USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > Reading > Town of Reading Massachusetts annual report 1955 > Part 10
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17
Respectfully submitted,
ROBERT F. PERRY, Superintendent of Schools
REPORT OF THE HIGH SCHOOL PRINCIPAL
In this brief report on the senior high school it is obvious that not all phases of the work of the school can be covered. However, an attempt is made to set forth what are perhaps some of the important essentials.
To begin with, the new building inspires both pupils and teachers to do their best work. Also the new building is a constant reminder to individuals and groups of parents as well as non-Reading visitors that the School Committee and people of Reading take an intelligent and purposeful attitude toward education. The pupils are proud of their new school with all its modern facilities, and this attitude is reflected in the fine spirit of the student body.
When the new high school was opened in September, 1954, we were faced with the problem of expansion, not only because the 9th grade was added but also because with adequate space expansion of the curriculum not possible in the old high school now became possible. This, of course, meant the expansion of the teaching staff and also involved one of the major, if not the major problem facing a Super- intendent. That there exists and probably will continue to exist a vast teacher shortage is well known or should be to every citizen. Normal replacement of teachers under these conditions is difficult enough, but when a rapid expansion of the teaching staff enters the picture, the task of recruiting suitable teachers becomes heavy indeed. How- ever, through perseverance, much visiting and correspondence, search- ing and inquiring, plus good fortune, a very adequate addition to the old staff was found. These newly added teachers have, on the whole, made a satisfactory addition to our staff. Due to budget limitation some of our new teachers were without previous classroom experience. All had courses in education and most of them had a few months of practice teaching. These new teachers have been helped and trained during the past year by the older members of our staff and through the medium of section and full staff meetings.
114
Our basic staff, department heads and section leaders, I feel, are teachers of superior qualifications. Because of this key group of teach- ers which have been with us a number of years the Reading High School has been able to maintain its strong position in New England as an institution of learning. Reading has for many years maintained an enviable record insofar as college entrance by its graduates is con- cerned. Every year our graduates' names appear on the rolls of honor students in the better institutions of higher learning throughout the country. Also our graduates make good in the business world and pro- fessional and social life of the nation.
There still exists among our pupils as well as, unfortunately, among our adults a lack of understanding of the difference between freedom and license. It is the over-all effort of our staff to set our pupils straight on these matters by increasing their understanding of the responsibilities which they face after leaving school. This is done through various approaches, teaching the enjoyment of the arts, reading beyond regular class assignments, listening, viewing reception through mass media, even research. We feel and try to inculcate in our boys and girls that systematic education must not stop with grad- uation. To help in developing this concept we have a well-developed film program, talks by outside speakers, a systematic bi-monthly round table and lecture program provided at no cost by a group of experts representing nearly all trades, jobs, professions, and vocations. Pupils have here an opportunity to see what lies beyond graduation and how to prepare for it.
Health education and physical education are provided for quite ade- quately. Because of the reorganization of the duties of the physical education staff and coaches a smoother operating program has resulted. Through the regular medium of physical check-up by the School Nurse, School Doctor, and Dean of Girls, the health of our pupils received reasonable attention. Our cafeteria, where good food in variety is served in clean surroundings, is an aid to good health.
Specifically in the field of science an effort by the teachers is made to keep abreast of the new atomic development. In the not too distant future we might consider adding a course in the field of electronics. The elements of this field of electricity, sound, and projection might well become a part of our now well developed industrial arts program.
The home economics course, formerly handicapped by inadequate facilities, is now developing nicely in its new quarters under the di- rection of two experienced and well trained women. It is a popular course and growing in numbers. Various areas of clothing, foods, homemaking, and child care are covered.
Our business course continues to be strong, and at least the upper half of our graduates from this course have no difficulty in locating jobs and making good as secretaries and office workers. As in the past, we have inquiries for our girls from substantial firms long before graduation. While the upper half of this group is placed in the better jobs, many of the remainder of this group find or are placed in adequate jobs. Usually this group, the lower 50%, take further training and then go on to better positions.
115
Many of our girls go into nursing and because of the demand for nurses we have tried to encourage girls to go into this necessary oc- cupation through the medium of a new course in Anatomy. This course is very well taught.
The Art course is expanding and is becoming more effective in the new Art center. Here, future commercial artists can get a start. Pure art for the sake of intellectual growth and appreciation is being taught. Pupils get some practical experience in decorating in the school for parties, dances, and important events.
