Town annual reports of Acton, Massachusetts 1906-1910, Part 5

Author: Acton (Mass.)
Publication date: 1906
Publisher:
Number of Pages: 694


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Section 2. This act shall take effect on the first day of January in the year nineteen hundred and six. [Approved April 21, 1905.


[CHAP. 375.]


AN ACT RELATIVE TO THE RIGHT OF CHILDREN OF NON- RESIDENT PARENTS TO ATTEND PUBLIC SCHOOLS.


Section 1. Section four of chapter forty-four of the Revised Laws is hereby amended by striking out all after the word "guar- dian," in the second line, to and including the word "to," where said word first occurs in the fifth line, and inserting in place thereof the words :- and in the opinion of the school committee of the said city or town such residence is for the purpose of there attend- ing school in preference to the place of the legal residence of his parent or guardian, the said city or town may recover from the parent or guardian for the tuition of said child, while there attend- ing school, subject to appeal to the probate court,-so as to read as follows :- Section 4. If a child resides in a city or town other than that of the legal residence of his parent or guardian, and in the opinion of the school committee of the said city or town such residence is for the purpose of there attending school in preference to the place of the legal residence of his parent or guardian, the said city or town may recover from the parent or guardian for the tuition of said child, while there attending school, subject to appeal to the probate court, an amount equal to the average expense of


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such school for each pupil during the preceding year, for a period equal to the time during which the child so attends, unless the city or town in which the parent or guardian resides is required by sec-' tion three of chapter forty-two to pay for said tuition. For the tuition in the public schools in any city or town of a child between the ages of five and fifteen years, who shall be placed elsewhere than in his own home by the state board of charity, or by the trus- tees of the Lyman and industrial schools, or kept under the control of either of said boards in said city or town, the Commonwealth shall pay to said city or town, and for such tuition of any such child so placed by the trustees for children of the city of Boston, or so kept under the control of said trustees, the city of Boston from its appropriation for school purposes, shall pay to said city or town, fifty cents for each week of five days, or major part thereof, of attendance of every such child in the public schools. For the transportation to and from a public school of any child whose tuition is payable by the Commonwealth or by the city of Boston under the provisions of this section, the Commonwealth or the city of Boston, as the case may be, shall pay to the city or town furnishing such transportation, for each week of five days or major part thereof, an amount equal to the average amount for each child paid by said city or town per week for the transporta- tion of children to and from school over the route by which such child is conveyed. Settlements of the accounts of the several cities and towns with the Commonwealth and with the city of Bostou shall be made annually on the first day of April, and the amounts found due shall be paid within three months thereafter. The money received by said cities and towns under the provisions of this sec- tion shall be applied to the support of schools. For the tuition in the public schools in any town of less than ten thousand inhabi- tants cf any child between the ages of five and fifteen years not theretofore resident in such town, who is an inmate of an institu- tion containing more than six inmates, said town may recover from said institution the extra school expense incurred, as may be de- termined jointly by the school committee of said town and the trustees or managers of said institution, or, in case of disagreement between said school committee and said trustees or managers, as


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may be decreed by the probate court; but no demand shall be made upon said trustees or managers without a vote of the town in- structing the school committee to that effect.


Section 2. This act shall take effect upon its passage. [Approved May 5, 1905.


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BIRTHS REGISTERED IN 1901


No.


Date


Name of Child


Names of Parents


1 Jan. 2 Gladys Arvilla Colby


2 Jan. 9 Hope Kimball


3 Jan. 16 George Albert McAllister Geo. O. and Mary V. (McIntyre)


4 Mar. 7 Theresa Amelia Lundberg


5 Mar. 18 Marion Morse Davis


Axel G. and Amauda (Lofneudahl) Fred W. and Lizzie (Morse)


6 Mar. 27 George Berg


George O. and Margaret (Hayes)


