USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > Reading > Town of Reading Massachusetts annual report 1929 > Part 13
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In conclusion let us not forget that a school is no better than its teachers. Dr. Caswell Ellis, head of Cleveland College, has experimented with a dozen different systems of education. At his direction a pro- fessor taught one subject one year in six different ways to different groups. At the end of a year's teaching all of the groups showed that the progress of all the pupils had been practically alike. The system made no difference, the important factor was the teacher. Our teaching staff as a whole has remained loyally "on the job." The vocational teachers, the college teachers and the special teachers all have done well in preparing their pupils for the fields which they expect to enter after graduating from the high school. We have, however, in the past few years lost several good teachers because of low salaries. Our tea- chers should be rewarded in accordance with the outstanding service they have rendered. I hope it will be made possible for us to keep our excellent teaching staff intact. Few people on the outside realize that it takes a long time to produce a good teacher. William Lyon Phelps, of Yale, recently wrote "Teaching is an art-an art so great and so difficult to master than a man or woman can spend a long life at it without realizing much more than his limitations and mistakes and his distance from the ideal."
Respectfully yours
RUDOLF SUSSMANN.
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REPORT OF THE PHYSICAL EDUCATION DEPARTMENT FOR HIGH SCHOOL GIRLS AND ALL ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS
Mr. Adelbert L. Safford,
Supt. of Schools, Reading, Mass.
Dear Sir :
I herewith submit my first report of the work in Physical Educa- tion for the High School girls and all Elementary Schools, grades 1 to 4.
The aims of Physical Education are :
1. To satisfy an urgent demand of every healthy boy and girl for muscular activity.
2. To improve posture.
3. To cultivate a sense of fair play and forms of recreation for use in after life.
4. To develop alertness, accuracy, and gracefulness of movement.
5. To establish the habit of daily exercise.
6. To improve the general health of pupils.
High School
The work in the gymnasium for High School girls has been con- tinued along the general lines of that of previous years with some ad- ditions.
Marching tactics are used to develop a quick response and obedi- ence to command.
Considerable emphasis is placed on mass corrective exercises for improving the posture.
Through the kindness of Mr. Safford and Mr. Sussmann, a piano was transferred to the gym and folk dancing and clogging were intro- duced.
Many types of games are played to develop various skills and team spirit.
The classes have been divided into four groups, each with a leader, which have competition in stunts of various kinds demanding a certain amount of muscular skill and co-ordination.
In September, the Senior girls were given Physical Exams by Dr. Henderson, the school physician, and the Juniors and Sophomores were examined by me.
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A check of physical defects, such as forward head, round shoulders, flat chest, protruding abdomen, and flat feet was made. The more severe cases were recommended to the Posture Clinic under the direction of Dr. W. R. MacAusland of Boston. In more mild cases, notes were sent home and mothers invited to a conference as to the importance of corrective exercises to be done at home every day in addition to the regular gymnasium work.
Good posture is most important both from the standpoint of looks and of health. The human machine is one of extremely delicate adjust- ment and balance. The muscles are subjected to varying degrees of strain which may allow the internal organs to sag out of place. As a result, the health may be seriously impaired in time.
The chest should be held high and well expanded-the abdominal wall, flat and firm. The trunk muscles are the keynotes to good posture. The individual must have the desire to improve the appearance, other- wise little is accomplished.
In the Fall, some hockey was played, but, as in previous years, the girls were handicapped by lack of an adequate playing field. By ar- rangement with Mr. Aldred the football field was used for a short scrimmage twice a week and the infield used for teaching fundamentals. One practice game was played at Stoneham.
The basket ball season brought out a large number of girls and four games with outside schools have been arranged, two as class games, two as school games with a first and second team.
In the Spring it is hoped that baseball, tennis, and volley ball will be featured.
Elementary Grades
This year, for the first time, regular work in Physical Education has been introduced into the first four grades. The supervisor visits each room every two weeks.
In the first and second grades, the program consists largely of three activities which employ large movements with little mental effort.
1. Story Plays which imitate activities and occupations of life around the child. They are a mode of dramatic expression and follow a definite order of movement.
2. Rhythmic Plays, such as singing games and simple folk dances which are correlated with music and teach rhythm, grace and courtesy.