Our Yearbook, THE PIONEER, a product of some fifty pupils under the guidance of the English and Art Departments, has for the past several years won first National place with the exception of 1953, when THE PIONEER placed second in its class (offset printing). Editors, cartoonists, profile writers, essayists, dummy arrangers, and other de- partments are all student staffed. The financial aspects of the sizeable project are handled by still another group under the guidance of an- other member of the staff.
The out-of-door athletic facilities, not yet ready, should afford ad- ditional opportunities for athletic exercises and competition. Field hockey, LaCrosse, additional track and field sports are a few that can be contemplated. These added sports when they become a reality will entail further budget adjustments and probably call for addition, not so much with relation to personnel, although this may be the case, but rather for equipment and team transportation to other schools. Of course, we are far better off now than in the old school for we do have quite a sizeable out-of-doors area for physical exercises for both boys and girls.
Library. We are very fortunate to have a fine, intelligent and hard working librarian. She has arranged the library in such a way that it is not only an attractive place to conduct research but it is highly functional. Each year more volumes are needed to replace wornout copies of books, and, of course, there is need to expand the facilities by adding more volumes. The librarian conducts library education classes throughout the year for all grades, especially freshmen, and even the 6th grade has been included. Some 15 pupils have been se- lected as library assistants.
Number of volumes in library
2415
Circulation-Fiction
3149
Non-Fiction 3484
6633 for school year
Music. Instrumental music, especially the band, is showing marked improvement. The vocal aspects of our program are just now showing signs of improvement and I hope and expect that by June 1956 we shall be well under way toward having acceptable singing groups. The band concert given last Spring was a fairly good performance and seemed to forecast better things to come. A small but rather active dance band and string ensemble are indications of more participation by pupils in this field of education.
116
The school's newspaper which comes out eight times a year, is well conceived and well done. Though only a few months old, the paper rates well with other local high school newspapers. This paper is financed entirely out of high school funds.
Given on our new stage, the annual high school play gained im- portance because of the new facilities, and for the first time in the history of Reading High School we were in a position to invite the Drama Festival to our school. Eight schools participated in the festival, which was a success and enjoyed by many pupils and parents. Groups of one-act plays have also been produced and more play production work is contemplated.
The custodians, a most important group of people in any school, are doing a good job. Some readjustments in personnel affected last fall have improved an already fair arrangement so that now the build- ing receives good care as to cleanliness, minor repair, and comfort for pupils and faculty.
Number of Graduates, June 1955 171
Number of pupils in 8th grade, September 1955 278
Probable enrollment, September 1956 1,017
Respectfully submitted,
RUDOLF SUSSMANN, Principal
REPORT OF THE PRINCIPAL OF THE WALTER S. PARKER JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL
Enrollment - December 1, 1955:
Remedial Workshop
10
Grade 6
85
Grade 7
267
Grade 8
283
645
Grade 8 Electives:
Business Training
86
French
33
Latin
45
Home Economics
36
Shop
72
Study
11
283
Instruction
1. The following standardized tests have been used during the year:
A. Otis Quick Scoring - for rechecking I Qs.
B. California Short Form - Grade 6.
C. Differential Aptitude Test - Grade 8.
D. Cooperative Tests in General Science - Grades 7 and 8.
E. Curriculum Tests in Mathematics - Grades 7 and 8.
F. Stanford & McCall Spelling Tests - Grades 7 and 8.
2. Since each Sixth Grade group in our building came from a different elementary school this year, it was administratively expedient
117
to integrate them into the Junior High School. By departmentalizing the Sixth Grade it was possible to have regular Junior High teachers take over certain Sixth Grade classes and vice versa. As a result most teachers were able to confine their teaching to subjects in their specific fields. This prevented a situation in which teachers would have been called on to teach subjects for which they had no aptitude or liking, or alternatively, hiring an extra teacher. This arrangement made possible a higher general level of teaching.
3. The Music department is continuing a logical expansion of its field in our school. Mr. Oliver has started a Junior High band designed to function as a separate unit. At present it is of fairly recent origin, but its progress to this point indicates a strong organization based on the interests of musically inclined pupils. Its 40 members play reason- ably well after a limited number of rehearsals and should contribute to a stronger band in the Senior High in the future.
