USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > Newton > Town of Newton annual report 1888 > Part 21
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COST OF THE SCHOOLS.
The following table shows the total cost of the schools, exclusive of the amount expended for evening schools and for new school buildings, from 1879 to 1888. It also shows the cost per pupil, based upon the average whole number belonging. The average cost per pupil for the ten years was $33.04.
The aggregate cost of the evening schools during the corresponding period was $7,725.99, being an average of $772.59 per year.
The amount expended for new school buildings during the year 1888 was $4,543.93 this amount being the cost of the new school building at Thompsonville.
COST OF THE SCHOOLS, 1879-88.
YEAR.
Whole Cost.
Average Whole Number.
Cost per Pupil.
1879
$82,521 04
2,791.7
29 56
1880
86,397 64
2.824.4
30 59
1881
87,669 48
2,844.7
30 82
1882
94.885 43
3,092.7
30 68
1883 .
119,359 75
3,170.3
37 65
1884 .
109,103 42
3,185.9
34 25
1885
111,632 56
3,356.5
33 25
1886
121,154 20
3,527.7
34 35
1887 .
124,718 13
3,655.7
34 11
1888 .
128,392 28
3,650.
35 17
The amount expended upon the schools during the past year, under the direction of the School Board, was $121,031.59, being an average of $33.15 per pupil. The amount expended under the direction of the City Council, chiefly for permanent improvements, was $7,360.69. The aggregate amount expended was $128,392.28, being an average of $35.17 per pupil.
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The expenditures of the School Board include the follow- ing items : teachers salaries, $88,918.66; salary of superin- tendent, $2,800; salary of secretary, $300; salaries of janitors, $6,831; fuel, $8,402.73 ; conveyance of pupils, $390; inciden- tals, $12,107.02.
The incidental expenses include the following items ; books, $2,103.69 ; school supplies, $3,617.40 ; janitors supplies, $405. 77; repairs, $863.44 ; furniture, $1,830.13 ; water, 1,206.94 ; gas, $163.80; truancy, $629.21; printing, $491.79; miscel- laneous, $794.85.
The comparative cost of the schools may be gathered from the following tables. The first is a graduated table in which the cities in the State are numerically arranged accord- ing to the percentage of their taxable property appropriated to the support of public schools for the year 1887-88. The second is a similar exhibit of the cities and towns of Middlesex County.
The statistics of the schools of the State and county are inserted here for the convenience of those who do not have access to the report of the secretary of the State Board of Education, from which they are taken.
Comparing the towns and cities of the State with reference to the percentage of their taxable property appropriated to the support of public schools during the past year, we find that Newton is the twelfth among the twenty-three cities of the State, the thirty-third among the fifty-four cities and towns of Middlesex County, and the two hundred twenty-first among the three hundred fifty cities and towns of the Common- wealth.
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For 1887-88 by the State Valua- tion of 1887.
CITIES.
Percentage of Valuation appropriated to Public Schools equivalent to mills and hundredths of mills.
For 1887-88 by the State Valua- tion of 1887.
CITIES.
Percentage of Valuation appropriated to PublicSchools equivalent to mills and hundredths of mills.
1
Walthanı
$004-38
13
Cambridge .
$003-14
2
Gloucester
4-1
14
Fall River .
3-6
3
Haverhill
3-65
15
Northampton .
3-5
4
Somerville
3-44
16
Taunton .
3-3
5
Fitchburg
3-35
17
Salem .
2-96
6
Worcester
3-31
18
Lowell
2-88
7
Lynn .
3-29
19
New Bedford .
2-70
8
Malden
3-28
20
Lawrence
2-68
9
Chelsea .
3-25
21
Springfield .
2-66
10
Holyoke .
3-18
22
Newburyport.
2-38
11
Brockton
3-17
23
Boston
1-95
12
Newton .
3-16
Towns and Cities of Middlesex County.
1
Marlborough .
$005-46
28
Acton .
$003-34
2
Waltham
4-38
29
Shirley
3-29
3
Stoneham
4-33
30
Malden
3-28
4
Natick
4-16
31
Sherborn
3-28
5
Wakefield
4-13
32
Watertown,
3-21
6
Ashby
4-8
33
Newton .
3-16
7
Hudson
4-6
34
Cambridge .
