USA > Massachusetts > Essex County > Saugus > Town annual report of the officers and committees of the town of Scituate 1928-1930 > Part 9
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"Without entering into an extended discussion of its merits, I desire to point out briefly several obvious ad- vantages:
1. It segregates the pupils of above twelve years of age from those in the lower grades. Generally speaking, pupils from twelve to fifteen years of age are in the adolescent period. Bringing them to- gether into one school makes possible a form and content of instruction suited to their particular needs.
2. Bringing these pupils together into one school en- ables a town to provide them with an enriched
15
Report of Superintendent of Schools
curriculum including the practical arts and physical training as well as valuable extra-curricular training.
3. The six-year high school makes possible such desir- able features as promotion by subject, supervised study, and gradual introduction of departmental teaching.
4. As a result of these and other advantages over the traditional form of procedure, the six-year high school diminishes the number who drop out of school during the upper six years. In the old form of organization elimination of pupils was very great in grades seven and eight. Of those pupils who finished the eighth grade only 50 or 60% formerly entered the high school and only 35 or 40% re- mained as long as two years in high school. Under the junior high school plan of organization, there is much evidence of great improvement in the retention of pupils.
"In consideration of the need both for additional school accommodations in Scituate and for the reorganization of the school system in accordance with plans now widely ac- cepted, I am of the opinion that both these problems can best be met by enlarging the high school building so as to include the pupils of grades seven and eight in a six-year high school organization."
Referring to the High School building, Mr. Jones says: "The high school appears to be very satisfactorily housed with the exception of a gymnasium and an adequate as- sembly hall. These are features that every high school should supply. Without a gymnasium a high school is greatly handicapped in providing for the proper physical training and development of its pupils. This feature of the school program is generally recognized as one of the major objectives of the public school. With a gymnasium and your fine athletic field, Scituate would be enabled to furnish un- usually good physical training opportunities to its boys and girls." He also advised that adequate quarters be provided for the Manual Training Department and the Cafeteria.
16
Report of Superintendent of Schools
In September 1927, large classes again entered the first grades of both elementary schools and last September the same thing was repeated in spite of the fact that the age of admission was raised four months. The increase in the last three years is shown by comparing the number of pupils en- rolled December 1, 1928 in the first three grades of each school with the total enrollment.
Schools
Grades I-III
Grades IV-VIII
Total
Hatherly
92
97 127
189
Jenkins .
136
263
Combined Schools
228
224
452
In other words, in the combined schools the number of pupils in the first three grades is slightly greater than the number in the last five. This indicates clearly that we can- not continue much longer to combine any grades at the Hatherly School and that we must soon divide grades at the Jenkins School. The former school has six classrooms and the latter eight, four of which are very small, having room for not more than 30 seats.
The High School needs were taken up in my last year's report and also in that of Mr. Jones from which I have just quoted, so it is unnecessary to repeat them at this point.
Although the school department felt that these needs were obvious, and the remedy that had been proposed was a wise one, in order that there might be no doubt in the minds of the townspeople that we were recommending the very best solution of the problem we decided to ask an edu- cational expert to come in and make a careful survey of our school resources and give us his conclusions as to the proper procedure. Accordingly, last September, Prof. Herbert Blair, of Boston University, was engaged to make a study of our situation. Professor Blair has been connected with school surveys in New York State and Pennsylvania as well as in Massachusetts and the report of his survey, which is being printed in full, and the recommendations which he makes, should receive our careful attention.