7 April 2 Ruth Esther Clark


8 April 10 Edgar Henry Hall, jr.


9 May 2 Gladys Lorena Warren


10 May 15 Jonathan Walter Teele


11 May 30 Sidney Charles Smith


12 June 4 James Oscar Brodeur


13 June 11 Harold Patrick Powers


14 June 15 Orland Elwood Spinney


15 July 3 Eugene Philip Lowden


16 July 6 Marion Hayes


17 July 16 Ruth Bell Levy


18 Aug. 3 George Douglas Smith


19 Aug. 13 Clarence Hill


20 Aug. 15 Ruth Choate Harlow


21 Aug. 21 Vira Lillis Stone


22 Aug. 25 Florence Amanda Wheeler


23 Aug. 31 Clara Lillian Smith


24 Sept. 8 Charles Oliver Brown


25 Sept. 13


Margaret Hall


26 Oct. 10 Klara Cornelia Lee


27 Oct. 16 Stephen Roger Townsend


28 Oct. 18 Harry Clifford Barteaux


29 Oct. 29 Mary Ruth Brazier


30 Nov. 28 Joseph Howard Kellogg


31 Dec. 9 Dorothy Zoe Dusseault


32 Dec. 27 Ernest Cooper Greenough


33 Dec. 30 Edith Sophia Tu tle


George W. and Ella J. (Hartt) Charles M. and Carrie E. (Jones)


Harry A. and Catherine F. (Keegan)


Edgar H. and Angeline (Hutchins)


George C. and Hattie K. (Smith) Ernest R. and Martha R. (Shattuck) Henry and Annie B. (Gray) Chas. E. and Annie L (Woodard) Edward and Mary Ellen (Powers) Everett and Lillian M. (Woli) Arthur S. and Bertha M (Newton) Michael G. and KatherineA. (McNerny) Amos E. and Lena S. (Baird) John D. and Louisa A. (Frazer) James and Mary J. (McArthur) Ellis B. and Lillian A. (Downing) Peter G. and Rose M. (McGuire) Elbr'dge L. and Florence I (Noyes) Robert J. and Hattie L. (Hawes) Chas. W. and Edna A. (Knowlton) Eugene L. and Isabella H (Bent) John and Kristine (Kolseth) Stephen F. and Jessie H. (Jones) Harry P. and Minnie M. (Littlefield) Andrew B. and Mary M. (Lucier) Geo. A. and Carrie I. (Campbell) George A. and Mildred F. (Mills)


George E. aud Sarah A. (Edwards) Luke H. and Hattie Lee (Miles)


99


SIXTY-NINTH ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SCHOOL


COMMITTEE.


To the Citizens of Acton:


That portion of this report prepared by the committee may very well be confined within quite restricted limits. £ We have great pleasure in again being able to report your schools to be in excellent condition. Not in many years has the machinery of our school sys- tem moved more smoothly or with less friction than during the year just closing, and this condition is due in very large measure to the efficiency of the superintendence and to the faithful service of competent teachers.


The increase within the last year or two in the amount received from, the income of the Massachusetts School Fund has greatly aided us in retaining the services of tried and successful teachers, since it has enabled us in such cases to pay larger salaries without making further drafts upon your generosity at the annual town meeting.


During the summer vacation Mr. A. L. Faxon, the principal of the high school, tendered his resignation, with the purpose of accepting a more attractive position in Utica, N. Y. The vacancy was filled by the appointment of Mr. W. B. Pierce, principal of the high school at Goffstown, N. H., whose work has been highly satisfactory.


In our report of last year your attention was called to the fact that some of the schools were greatly in need of a piano as an assistance to the work in music. The West school having most


100


need of such an instrument, your committee towards the close of the year appropriated a small sum from the appropriation for com- mon schools for the purchase of a piano for the West grammar school.


That portion of this report prepared by the superintendent of schools and treating in detail of their work and requirements is especially commended to your attention.


The sum of $300 has been received from the State on account of the salary of the superintendent of schools for the year ending September 1st, 1905.


The reports of the truant officers and of the purchasing agent are appended.


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RECEIPTS AND EXPENDITURES ON ACCOUNT OF SCHOOLS FOR THE FISCAL YEAR 1905-1906.


RECEIPTS.


Appropriation for:


Common schools,


$3,800 00


High school,


1,800 00


School supplies,


525 00


Transportation of pupils,


1,360 00


Salary of supt. of schools,


480 00


Received from:


Mass. school fund,


1,026 40


Dog licenses,


320 00


Tuition fees,


10 00


$9,321 40


EXPENDITURES.


For common schools,


$4,799 76


High school,


1,861 12


School supplies,


502 93


Transportation of pupils,


1,333 50


Salary of supt. of schools,


480 00


$8,977 31


Unexpended balance.