3-14
8
Arlington
4-89
35
Littleton
3-09
9
Westford
3-79
36
Wilmington
3-09
10
North Reading
3-77
37
Lexington .
3-08
11
Concord .
3-75
38
Bedford .
2-94
12
Hopkinton .
3-72
39
Everett
2-93
13
Ashland .
3-66
40
Pepperell
2-90
14
Reading .
3-66
41
Lowell
2-88
15
Holliston
3-65
42
Dracut
2-78
16
Woburn .
3-65
43
Carlisle .
2-72
17
Ayer
3-62
44
Stow
2-66
18
Medford .
3-56
45
Dunstable
2-65
19
Tyngsboro'
3-55
46
Maynard
2-59
20
Winchester
3-47
47
Weston .
2-58
21
Chemlsford
3-45
48
Belmont.
2-52
22
Somerville .
3-44
49
Burlington .
2-34
23
Framingham
3-42
50
Billerica .
2-28
24
Boxborough
3-41
51
Tewksbury,
2-25
25
Melrose
3-41
52
Sudbury .
2-05
26
Townsend
3-41
53
Groton
1-87
27
Wayland
3-37
54
Lincoln
1-50
A more detailed exhibit of the satistics of the schools will be found in the tables appended to this report.
Table I shows the number of persons in the city, between five and fifteen years of age, May 1, 1881-88.
Table II shows the number of rooms, halls, sittings,
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pupils, teachers, and number of pupils to a teacher in each school, May 1, 1888.
Table III shows the number of pupils of different ages in each school, May 1, 1888.
Table IV shows the semi-quarterly attendance, by schools, for the year ending June 30, 1888.
Table V shows the total enrolment, attendance, etc., by schools, for the year ending June 30, 1888.
Table VI shows the number of pupils and their average age, by grades, in September. 1887.
Table VII shows the annual enrolment in each grade in September, 1880-87.
Table VIII shows the percentage of the total annual enrol- ment in each grade, in September, 1880-87.
Table IX shows the distribution of the pupils in the High School, by grades and courses of study.
SCHOOL SUPPLIES.
The number of text-books in use during the past year was 35,285, an increase of 2,538, compared with the previous year. The number of reference books was 1,888, an increase of 99, compared with the previous year. They were distributed as follows :
SCHOOLS.
Text-Books.
Reference-Books.
Worn out and missing.
High .
6,414
148
379
Bigelow
3,851
172
268
Eliot .
2,525
144
158
Adams
2,292
133
41
Claflin
2,197
132
66
Pierce
5,134
273
38
Williams
2,750
210
86
Hamilton
1,498
123
26
Prospect
2.355
150
64
Hyde .
2,331
127
111
Mason
3,756
256
265
Oak Hill
182
20
0
Totals .
35,285
1,888
1,502
The amount expended for new books during the past
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school year - July, 1887, to July, 1888, - was $1868.54 ; the amount paid for rebinding books was $210.13 ; the total amount expended for books was $2,078.67.
The cost per pupil, based upon the average number belong- ing, was fifty-seven cents. The number of books worn out and missing at the close of the year was 1,502.
The amount expended for supplies was $3,903.21. The cost per pupil was $1.06. The cost of supplies for the past year is considerably in advance of the average cost for the three years preceding on account of the furnishing of the new labora- tories at the High School that were fitted up and put in opera- tion during the year.
The free text-book law was enacted in March, 1884, and went into effect on the first day of August of the same year. The following table shows the amount expended for books and sup- plies during each school year from 1884 to 1888. It also shows the average cost per pupil for books and supplies. The amount expended for books includes the cost of new books and the cost of repairing old books : --
SCHOOL YEAR.
BOOKS.
Cost per Pupil.
SUPPLIES.
Cost per Pupil.
1884-5
$5,896 30
$1 76
$3,177 44
$0 95
1805-6
2,953 92
84
3,746 95
1 06
1886-7
3,842 00
1 05
2,797 37
76
1887-8
2,078 67
57
3,903 21
1 06
The furnishing of text-books and other supplies free in all the public schools of the Commonwealth has become a perma- nent feature of our system of public instruction. Its beneficent effects in securing economy and efficiency of administration are seen and felt by every one conversant with the practical details of our schools.
EVENING SCHOOLS.