17
Report of Superintendent of Schools
A SCHOOL BUILDING SURVEY AND SCHOOL BUILDING PROGRAM FOR THE TOWN OF SCITUATE, MASSACHUSETTS
BY HERBERT BLAIR,
Professor of School Administration, Boston University
It is not easy to solve the many problems that present themselves when one considers the needs of the school chil- dren of Scituate. The school population is small and scat- tered over a large area. Although it is concentrated some- what in two places, North Scituate and Scituate Harbor, there are not enough children in either place to form an effective working school unit. In addition, in Scituate Cen- ter, Greenbush and other portions of the Town are children of each school age group for whom educational facilities must be provided. This is most clearly shown in the three maps on pages 21, 23 and 25, showing the pupil distribu- tion for all the children of Scituate except those of the three lower grades. No map was prepared to show where the pupils of the first, second and third grades live because of the difficulty of getting the correct information from outsiders to make such a map. Children of five, six and seven have very vague ideas of where they live, so it seemed advisable to present only maps showing the location of the homes of the children in the last nine years of school. These maps represent what are usually designated as the inter- mediate, junior high school and senior high school divisions. It seems entirely safe to say that the map for the one hun- dred thirty-two children in the intermediate group gives also a fair indication of the location of the homes of the children of the three primary grades.
The most striking feature to be noted in a comparison of the three maps is their similarity. All parts of Scituate send children to all grades from the primary to the senior high school. Third Cliff and Minot, Greenbush and Clapp Road, the four corners of the Town, as well as all roads near the center, are represented in the high school as well as in the lower grades.
Another point that should be noted is that the site of
18
Report of Superintendent of Schools
Grade . . .
5
6
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
Total
84
I.
41 36
5
2
73
II.
31
35
3
3
1
43
III.
1
20
14
6
1
1
36
IV.
49
V ..
3
20
16
7
1
1
1
1
15
20
5
4
2
VI. .
13
15
8
3
3
VII.
1
14
20
15
7
57
VIII.
1
14
12
8
1
1
37
IX.
1
9
11
6
1
28
X.
2
14
12
2
30
XI.
16
8
I
1
26
XII.
Total.
41
68
60
36
43
39
43
38
48
44
43
35
11
2
1
552
14
13
6
1
2
47
42
. .
TABLE I AGE-GRADE-PROGRESS TABLE Ages as of October 1, 1927 (1927-28)
19
Report of Superintendent of Schools
the present high school, while over a mile away from the homes of most of the children (the two circles are one mile and two miles respectively from the high school), is in spite of that fact more advantageously located for a very large majority of the children than it would be if located any- where else. It is generally conceded that a mile and a half is not too far to ask junior high school pupils to walk, and two miles is not too far for senior high school pupils. Cer- tainly the educational advantages to the pupils of being parts of a larger unit that would result from having the upper six grades together, far outweighs the disadvantage of travel- ing a somewhat greater distance to school.
The reasons for having children grouped in larger units is frequently not clear to people who attended school a gen- eration ago, when the average child dropped out of school long before completing the eighth grade and less than ten per cent of the total school enrollment were in the high school.
One of the reasons, so far as Scituate is concerned, is illustrated by the Age-Grade-Progress Table on page 18, showing the number of children of each age group in each grade as well as the number of grades in which children of any particular age may be found.
Take for example the forty-seven children in the sixth grade. One child is only nine years old, fifteen are ten years old, twenty are eleven years old, five are twelve years old, four are thirteen and two are fourteen. What do ten- year-old children have in common with those of thirteen and fourteen except that they are in the same grade at school? Their outside of school social activities are not the same, their friends are not the same and their point of view toward life is far different. When children are grouped in small units we always find a wide age span in each grade group. When they can be combined in larger units it is possible to have children more nearly of the same age and ability working together.
Reading this table the other way, a wide range of grades are included when we take the grade distribution of the pupils of any one age group. One of the eleven-year-old
20
Report of Superintendent of Schools
children is in the third grade, another is in the fourth, seven are in the fifth grade, twenty in the sixth grade (the normal grade for eleven-year-old children) thirteen are in the seventh grade and one is in the eighth grade. Children that are in grades with children several years older than them- selves are just as socially misplaced as are children who are grouped with those who are younger than they. Simply pushing bright children ahead because we have no facilities for giving them a larger program is better than having them develop habits of idleness through loafing in grades where the work is too easy for them, but it is a makeshift device that does not need to be tolerated in a community like Scituate.