$344 09


102


ESTIMATE FOR THE SUPPORT OF SCHOOLS FOR THE YEAR .


1906-1907.


For common schools,


$3,800 00


High school,


1,800 00


School supplies,


525 00


Transportation of pupils,


1,360 00


Salary of supt. of schools,


480 00


$7,965 00


The School Committee of Acton, By CHAS. J. WILLIAMS,


Chairman.


103


REPORT OF THE SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS.


Gentlemen of the School Committee:


This, my sixth annual report, which is the fourteenth in the series, is hereby submitted to you and through you to the citi- zens of Acton for the year ending March 1, 1906.


Below are given the school census of September, 1905, and a sum- mary of statistics from September, 1904, to June, 1905. At the end of this report will be found tabulated statistics from Septem- ber, 1904, to March, 1906.


Number of persons in town between 7 and 14 years of age, boys, 111; girls, 130; total, 241.


Number of persons in town between 5 and 15 years of age: Boys, 146; girls, 183; total, 329.


Number of illiterate minors over 14 years of age: Boys, 0; Girls, 1; total 1.


Number enrolled in all the schools, 362


Number of pupils between 7 and 14 years of age, 236


Number of pupils between 5 and 15 years of age, 314


Number of pupils over 15 years of age,


41


Average membership,


321


Average attendance,


297


Percent of attendance,


92.5


Number of schools,


10


Number of teachers, 12


Number of male teachers 1


Number of female teachers,


11


104


Number of college graduates, 2 Number who have attended college, 3 Number of normal graduates,


.


6


TEACHERS.


A few changes have occurred in the teaching force and the stand- ard of good work has been well maintained during the year.


During the summer Miss Angie Main resigned to accept a school in Waltham, her home city, and Miss Minnie Gamble of Woburn was elected to succeed her as teacher in the Centre Grammar school. Miss Charlotte Canfield, a graduate of Lowell Normal school, followed Miss Martha Fagerstrom at the South Intermediate school. In December Miss Elizabeth Sheehan accepted a more lucra- tive position in the Newton schools and was followed by Miss Karine Ekman of Woburn as teacher in the West Grammar school.


HIGH SCHOOL.


During the summer Mr. A. L. Faxon resigned to accept a posi- tion in Utica, N. Y., after five years' faithful service as principal of the High school. Mr. Faxon was a man of quiet, unassuming man- ners, rare tactfulness in the administration of school affairs and ever alert to the best interests of the school. His services will long be remembered and appreciated by those who knew him best.


Mr. W. B. Pierce, a graduate of Bates College and a teacher of several years' successful experience, was chosen to succeed Mr. Faxon, and Miss Mary Bartlett, Bates College, '05, was appointed assistant teacher in place of Miss Atwood, resigned.


The general spirit and progress of the students is commendable and we have no hesitancy in saying that the school under the pres- ent management merits the fullest confidence of parents and citizens. Your attention is called to a fuller report of the High school by the principal, Mr. Pierce, which is appended.


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PROMOTIONS.


Most promotions occur at the close of the school year and in determining the grade in which it is advisable for the pupil to spend the coming year judgment is based entirely upon what is desmed best for each individual child. The truth that the school is for the child and not the child for the school should never be lost sight of.


When it is evident that any pupil, through some mental defect has received from any given grade all that it seems possible for him to derive from it he should be allowed to advance with his class to the next grade. This is done with the thought that with a new environment and through the presentation of different subject mat- ter he may be quickened to better effort and may make better prog- ress than as if he had been obliged to repeat the work of the lower grade.


If, on the other hand, a child because of slow development and immaturity of mind fails to derive from any given grade all that he is capable of deriving from it, with the necessary mental growth and strength which time alone can give him, that pupil should be obliged to repeat the grade work. While on the surface it may seem that the schools are partial and do not treat all alike the con- stant aim and desire of teachers and school authorities is to treat all according to merit with a view to the welfare of each pupil.


REPORT CARDS.


A report of every pupil's standing in school is sent to parents at the middle and close of each term. In marking these cards the teacher exercises her best judgment as to the character of the work done by the pupils in her classes. It sometimes happens, as all who have had any experience in teaching well know, that a given grade, composed of the less ambitious or brilliant pupils, is not fully up to the requirements and the teacher must necessarily adapt the work to the capacity of the class. By so doing her pupils are able to make commendable progress although on a somewhat lower


106


level than that of regular grade work and while a card may in- dicate commendable results for the year the pupil may not be ready for promotion to the next higher grade.