The number of evening schools maintained during the win- ter was three. Two of these-one for males at the Jackson
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school-house and one for females at the Bigelow school house - were opened on the second of November. For the better accom- modation of the people of Nonantum, another school for females was opened in the Eliot school house on the fourteenth of No- vember. The Jackson and Bigelow schools had thirty-nine sessions each, and the Eliot school had thirty-four sessions. They closed on the first day of February.
The number of different pupils enrolled in the Bigelow school was 40, in the Eliot school 70, and in the Jackson 81. The total enrolment was 191. The average attendance in the Bigelow school was 26, in the Eliot 35, and in the Jackson 54. The total average attendance was 115. Last year-1886-7- the total enrolment was 120, and the average attendance was 60. The increase in the number of pupils the present season is due partly to the fact that the schools have been furnished with better accommodations, and partly to the partial enforce- ment of the statute, enacted at the last session of the Legisla- ture, in regard to the employment of minors who cannot read or write in the English language.
The total cost of the evening schools during the present season-from November 2, 1887, to February 2, 1888- was $1465.92. The cost per pupil, based upon the total average attendance, was $12.74.
The work of these schools has, in the main, been satisfac- tory. Much more could have been accomplished if the pupils had been more constant in their attendance and had persevered to the end of the term. The falling off in numbers and the irregular attendance made it necessary to consolidate some of the classes during the last half of the term. This was, of course, a disadvantage to individual pupils, in that it compelled a change of teachers. One class-that in mechanical draw- ing-was a marked exception to this statement. The class increased in number and in interest from the beginning to the end of the term.
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From the opening of the schools till Christmas the attend- ance was quite satisfactory, the average being 143 out of a total enrolment of 191. From Christmas to the close of the term the average attendance was only 81. The whole number present at the last session, February 1, was 62; 16 in the Bigelow, 24 in the Eliot, and 22 in the Jackson.
These facts in regard to the attendance have suggested a few thoughts in regard to the organization of our evening schools, which I respectfully submit for the consideration of the Board.
1. The interest of the pupils is sustained up to the mid winter holidays, and from that time it diminishes gradually till it reaches a minimum near the close of the term. May it not be that the number of sessions is greater than the pupils are able or willing to avail themselves of. Would not a shorter term- say thirty or even twenty-five sessions -result in more incisive work and a larger measure of economy in the expendi- ture of the public money ?
2. It has been our custom to open the schools about the first of November and close them early in February. Would it not be better to open them at an earlier date-say about the middle of October-and close them before the Christmas holi- days, or to postpone their opening till after the holidays ?
3. The sessions of the schools have begun at seven and closed at nine. As most of the pupils are operatives in the mills or domesties in private families, would not the pupils and their employers be better accommodated if the sessions were to begin and end a half hour later ?
The laws relating to the establishment and maintenonce of evening schools are as follows :
1. Every town and city having ten thousand or more in- habitants shall establish and maintain in addition to the schools required by law to be maintained therein, evening schools for the instruction of persons over twelve years of age in orthography,
34
reading, writing, geography, arithmetic, drawing, the history of the United States, and good behavior. Such other branches of learning may be taught in such schools as the school committee of the town shall deem expedient.
2. The school committee of such towns shall have the same superintendence over such evening schools as they have over other schools, and may determine the term or terms of time in each year, and the hours of the evening during which such schools shall be kept, and may make such regulations as to attendance at such schools as they may deem expedient.
3. Nothing contained in this act shall exempt any person from the requirements of section 1 of chapter forty-seven of the Public Statutes. ( Chapter 174, Acts of 1883. )
1. Every owner, superintendent or overseer of any manu- facturing, mechanical, or mercantile establishment who employs, or permits to be employed therein, a minor under fourteen years of age who cannot read and write in the English language, except during the vacation of the public schools in the city or town where such minor lives, and every parent or guardian who permits such employment, shall, for every such offence, forfeit not less than twenty nor more than fifty dollars, for the use of the public schools of such city or town.
2. Every person who regularly employs or permits to be employed, a minor fourteen years of age, or over; who cannot read and write in the English language, providing such minor has been, since reaching the age of fourteen, for one year con- tinuously a resident of a city or town in this Commonwealth wherein public evening schools are maintained, and is not a regular attendant of a day or evening school, shall, for every such offence, forfeit not less than fifty nor more than one hun- dred dollars, for the use of the evening schools of such city or town.