3. Games having few rules and appealing to the imagination or simple chasing games are included.
In the third and fourth grades, formal work begins. This includes marching and corrective gymnastics to counteract the detrimental effect of prolonged sitting.
Games are played which demand greater mental and physical effort and endurance. Here, the games have definite rules.
The work is carried on outdoors as long as possible in the Fall
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and as early as feasible in the Spring.
An attempt has been made to have organized recesses at the Center School. The large number of pupils and the extremely small. amount of playing space present a great handicap. It would be most desirable if the street in front of the school could be closed to traffic during recess.
In the grades, as at High School, the children were examined for poor posture and notes sent home to parents, inviting them to meetings at the various schools. These meetings were fairly well attended, the importance of good posture explained, and the exercises to be done at home were demonstrated. Special posture classes at each school were formed and they are checked up about every three weeks. If these small children can be interested in attaining good posture, the problem in the Junior and Senior High Schools will not be so difficult.
Orthopedic Clinic
The clinic has now been functioning over a year and has been most successful. This has been due largely to the efforts of Miss Lancaster my predecessor and the fine co-operation of Miss Brown, the Director of Health. Cases needing expert attention are recommended by the Physical Education teachers, the School Physician, and the School Nurse. A diagnosis is made by Dr. MacAusland and treatment prescribed. These children come to a special posture class every week to be checked on the corrective exercises which they are expected to do at home daily.
Silhouettographs are made of each child, showing the habitual standing position and another in the corrective position. These act as a goal toward which to work.
Marked improvement has been shown in many instances.
I should like to make the following recommendations for another year :
At High School :
1. The classes arranged according to the year so that the work might be graded according to skill and difficulty.
2. An outdoor space available for games.
3. Most urgent need of lockers for two hundred girls.
4. At Chestnut Hill School, the playground resurfaced, as now it is largely stones.
5. Most important of all, an assistant to take charge of ele- mentary grades or all posture work.
At this time I wish to express my appreciation to Mr. Safford, Mr. Sussmann, Miss Brown, and the teachers for their interest and co-opera- tion.
Respectfully submitted,
FLORENCE G. NICHOLS, Instructor Physical Education
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REPORT OF AGRICULTURAL INSTRUCTOR. 1929
Mr. Rudolf Sussmann Principal,
Reading High School, Reading, Mass.
Dear Mr. Sussmann :
The following report for the Agricultural Department is respect- fully submitted :
School opened in September 1928, with an enrollment of 23 in the department. Seven were dropped for various reasons ; sixteen com- pleted their projects for the year. Three juniors dropped out for work during the summer; one left to go to college; one to re-enter the regu- lar course. Four seniors received diplomas October 15. This is the largest group to be graduated for a number of years.
The sixteen boys who completed the year's projects and super- vised work earned a total of $6,934.05. Robert Wheeler was high man with a total earned of $471.40. Albion Froburg and Norman Burns had a close race for second with earnings of $467.76 and $467.30 respectively. Four boys with sufficiently high marks in all subjects were permitted to leave school early in May to go to regular jobs. Eight worked nearly full time on Market Garden farms until November 1st. All have main- tained satisfactory ranks in other studies than agriculture. The class room work has been carried much the same as in previous years. The majors for 1928-29 were Market Gardening and Dairying.
A number of visits were made to some of the famous dairy herds, market gardens, and poultry farms in the vicinity. The whole class attended the Boston Poultry Show and the great Boston Flower Show of 1929. Nine boys made the trip to Massachusetts Agricultural College to take part in the High School Day exercises and Championship Judg- ing Contests. Most of the boys also took part in the contests at Tops- field Fair. Some made remarkably good scores but none quite made the prize winning class.
The work in automobile repairs was carried on at Mr. Dickin- son's shop for the second year and again proved profitable and inter- esting. We regret that Mr. Dickinson could not take the class for the coming year but feel we are fortunate in finding an able instructor in Mr. William Pitman at Kenney's Service Station. The course will be shortened to eight weeks so the boys can begin on outside spring work earlier.
For a long time it has been felt that some practice should be given in greenhouse operation and floriculture. Because of the large number of boys (14) in the senior division, it was hard to find room and jobs in the shop for all. For those who had a decided preference for floriculture, practice work was found in the Reading Greenhouses
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and at Mr. Weston's, so at present all are hard at work and giving a good account of themselves.