A report card is designed primarily to give a true record of the pupil's daily work and effort and in the majority of cases is an ab- solute guide for promotion although, as I have endeavored to ex- plain, does not purport to be the only or infallible one.


MORAL INSTRUCTION.


Moral instruction in the public schools, ever a vital subject, is now receiving a great deal of attention and much is being said and written upon it. One of the best articles that has come to my notice appeared in a recent leading periodical and for the benefit of those who may not have seen it, I quote quite generally from it. The author states that the cry for more effective moral in- struction in the schools and for a better moral output from them is growing more and more insistent. It is pointed out that crime is on the increase and the public schools, as one of several educa- tional agencies, are in some measure responsible for it. Granting that the schools have a serious responsibility in the matter the ques- tion arises, what is to be done?


In the teaching of morality there are two general types corre- sponding to the two ways of teaching religion; namely, the formal teaching of ethics and the informal inculcation of morality. Each of these types has strong advocates but the weight of opinion seems to favor the latter and to adhere to the idea that to at- tempt to secure morality by instruction is not only futile but per- nicious and that behavior can no more be taught by rule than can correct speech. The advocates of the informal inculcation of morality believe that the two great means of moral education are individuals and institutions, and that the best results are obtained through the personal character of the teacher, and through such a choice of subjects of study and such methods of teaching as will produce respect for the school and exert a moral influence upon the pupil.


IO7


For the benefit of any who may be interested an outline is ap- pended embodying these views and indicating the lines on which the problems of moral education are being worked out in the class- room by thousands of teachers in many of the leading elementary schools in the country.


"It should be the aim of every teacher to make each part of the life of the school count for moral education. This aim should be present not cnly in formal instruction and training, but also in the general atmosphere and spirit of the class room and of the school. In working toward this aim the following suggestions based on the experience of practical teachers, will be found helpful:


1. The personality of the teacher is at the root of all moral education in the school. The teacher's ideals, sincerity, poise, self- control, courtesy, voice, manner, dress and general attitude toward life are potent forces for character building.


2. Reverence is vital to morality, whatever quickens in children the feeling of dependence on a Higher Power, whatever leads them devoutly to wonder at the order, beauty or mystery of the universe, whatever arouses in them the sentiment of worship or fills them with admiration of true greatness, promotes reverence. There is no subject studied in school which reverently taught, may not yield its contribution to this feeling.


3. Self-respect, which is also fundamental to moral develop- ment is engendered in a child when he does his best at tasks that are worth while and within his power to do well.


4. The corner-stone of a self-respecting character is principle- the will to be true to the right, because it is right, whatever the consequences, to act "with firmness in the right as God gives us to see the right."


5. The spirit of the class-room and of the school-the spirit that makes children say with pride "my class" and "our school"- is one of the strongest of moral forces. When there exists a proper esprit du corps, the problem of discipline is largely solved.


6. The child should early gain the idea of social membership.


108


The truth that co-operation and unselfishness are essential to true social living should be made real and vital.


-


The child should also learn that he is a member, not only of the school, but of the family, of the neighborhood, of the town and of the state and nation. The meaning of loyal membership of these social institutions should be made clear. The naturalness and the necessity of obedience and helpfulness should be shown. The moral aspect of home tasks and of working with and not against the departments of health, street-cleaning, police and education, should be enforced by concrete applications. In general, the truth should be impressed that without loyal and effective social mem- bership no individual can wholly live.


7. No person has a fully developed moral character until there has been a transfer of the seat of authority from without to within himself: A moral man obeys himself. Each child in every grade should be steadily helped toward self-direction and self-gov- ernment.


8. In connection with the regular studies of the school, certain aspects of contemporary civilization which are of value for develop- ing the social spirit should receive attention. Hospitals, societies for the prevention of cruelty to children and to animals, homes for orphans and for the aged and infirm, fresh air funds, and simi- lar agencies for social service, should be brought within the child's comprehension at the proper stage. Deeds of heroism and self- sacrifice done by firemen, policemen, soldiers, inventors and per- sons in the ordinary walks of life should be presented and dwelt on. The truth that success in life means more than mere money- getting can thus be brought home again and again.