3. Whenever it appears that the labor of any minor who would be debarred from employment under section two of this
35
act, is necessary for the support of the family to which said minor belongs, or for his own support, the school committee of said city or town may, in the exercise of their discretion, issue a permit authorizing the employment of such minor within such time or times as they may fix, and the provisions of said section two shall not apply to such minor so long as said permit is in force.
4. Two weeks next before the opening of each term of the evening schools, the school committee shall, by posters posetd in three or more public places of said city or town, give notice of the location of said schools, the date of the commencement of the term, the evenings of the week during which said schools shall be kept, the provisions of section two of this act as to for- feiture for non-compliance with said section, and such regula- tions as to attendance as they shall deem proper. (Chapter 433, Acts of 1887. )
I desire to call your attention for a moment to the practical operation of the above statutes. There can be no difference of opinion in regard to the law regulating the employment and providing for the instruction of illiterate minors. It provides for the instruction of all persons between fourteen and twenty- one years of age who cannot read and write in the English language. It is in entire harmony with our general school laws, and is justified on the ground that the removal of illiteracy is one of the first duties that the State owes to itself.
Chapter 174, Acts of 1883, on the other hand, seems to me to be open to grave objections. It requires every town and- city having ten thousand or more inhabitants to establish and maintain evening schools for the instruction of persons over twelve years of age in orthography, reading, writing, geography, arithmetic, drawing, the history of the United States, good be- havior, and such other branches of learning as the school com- mittee of the town shall deem expedient. The general statutes, chapter 47, section 1, requires every child between the ages of
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eight and fourteen years to attend a day school at least twenty weeks in every year. Here we have two statutes, one compel- ling the attendance at a day school of all children between the ages of eight and fourteen years at least twenty weeks in every year, and another compelling the establishment and maintenance of evening schools for the instruction of children over twelve years of age. In other words, there is a two fold provision for children between the ages of twelve and fourteen years - com- pulsory attendance of such children at a day school, and com- pulsory maintenance on the part of the town of evening schools for the accommodation and instruction of the same children. I cannot believe that this two-fold provision is either necessary or wise. Nor can I believe that it was the intention of the lawmakers to make this two-fold demand upon the public purse.
Furthermore, many of the pupils in our evening schools who are fourteen or more years of age have a fair knowledge of the common English branches. That is, they are able to write legibly, to read intelligently, and to make the arithmetical com- putations needed in common life. I am not aware to what extent it is intended that evening schools should be established and maintained for the further education of this class of pupils. If it is the intent of the statutes that the evening school shall supplement the day school,, then the organization of evening schools becomes one of the most important subjects that can engage our attention. Considering the subject on all sides I seriously question if it is wise for the State to require the estab- lishment of evening schools beyond making provision for the instruction of illiterates. This seems to me to be its legitimate work, and to this work it should be limited.
It should serve the needs of those who come to us from other States and countries after having passed the age of com- pulsory attendance, and who, consequently, can not be reached by the general school laws. It should give to those who have had no opportunities for education such instruction in the rudi_
37
ments of knowledge as will enable them to become intelligent and law-abiding citizens. Under no circumstances seould the evening school be required or allowed to do the work of the day school. The reasons for this are obvious. The work of the evening school is done under essentially less favorable conditions than that of the day school.
1. The pupils in attendance at an evening school, on account of physical exhaustion, are more or less unfitted for mental ap- plication. This is especially true of boys of from twelve to eighteen years of age who are engaged in manual labor during the day and who are often less in need of instruction than of recreation and rest.
. 2. The instruction in evening schools is necessarily inferior to that in day schools on account of the difficulty of securing experienced and trained teachers. To meet this difficulty teachers of day schools are often placed in charge of evening schools, a measure of doubtful wisdom so far as the teacher is concerned, and plainly not in the interests of public economy.
. 3. Evening schools can not be graded and classified so fully as day schools, on account of the varied acquirements and irregular attendance of the pupils. This necessitates the employ- ment of a proportionately larger number of teachers than is required in day schools. A teacher in an evening school can seldom instruct to advantage more than ten or at the most fif- teen pupils. The number assigned to a teacher in a day school is seldom less than forty.