Nineteen new members were admitted to the department in Sep- tember, making the present enrollment of twenty-five the largest for years. The department expects to have three graduates this year and, with the splendid type of boys now coming into it, should maintain its present creditable showing.
Yours very truly, HERMON T. WHEELER, Instructor.
SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATION, JUNE 1929
PROGRAM
MARCHE MILITAIRE Schubert
High School Orchestra
PRAYER-Rev. William M. Crawford
CHORUS-Crimson Rose
Joseph W. Clokey
Salutatory
WHAT HIGH SCHOOLS SHOULD DO FOR US Theron C. Johnson
TORCH ORATION William D. Carter, President, Class of 1929
BECAUSE-Soprano Solo Viola Martin Accompanied by Virginia Tucker
ESSAY-Contributions to Reading Through People and Industries Grace C. Curtis, Class Honors
PRESENTATION OF CLASS GIFTS
William D. Carter, Acceptance by Principal
MIGNONETTE Baumann
High School Orchestra
ESSAY-Our Southern Neighbors
Hope R. Williamson
CHORUS-The House by the Side of the Road Gulesian
Valedictory
CHALLENGED YOUTH REPLIES Dorothy W. Berle
Barbara Knight
SINGING OF CLASS SONG
Senior Class
CONFERRING DIPLOMAS Carl M. Spencer, Chairman of School Board
BENEDICTION-Rev. Payson E. Pierce
EXIT MARCH-Stony Point Laurendeau
High School Orchestra
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CANDIDATES FOR DIPLOMAS, 1929
Accounting Course
Priscilla May Cahoon
Eleanor Marguerite Clement
Oren Lemuel Crowe Edward Franklin Herrick
Edward Augustus O'Brien Agricultural Course
Norman Richard Burns
Warren Robert Gray
Harry Esadore Stone James Elwell Carter
College Course
John Angus Beaton
Dorothy Wheeler Berle
William Daniel Carter
Lucille Abbott Cate
Marion Arlene Cottle
Virginia Stewart Tucker
Hope Roberta Williamson
Frank Wilmer Young, Jr.
Leland Jason Zwicker
Robert S. Spavin William Lawrence Stanford
George Carroll Sullivan
Doris Frances Turner
Anna Louise Wilson
Commercial Course
Helen Caroline Hatfield
Pearl Eleanor Holmes
Gertrude Marion Loud
Ida Mary Monahan
Anna Lillian Pransky Corinne Adelia Swenson
General Course
Doris Evelyn Mack
Blanche Irene Margeson
Henry Torrey Martin Viola Matilda Martin
James Riddle Mercer, Jr. Barbara Sally Merrill
Beulah Frances Munro Albert Perkins Nelson Edward Alexander Phillips
Edward William Richards Donald Morse Small Robert Edwin Small Roger Dickie Smith
Robert Leroy Soule
Esther Frances Bangs May Christine Barrett Violet Bartlett
Gladys Elizabeth Brown
Virginia Warren Clark Grace Alice Goodwin
Ruth Adden Eunice Janet Albee
Thomas Gilman Barber
Dorothy Gertrude Borthwick
Mary Madelyn Burrows Dorothy Ann Clements John Joseph Connelly Marie Susanna Duval Chester Albert Ellison Lois Batchelder Haley Bryce Vernon Horton Ruth Weymouth Hyde Martha Lane
Helen Virginia Remick
Patricia Catherine Scott
Elizabeth Spencer S. Katherine Tolman
Dorothy Adele Cummings
Chandler Shumway Eaton Susann Fowler
Ruth Mansfield Frost
Donald Fowle Johnson
Leslie Morgan McAuley
Ruth Nodding Virginia Corinne Perry
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Normal Course
Walter Prescott Benjamin
Charles A. Harrow
David A. Bowers
Natalie Viola Ives
Donald Bradford Bowman
Dorothy Rogers Kerr
Joseph Robert Boyce
Barbara Frances Knight
Gladys May Burns
Ambrose F. Knowlton
Edward Bradley Burrage
Harold D. Lewis
Richard B. Chesley
George Winchester Playdon
Ida Mae Copeland
Barbara Cook Precourt
Gerald Edward Cummings
Violet M. Richardson
Robert Goodrich Driver
Elinor Guinan Riley
Walter William Goff
Phyllis Hulda Starke
Eleanor VanStone
Scientific Course
Theron Crawford Johnson
F. Woodward Lewis
Jessie Leonard VanHorn
Secretarial Course
Mary Alice Carney
Grace C. Curtis
Esther Helena Downs
Delma Helena Turner
Helen Marchetti
Elsie Caroline Noyes
Eleanor Dorothy Taylor
REPORT OF THE PRINCIPAL OF THE JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL 1929
Mr. A. L. Safford,
Superintendent of Schools, Reading, Mass.