EDUCATIONAL NEED
It is quite generally conceded by students of education that an effective educational organization is one that pro- vides a continuous program for all types of children, making provision for a differentiation of work according to the mental ability of the children as well as their physical and vocational needs. To meet these needs of "all the children of all the people" twelve years of schooling are usually offered by the public school. This includes training in cer- tain skills that are needed by all children, such as writing, reading and the fundamental processes in arithmetic; an acquaintance with the social studies such as geography, history and civics; and some knowledge of the fine and applied arts such as music, drawing, sewing and the use of tools. Such a program can well be given in six of the twelve years, rather than eight, with the relative amounts of each portion of the program adjusted to the abilities of the indi- vidual child. The second half of the program should vary in many respects from that given in the elementary school. Courses of an exploratory nature should be offered. The pupils should be given a chance to find their abilities and special interests through the offering of courses in different fields. Boys and girls of thirteen or older, no matter where they might be classed in the grades of the elementary school, should be able to find in the secondary school activities such
21
Report of Superintendent of Schools
T
E
CONASDIT
C
0
H
A
5
1 1
Pro
7
core
MANN HILL
SCITUATE
CENTRE
SHORE ACRES
BAY
......
SANDHILLS
GREENBUSH
0
„SCITUATE
NALAI
SCITUATE
0
HADOOR
FIRST CUFF
SECOND CLIFF
0
P
7
THIRD CLIFE
A
NORTH
C
RIVER
F
5
5
AR
1
M
· PUPIL DISTRIBUTION SCITUATE . MASS - . GRADES - IV.X VI.
NO SCITUATE
٥٢٣ ٥٥
MINOT
NOATH LLITUATY BEACH
5
HARPOR
E
22
Report of Superintendent of Schools
as shop work, music, drawing, athletics and citizenship in which they can succeed.
THE COMMUNITY
The Town of Scituate has an extensive coast line on the Atlantic Ocean and so has a large summer population that is increasing rapidly. The resident population has in- creased more slowly. Table I, giving the number of births, deaths and average school membership during the past ten years shows that the birth rate is about 10 per cent larger than the death rate. The school population, while remain- ing practically stationary for several years, has increased about 25 per cent during the past four years, the rate of increase being quite regular year by year since 1924.
TABLE II
Year
Births
Deaths
Average School Membership
1919
35
26
457
1920
60
50
456
1921
54
42
454
1922
52
47
457
1923
59
60
466
1924
57
46
466
1925
56
54
480
1926
65
69
509
1927
66
58
528
1928
64
54
590
Average
57
51
THE SCHOOL POPULATION
This school population is distributed in three buildings. The Hatherly, a six-room wooden building, located near North Scituate, with an enrollment of 183 pupils; the Jenkins, an eight-room wooden building, located near Scitu- ate Harbor, with an enrollment of 248 pupils; and the high school, located at Scituate Center, with 137 pupils.
The distribution of pupils by grades for the past ten years is shown on page 26 in the Table of Membership as of December. Two things about this table should attract immediate notice. The comparatively stable membership of the elementary school up to 1925 and its rapid increase since
23
Report of Superintendent of Schools
T
E
COWASSER
C
0
H
A
5
SCITUATE
MINOT
7
NORTH MITVA'F BEACH
1
NATHERLY
Anguashout
Corp
ERAT MERCE
MAN HILL
CENTRAL
SCITUATE CENTRE
SHORE ACRES
1
A
00
RN
---
SANDHALLS
GREENBUSH
NARA
SCITUATE
O
HARTOR
FIRST CUI##
SECOND CLIFE
E
7
NORT
A
1
--
RIVER
C
1
I
5
M
1
· PUPIL · DISTRIBUTION . SCITUATE MASS JUNIOR HIGH GRADES-VII . VIII - IX .
