
The circulation for the past year, 1946, was the highest in the history of the library :
Fiction 4769
Nonfiction
Magazines Total
2965
1511 9245 ...
Classes for three freshman divisions have been completed and plans are formed for the remaining classes . . .
The returned veterans have made great use of the resources of the library. They realize that library material supplements assignments and because of their experience with service libraries, can better appreciate the facilities offered by our library."
IMPROVEMENTS AND EXTENSIONS OF PROGRAM
I should especially like to point out the following improvements and extensions of our curriculums and additions to our staff. Some of these are described in the reports of supervisors, directors, and prin- cipals :
(1) The expansion of the physical education work with the addi- tion of two new instructors, making possible a more thorough and effective program.
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(2) The final realization of an augmented permanent staff of nurses with the appointment of two full-time elementary school nurses. The increased personnel, together with the full- time attendance supervisor appointed in the spring of 1945, insures that adequate time and attention will be given to the health needs of our pupils and the many social and economic problems that arise in numerous homes to impede the full progress of children in school.
(3) The appointment of a Director of Guidance, in the person of Mr. Walter C. Gutterson, one of the teachers of guidance ; the extension of the guidance work to the seventh and eighth grades; and the fitting out of a splendid new guidance room in the High School opposite the Principal's Office.
(+) The establishment of a planned program in library instruction for seventh and eighth grade pupils in co-operation with the Tufts Library staff.
(5) The appointment of a remedial reading teacher, Mrs. Madeline C. Ambrose, whose work in the first term has been confined to the Hunt and Shaw Schools. We planned originally to have this new specialized teacher work in at least four schools each year, but in order that the excellent progress made to date by the pupils now receiving remedial instruction may not be lost by insufficient time, it may prove desirable to continue the work in the present schools for the balance of the school year. The fruitful beginning of the remedial program demonstrates the need for at least one additional teacher in order that adequate attention may be given to pupils in all parts of the town.
(6) The re-establishment of the course in Carpentry in the Voca- tional School, with Mr. Charles P. Pieper as instructor, to meet the anticipated demand for trained carpenters during the period of extensive building which will probably take place during the next few years.
(7) The beginning of an Evening School Program in Adult Edu- cation by the opening of classes in rug making and tray painting in answer to a popular demand for this type of instruction. To supplement the modest start, the 1947 budget provides for classes in shorthand, typing, bookkeeping, office machines, woodworking, and adult civic education, to be offered in the fall of 1947.
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