Dear Sir :
In accordance with your request, I am submitting a report cover- ing certain phases of the Junior High School which seem to me worthy of mention at this time.
In planning the program for the current school year, some changes were made that are making the work of the school more effective. Both the seventh and eighth grades are scheduled two regular class periods for remedial work. The pupils assigned to teachers during those periods are those who are deficient in the requirements of English and mathe- matics, and in their ability to read with a fair degree of comprehension. These defects greatly hinder the progress of the pupils in their regular class work. Although the number of pupils needing this type of work is large, particularly in mathematics, we are meeting the need as rapidly as time and resources will permit. Pupils not assigned to the remedial
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groups are sent to the physical directors for extra work in that depart- ment.
Special mention should be made of the remedial work in reading which was given particular attention during the first quarter. Pupils assigned to the remedial groups in the fall in the seventh, eighth, and ninth grades were those who in accordance with standardized tests did not measure up to requirements in their ability to read with comprehen- sion. The requirements were determined by the pupil's grade classifi- cation and ability level. At the end of the remedial period, the pupils were again tested, and the results in most cases were gratifying and in many cases, quite remarkable. I believe that the satisfactory re- sults were in part due to the instruction which attempted to show the pupils how to read a paragraph or article and pick out the salient facts or ideas, or in other words, how to study more effectively. I believe that the better scores were made by those pupils who were aroused to greater purposive activity because the teachers were able to show them by standardized tests exactly where they stood in relation to other pupils in their group or class on a grade level of achievement.
The same procedure is being followed at the present time in the seventh and eighth grades relative to remedial work in mathematics and written English.
A slight change has been made in the program to make the spell- ing more effective. Formerly, spelling was scheduled during the last fifteen minutes of the day in the home rooms. At present, the seventh and eighth grades are scheduled for spelling in two regular class peri- ods. The Washburne plan for teaching spelling has been discarded and a new text book is being used tentatively preparatory to introduc- tion as a basal text book.
A course in vocational information is offered this year as re- quired work in the eighth grade. Vocational information is not a new study in the junior high school field, and has been organized for over ten years as an essential part of the school's aim, among others, to broaden its pupil's horizon relative to the occupational field, and to start the pupil thinking intelligently and more or less critically in regard to his future prospects and ways of achievement. An effort has been made in the past in our own school to include some vocational informa- tion as part of the general science and social study courses. This is the first year that it has been presented in an organized way and by a teacher fitted for the task. The time requirement for the course is not exorbitant, as it utilizes one fourth of the time assigned to the elective subject which is French, Business Practice, or Practical Arts. Miss Harriman, who teaches the course, has submitted a brief outline of the work in vocational information from which I will quote as fol- lows :
"Intelligent respect for all forms of labor, and the problems in-
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volved in each, is regarded as an integral part of broad culture. There is increasing realization that any plan for a course in Social Studies such as is outlined on the bottom of page 127 of the 1927 Town Report must include general familiarity with the occupational world in which each pupil must play his part, as well as with its other economic and social phases.
"As Mr. Blaisdell has said, such a course is not an experiment but a well established practice in up-to-date schools. We are not guilty of innovation : we are merely 'catching up.' We use the newest, most approved text, 'Vocations,' prepared by Proctor, a pioneer master in the field, supplemented by a reference library which is gradually be- coming adequate. It requires much time and labor to fit material to local needs and to special groups. We also use the Brewer vocational rating scales which were prepared several years ago by the Bureau of Vocational Guidance at Harvard and are used all over the country, and the personality rating scale prepared by the National Research Council after several years of intensive research by the leading universities of the country. Through trips to various local industries, and through correspondence with experts all over the country the pupils secure a first-hand acquaintance with the occupational world which vitalizes the book work of the class room. Our class organization follows the wide- ly approved rotating-committee plan devised by the Pittsburg schools. We plan to do three things :
"1. Expose the pupil to such information as he is able to ap- preciate regarding the leading occupations and their requirements as to personality, ability, and training.