4. The absence of proper classification makes the main- tenance of these schools much more expensive than that of day schools. The cost per pupil in the evening schools during the past year was $12.74. The cost for the same number of hours of instruction in the day schools is less than one-quarter of that sum. Indeed, our evening schools as at present organized- and the present organization in all its essential features seems
38
to be a necessity -are by far the most expensive part of our school system.
In view of these facts, I would urge that chapter 174, Acts of 1883, giving authority to towns and cities to maintain even- ing schools, be made permissive instead of compulsory, and that the limit of age be fixed at fourteen instead of twelve years, in order that it may be in harmony with the general school laws in regard to attendance. . I would also recommend that the Board take measures to secure the adoption of these amendments.
Thus modified, our school laws will be consistent one with the other. We shall have compulsory maintenance of day schools for children between the ages of eight and fourteen, and compulsory attendance of those for whom they are intended. We shall have compulsory maintenance of evening schools for illiterate minors between the ages of fourteen and twenty-one years, and compulsory attendance of those for whom the schools are established and maintained. Another statute will give towns and cities authority to establish and maintain evening schools for persons ( other than illiterate minors ) over fourteen years of age. This statute, however, will be permissive only. Neither the maintenance of such schools nor attendance upon the same will be compulsory. Each city and town will be free to furnish or withhold this educational luxury, and those to whom it is offered will be entirely free to accept or reject it.
The changes suggested are based upon two propositions : first, that the State fulfils its whole duty when it provides that every youth between the ages of eight and twenty-one years shall be educated to such an extent as will fit him properly to discharge the duties of citizenship; second, that in doing this work nothing should be left to an evening school that can be better and more economically done in a day school.
PROMOTIONS.
The pupils in our schools are classified in thirteen grades according to their qualifications. The first, second and third
39
grades constitute the primary section ; the fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth, and ninth the grammar school section ; and the tenth, eleventh, twelfth, and thirteenth the high school section.
Each grade covers a period of one year. Hence the time required for the completion of the full course of studies in our schools is thirteen years.
Promotions from one grade to the next higher are made at the beginning of the school year, but in exceptional cases in the primary and grammar grades, individual promotions are made at other times than that fixed for class promotions.
In making class promotions the daily work and conduct of the pupil during the year and the test examinations, oral and written, are considered.
An estimate of the daily work and conduct of the pupil is made by the teacher and forms a most important factor in determining the fitness of a pupil for promotion.
The test examinations, oral and written, begin near the close of the first quarter and continue through the year. In the primary and grammar schools not more than one examina- tion is made in any week and not less than one in any two weeks. Thus each pupil has not less than fifteen nor more than thirty test examinations each year.
The questions for the written examination are prepared by the teacher of the class, the master of the school, or the super intendent. The examination takes the place of the regular daily exercise in the branch of study in which the pupils are to be tested, and is made without previous notice.
Being unannounced and unanticipated, the pupils are not aware of the nature of the exercise, and are thus saved the nervous anxiety with which a formal examination is anticipated and attended. They are thus taught that they are expected to put forth their best efforts at all times, and are led to steadier and more persistent endeavor in their daily work. Furthermore teachers are recommended not to make known the results of the
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examinations, except in the case of pupils who are deficient and need to be spurred to greater effort. In such cases the parent also is notified of the deficiency.
The examinations given by teachers are both oral and written, and are intended "to fix the thoughts already awakened in the minds of the pupils; to cultivate their powers of expres- sion ; and to ascertain what subjects, if any, should be reviewed."
The examinations given by the superintendent are oral and written ; and their chief object is to test the thinking power of the pupil and his ability to do the work of the next higher grade. They are also intended, to some extent, to serve as guides to teachers in selecting the most important topics for instruction and drill.
This plan of examination and promotion meets the needs of the average pupil. It makes no provision for exceptionally bright or exceptionally dull pupils. A regulation of the Board makes wise provision for the latter class. It provides that "pupils who have been two years in a grade, and who have been regular in their attendance and faithful in their work, may, on recommendation of their teachers and of the superintendent, with the approval of the committee in charge of the school, be advanced to the next grade without having reached the required standing." This provision is wise and humane, in that it is helpful to those pupils who most need and deserve sympathy and help. It fixes no arbitrary standard, but considers the circum_ stances of the individual pupil, " such as age, habits, intentions, home influence, health, and intellectual ability."
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