S
HARDOR
P
THIRD CLIFF
HAY
24
Report of Superintendent of Schools
then, and the additional fact that the high school member- ship has remained almost stationary. Indeed, if the "Junior" memberhip for 1919 and 1920 is added to that of the ninth grade, something that seems to have been done in 1920 and later years, the first year's membership at the high school has increased hardly at all during the ten-year period we are considering. It is difficult to account for the membership in the first year of the high school during this period, since it is larger almost every year than was the membership of the preceding eighth grade.
The most important fact to notice in this table is the persistent holding power of the school. To make this point more emphatic the membership of the first grade for 1920, an exceptionally large group not equalled until 1926, has been underscored, as well as the membership of this class year by year as it progresses from grade to grade. The 68 of the first grade becomes 59 in the second grade, 61 in the third, 65 in the fourth and fifth, 73 in the sixth, 65 in the seventh, 52 in the eighth and 47 in the present first year of the high school. In a similar way any other class may be traced year by year showing a similar condition. It is not contended that 65 pupils became 73 pupils a year later, but such pupils as dropped out or were transferred away were replaced by other pupils transferred in. There is every reason to believe that within five or six years, when the present large classes in the first three grades are ready for high school, that the high school membership will be double what it is at present.
THE PRESENT BUILDINGS
The three school buildings in Scituate are all over- crowded. The Hatherly School was built in 1896 and cost at that time $8,600. The Jenkins School was built eight years later and cost $16,000. Both buildings have the same general plan, two rooms in front too small for regular classroom units, and the two rooms in the rear that are much too large. Through alterations last summer the Hatherly front rooms are now adequate. No cloakrooms are pro- vided except rows of hooks along the corridor wall. The
25
Report of Superintendent of Schools
1
E
COHASSET
C
O
5
HARMOR
A
5
NO SCITUATE
Joorn
7
MINOP
NORTH SCITVA "+ BEACH
7
Aunqueshort Pond
EOYPT
MANN HIL
RITUARE CENTRE
SHORE ACAES
BAY 10
CILENVR OF
1
SCITUATE,
SCITUATE
HADOOR
FIRST CLIFF
SECING CLIFE
0
E
7
P
NORTH
THIRD CLIFE
A
RIVER
C
---
I
S
· PUPIL - DISTRIBUTION .
· SCITUATE . MASS .
· SENIOR . HIGH ·
· GRADES .X-XI-XII . .
MAR
SANDHILLS
GREENBUSH
26
Report of Superintendent of Schools
TABLE III SCHOOL MEMBERSHIP AS OF DECEMBER FOR A TEN-YEAR PERIOD
Grade
1919 Dec. 19
1920 Dec. 23
1921 Dec. 23
1922 Dec. 22
1923 Dec. 22
1924 Dec. 19
1925 Dec. 23
1926 Dec. 1
1927 Dec. 1
1928 Nov. 1
I.
48
68
39
48
52
41
51
82
74
89
II. ..
37
36
59
34
40
42
34
41
71
72
III.
37
36
44
61
32
42
40
28
42
68
IV
. .
37
34
39
52
65
35
45
48
35
43
V.
37
36
34
34
56
65
40
44
46
38
VI.
45
45
39
36
30
50
73
43
46
51
VII. .
52
41
35
39
31
40
44
65
45
48
VIII.
34
44
42
36
39
27
38
39
52
45
Total of Elementary .
· 327
340
333
340
345
342
365
390
411
454
IX
30
18
45
56
42
42
33
34
36
47
X.
22
36
29
31
41
31
28
33
29
34
XI. ..
19
18
31
15
24
29
25
26
28
29
XII.
17
16
18
15
14
22
29
26
24
27
Junior . .
42
28
· · ·
. .
. . .
. .
. .
. .
. . .
. .
Total of High School
130
116
123
117
121
124
115
119
117
137
Total . ..
457
456
454
457
466
466
480
509
528
591
% Elementary of Total ...
71.5
74.5
72.0
74.0
74.0.