"2. Acquaint him with an elementary measure of sane self-evalu- ation as a guide to him in selection.
"3. Show him how to prepare himself to meet the requirements of his chosen field in his present and future school course. This in- cludes discussion of the 'use' of the different school subjects, and of extra-curricula activities.
"No attempt is made to steer the pupils into a particular field. The Vocational Guidance movement believes that the best guidance is 'self-guidance ;' nor is any attempt made to fix the choice in these tender years. We do, however, discourage the common happy-go-lucky at- titude: 'I don't know where I am going, but I'm on my way.' The pupil who is heading somewhere, purposefully, will gain more from his studies than will the aimless pupil, even though his goal changes a dozen times, widening as his horizon widens in knowledge of his world and in self-knowledge."
The problems and functions of a guidance department are well stated by Mrs. Beatrice Cahill in a survey of the Reading Senior High School, published this year. The need, from the point of view of Read- ing's own graduates and of those who failed to graduate, is well stated.
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In my 1927 Town Report, I called attention to the need of a Guidance Department in the Junior High School, and I would call attention to the last two pages of that report which pertains to the purpose of guidance.
From a business point of view, one should readily appreciate the possibility for waste and inefficiency in a departmentalized school of over 500 pupils without some agency to coordinate the different activi- ties of the school for the individual child. The English teacher, the mathematics teacher, the Latin teacher, the French teacher, the shop teacher, the social study teacher sees the pupil in relation to his or her particular subject. The pupil may succeed in some classes and fail in others; he may fail in all classes, or he may get by with a minimum of effort. There may be many reasons for failure : too heavy a program; too many outside interests; placement in the wrong class group; deep seated antagonism against the school, or some subject, or some teacher ; poor work habits. Obviously, some agency must be provided to follow the work of each individual child and to evaluate and interpret failures and success in terms of the pupil's ability, environment, and possible future objective, to the end that the pupil may get the most from his junior high school experience. A departmentalized school with its sub- ject specialists and varied activities, and without its logical carollary, a guidance department, in very many cases leaves the child a prey to circumstance, to pupil whims, or to the casual suggestions of friends, resulting in waste of money and of the valuable time of teachers and pupil.
The organization of a guidance department in our Junior High School is in line with the practice in most junior high schools of our size. Whereas, some schools employ a full time guidance teacher, we are following the plan used in Providence which provides for a teacher assigned to approximately 150 pupils whose time should be divided be- tween guidance work and class teaching.
In the Walter S. Parker School, Miss Day is assigned to the seventh grade of approximately 165 pupils : Miss Harriman to the girls of the eighth and ninth grades, numbering about 172 girls; and Mr. Belmore to the boys of the eighth and ninth grades, numbering about 171 boys. These teachers have been decidedly limited in the time allowance for guidance work and are at the present time carry- ing a teaching load of fifteen, (15) seventeen, (17) and seventeen (17) periods respectively in addition to the supervision of the two lunch periods. The total time permitted by the school program for all three teachers to devote to guidance work is less than the equivalent of one teacher's time.
Some of the specific activities that engage the guidance teacher's time are as follows :
1. Assistance in the make up of class groups.
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2. Make up and supervision of groups in remedial work.
3. A follow up of each pupil's record in school activities.
4. Conferences with pupils relative to their work.
5. Conferences with teachers relative to adjustment of individual cases.
6. Conferences with parents regarding the work of pupils.
7. A check up of each report card before it goes home to the parent.
8. In the case of the seventh grade, planning and supervising the activities in the home room period, and in the seventh grade assembly.
9. Some planning of home room activities in the eighth and ninth grades.
10. In the case of the eighth grade, supervision in the choice of a curriculum which takes place at the end of the eighth year.
11. In the case of the ninth grade, help and advice in the choice of tenth year subjects.
12. Weekly conference of all three teachers with the Principal in addition to many individual conferences.
Some of the benefits derived from the work of the guidance teachers are as follows :
1. Cutting down tardiness in the seventh grade.
2. Some preventive work in school absences.
3. A better adjustment of the school to some pupils by :
(a) Careful placement in class groups.
(b) Special programs in case of special need such as illness, transfer, or consideration of special ability or disability.
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