9. In all such moral instruction and guidance the following principles should be observed :


(a) The course of moral training is a development.


(b) The culture of the imagination is a powerful aid in moral instruction.


(c) In using literature and similar material for purposes of moral instruction, the teacher should not violate the law of self-


109


activity. The child properly resents having a moral drawn for him which he could draw for himself, and he is the more likely to follow the principle which he himself discovers or formulates, be- cause it is his own.


(d) The most effective method in moral education is positive rather than negative. A mind filled with good interests, high ideals, and helpful activities has no room for evil."


MEDICAL INSPECTION.


The state in establishing and maintaining a system of public schools is able to provide facilities which ordinary means cannot afford. At present there is a movement on foot providing for medi- cal inspection in the public schools and the annual examination of the sight and hearing of school children. Boston introduced medi- cal inspection in 1894 and the system has been adopted in some fifteen of the Massachusetts cities and towns and now the idea is to make it universal.


It has been shown over and over again that frequent and thorough inspection for the detection of contagious disease is of the highest value in preserving the public health. It has been shown also that about 25 percent of school children are defective in sight and that 5 percent are defective in hearing. What is of special importance is that only a small minority of these defects of sight and hearing are discovered by the teachers, or are known to them, to the parents, or to the children themselves.


The expense of inspection, which will be large, will be met by a special appropriation, to be expended by the State Board of Edu- cation.


STATE INSPECTION.


For the benefit of those who may be interested and have no knowledge of the recent legislation regarding district superintend- ents, the following is appended from the Revised Laws of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, relating to public instruction. Chapter 215, Acts of 1904, provides as follows:


IIO


"In all the superintendency unions in which any part of the ex- pense of the superintendent is borne by the Commonwealth the State Board of Education shall determine, by examination or other- wise, the qualifications of candidates for the position of superintend- ent of public schools, and, after the first day of January in the year nineteen hundred and five, no person shall be elected to such posi- tion who does not hold a certificate of fitness and competency from said board."


The schools are inspected annually by the state agents, men whose lives have been devoted to educational interests. Thus the state through her authorities knows the quality of the work being done and determines and maintains the educational standards in the public schools throughout the districts of the state.


It is hoped that parents and citizens generally will visit the schools often and know by personal inspection what their children are doing.


In conclusion I wish to say that the generous attitude of your chairman, his masterful manner of dealing with all matters pertaining to school affairs and his frequent inspection of the work have been of inestimable value. Whatever success may have been attained has been due to your co-operation and constant support without which all efforts of teachers and superintendents are of lit- tle avail.


Respectfully submitted,


HERBERT E. RICHARDSON,


Superintendent of Schools.


III


REPORT OF THE HIGH SCHOOL PRINCIPAL.


Superintendent H. E. Richardson:


Dear Sir-I present the following report of the Acton High School:


The total number of students registered is twenty-seven. Of these one student attended only one day. Of the remaining twenty- six it may be said that with a few exceptions their work is done with a faithfulness and sincerity that is very gratifying to the teachers.


The entering class is somewhat smaller than it has been in past years, but it makes up in quality what it may lack in numbers. The way that the students in this class have entered upon the work and have adapted themselves to the new conditions shows that the grade teachers have been faithful to their charge.


The system of self-government is still in force. Pupils on enter- ing the High School should begin to appreciate the duties that they owe to themselves and to each other if they are to become good and useful citizens. In wasting his time a pupil brings upon himself a loss that he may never be able to make up, while by in- terfering with the work of another he does him a grave injustice. On the whole our pupils seem to have a realizing sense of their responsibility in this regard.


In addition to the regular report cards heretofore issued at the middle and end of each term, it has seemed best to have a printed form to be sent to parents whenever for any reason, either through lack of attendance or through apparent loss of interest a pupil's


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work falls below the standard. It is hoped that parents will accept these reports in the spirit in which they are sent. We desire to avoid all danger of a misunderstanding, and so wish to inform the parent whenever a pupil's work is not satisfactory. In such cases a frank discussion of the situation between parent and teacher is often of value. The pupil should regard his school work with the same seriousness that he must later feel for his daily work if he is to get the best that the school affords.




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