73.0
76.0
76.6
77.8
77.0
% High School of Total. ..
28.5
25.5
27.0
26.0
26.0
27.0
24.0
23.4
22.2
·
27
Report of Superintendent of Schools
wooden stairs both lead directly from the same corridor to the floor above so that if either stair were blocked, the other would be also. The toilet rooms, equipped with old, un- sanitary fixtures, are in the basement with inadequate provision for privacy or supervision. It would be very unwise to consider in any way the enlargement of these buildings.
It would not be fair to fail to mention the excellent repair in which these buildings are kept and their general state of cleanliness. The site for either building conforms with good school standards for location and elevation and can easily be increased in size.
Some ten years ago the Strayer-Engelhardt Score Card for School Buildings was devised which lists the points to be observed in a school building regarding its usefulness for school purposes and also gives a value to each of these points on a basis of 1,000 points for a building that is con- sidered excellent in every respect. The main divisions of this score are (1) the site; (2) the building; (3) the service systems, heat, ventilating, fire protection, water, lighting, toilets; (4) the classrooms; and (5) special rooms, such as auditorium, library, science, arts, health, etc. The book of standards gives detailed directions for weighing each item.
The score of the Hatherly building is reproduced on pages 28-29 and shows this building to have 383 out of a possible 1,000 points. The Jenkins scores 350. Since 500 is con- sidered a low score and any building scoring as low as 500 should be replaced as soon as possible, any further expense incurred on either building would be so much money wasted. Just as worn-out clothing is discarded for modern up-to- date garments and obsolete models traded in for more effi- cient cars, so school buildings that fail to meet the educa- tional needs of the children and are in addition a menace to their health and safety must in time be replaced by better buildings. Certainly neither the Hatherly nor the Jenkins is of the type that would attract prospective homeseekers desiring good schools for their children.
The high school building while scoring low, 525 points out of a possible 1,000, seems worthy of entirely different
28
Report of Superintendent of Schools
STRAYER-ENGELHARDT SCORE CARD FOR ELEMENTARY SCHOOL BUILDINGS SCORE OF HATHERLY BUILDING
I. SITE.
125
85
A. Location.
55
45
1. Accessibility
25
20
2. Environment.
30
25
B. Drainage.
30
15
1. Elevation.
20
10
2. Nature of soil
10
5
C. Size and form.
40
25
40
25
II. BUILDING .
A. Placement .
25
15
1. Orientation.
15
5
2. Position of site.
10
10
B. Gross structure .
60
35
1. Type.
5
0
2. Material
10
0
3. Height.
5
5
4. Roof .
5
5
5. Foundations
5
5
6. Walls .
5
0
7. Entrances
10
10
8. Aesthetic balance
5
5
9. Condition . .
10
5
C. Internal structure .
80 10
1. Stairways .
35
0
2. Corridors .
20
0
3. Basement
15 0
4. Color scheme
5
5
5. Attic.
5
5
III. SERVICE SYSTEM.
280 63:
A. Heating and ventilation
80
10
1. Kind.
15
5
2. Installation
15
5
3. Air supply .
15
0
4. Fans and motors
10 0
5. Distribution.
10
0
6. Temperature control .
10
0
7. Special provisions
5
0
B. Fire protection system.
1. Apparatus.
10
5
2. Fireproofness
15
0
3. Escapes .
20
5
4. Electric wiring.
5
0
5. Fire doors and partitions
10
0
6. Exit lights and signs
5
5
C. Cleaning system
20
5
1. Kind.
5
0
2. Installation
5
0
3. Efficiency . 10 5
20
8
1. Gas and electricity.
5
5
2. Outlets and adjustment
5
0
3. Illumination. . 5
0
4. Method and fixtures. 5
3
165
60
1
2
3
65
15
D. Artificial lighting system
29
Report of Superintendent of Schools
1
2
3
E. Electric service system
15
5
1. Clock. .
5
0
2. Bells and gongs
5
0
3. Telephone. .
5 5
F. Water supply system
30
5
1. Drinking.
10
5
2. Washing
10
0
3. Bathing.
5
0
4. Hot and cold
5
0
G. Toilet system.
50
15
1. Distribution
10
0
2. Fixtures .
10
5
3. Adequacy and arrangement. 10
5
4. Seclusion
5
0
5. Sanitation.
15
5
IV. CLASSROOMS
A. Location and connection.
35
15
35
15
B. Construction and finish.
1. Size and number
25
10
2. Shape
15
5
3. Floors.
10
5
4. Walls and ceilings
10
5
5. Doors.
5
3
6. Closets.
5
2
7. Blackboards .
10
10
8. Bulletin boards. 5
0
9. Color scheme.
10
10
C. Illumination .
85
45
1. Glass area
45
25
2. Windows
30
10
3. Shades . 10
10
D. Cloakrooms and wardrobes
25
0
25
0
E. Equipment.
1. Seats and desks
35
35
2. Teacher's desk .
10
10
3. Other equipment. 5
5
V. SPECIAL ROOMS.
A. Large rooms for general use
65
5
1. Playroom.
10
5
2. Auditorium
15
0
3. Library .
10
0
4. Gymnasium.
15 0
5. Swimming pool. 0 5
6. Lunch room. 10
0
B. Rooms for school officials.
35
5
1. Officers.
10
0
2. Teachers' room
10
0
3. Medical suite. 10 5
4. Janitor's room .
5
0
C. Other special service rooms
40
5
1. Household arts.
20
0
2. Industrial arts
10
0
3. General science and drawing
5
0
4. Storerooms
5
5
Totals
1,000
383
1,000
383
1,000
383
50
50
140
15
290 160
95
50
30
Report of Superintendent of Schools
treatment. The low score is due more to the fact that the building lacks certain features considered necessary in a modern high school rather than because what there is of the building is poor. The addition of a satisfactory audi- torium-gymnasium would add 75 points to the score, a cafeteria would add 20 points, a health unit 15 points, industrial shops 25 points, etc. In other words the building could be raised from the low score of 500 points to the fairly satisfactory score of 700 points provided sufficient facilities were added to enable the school to offer a modern educa- tional program based on pupil activities rather than the very narrow recitation from a textbook type of instruction now used, because, with the present plant, no other is possible.
The good points about the present high school building are more than its poor ones. The site is excellent in every respect: ample in size (about twelve acres), centrally situ- ated, equipped with tennis courts, athletic field and running track. Few communities many times the size of Scituate are so fortunate.
The building itself is placed to advantage on the site, leaving ample room for lawns and shrubbery without inter- fering in any way with the area needed for physical educa- tion. The classrooms are entirely satisfactory in regard to size, shape, placement of doors and windows, lighting and location. The present assembly hall will make a most excel- lent library, permitting the present library to be used for classroom purposes. The laboratory on the second floor, with proper equipment, is large enough for any enrollment the high school is likely to have during the next ten years. The large classroom on the second floor, now used as a home room, might well be divided into two. Each of the rooms would be amply large for all but the largest classes.
According to the present schedule not all of the class- rooms are now used all of the time. In fact on the average one classroom is vacant each of the periods during the day. With the two classrooms added through the use of the library as a classroom and the extra room gained by divid- ing into two the large room on the second floor, a much
31
Report of Superintendent of Schools
larger enrollment could be cared for in the present building so far as classrooms are concerned.
The proposed gymnasium would be provided with a stage, with provision for seat storage, and a gallery for spectators with locker space underneath. If the floor for the gymnasium were made only large enough to provide the minimum playing floor for basket ball (forty feet by sixty feet) with three feet on each side between the field line and the wall of the gymnasium, nearly five hundred people could be seated on the main floor. If it were thought possible to provide a larger playing surface an increasingly larger num- ber of seats could be placed when the room was used as an auditorium.
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