Last spring the combined Boys' Chorus and Girls' Glee Club pre- sented THE PIRATES OF PENZANCE by Gilbert & Sullivan in costume, both to the school and as a paid evening performance. Their program was very creditable for their age level.
4. On early closing Thursdays the afternoons are devoted to meetings with Grade or Department chairmen. Meetings of the same groups, as well as general staff meetings, are held on other Thursdays. The grade meetings are taken up with plans for group guidance during home room periods and with problems of individual pupils. The de- partment meetings are concerned with curriculum revision, teaching procedures and techniques, and establishing satisfactory tests. In all types of meetings we have in mind the problem of orienting and in- tegrating new teachers, which in itself takes considerable time.
Miscellaneous
1. Four meetings of the Parent-Teacher Association were held during the year. One of these is in the nature of an informal afternoon tea, whose primary purpose is to give parents an opportunity to become acquainted with the school and the teachers. It also affords girls in the Home Economics department with valuable practical experience. The three other meetings take place in the evening. After a brief business meeting some phase of school work or activity is explained and demonstrated to the parents, following which parents have an opportunity to visit teachers.
2. With the exception of items included in the 1956 budget the school is in fine physical condition and does not give the impression of being as old as it is. Work done this past year includes painting second and third floor corridors, health room, and the old health room office, and retubing one of the boilers.
3. The Remedial Workshop, ably conducted by Mrs. Garfield, oc- cupies the Conference room and old health room office. The old bicycle room, under Room 101, is being converted to a Mechanical Drawing and planning room. Classes will then be held in every available room of the school except for the Health Room and the Library, the latter being used as a home room.
Respectfully submitted,
ALBERT H. WOODWARD, Principal
118
ANNUAL REPORT OF THE GUIDANCE DEPARTMENT FOR 1955
Submitted by Ara A. Karakashian
During 1955 the Guidance Department has worked in various ways to further its overall aim of establishing new, and improving existing facilities for focusing attention on individual pupils in our schools so that each pupil might be helped to grow at an optimum rate. .. Primarily because of personnel limitations progress has been much slower than the Director desires.
Under existing circumstances and with growing high school pop- ulation now in excess of 1,000 pupils, an attempt is being made this year to accomplish some guidance through group procedures. At the junior high school level where provisions were made previously for adequate home room programming and for frequent staff meetings for the planning and implementation of common projects, there appears to be some promise of effective work in this area. At the high school level, for lack of a better solution, an attempt has been made to meet the needs of pupils in three specific areas. A surevy conducted last year revealed a desire on the part of many pupils for information and help in arranging workable study schedules and in developing more efficient study habits. To this end the Wrenn Study Habits Inventory has been or is being administered to all 9th and 10th grade pupils during home room periods on Wednesday afternoons. The purpose of this instrument is to help students gain insight into their own study habits and to see if these habits are good or bad. Instruction sheets and guides have been provided homeroom teachers for organizing group discussions after the inventories have been scored and for assisting pupils in arranging equitable study schedules.
In the same way the Mooney Problem Check List has also been or is being administered to all 9th and 10th graders for a four-fold purpose. This instrument serves as a gross screening device for picking out and referring pupils who appear to be burdened with a multitude of prob- lems to individual counseling and possibly further referral. It serves to point out to pupils and teachers alike, problems that are commonly shared by teenagers and provides a guide for group discussions that pupils might benefit from.
The Kuder Preference Record, an interest inventory, is being administered to the 11th graders to stimulate constructive thinking and planning of educational and/or vocational nature. Home room teachers have been provided with instruction sheets and guides for helping pupils interpret scores and in locating and evaluating significant vo- cational information.
The work that was begun last year in evaluating and modifying the testing program in our schools is being carried on. Sample specimens of various newer intelligence and other tests have been obtained and are being studied by supervising principals of the elementary schools to see where and when substitutions might be made to improve the kind and quality of the data we wish to obtain on our elementary pupils.
119
This year again was a "catch-up" year as far as testing at the high school level was concerned. For purposes of obtaining comparable scores for guidance and replacement purposes the Otis Gamma Test of Mental Maturity and the Cooperative Reading Comprehension Test (C1-Lower) were administered to all pupils in grades 9, 10 and 11. These tests have all been scored and results have been or are being transcribed on permanent record cards for benefit of classroom teachers and administrators. As a result of the Reading Tests two groups of freshmen are now receiving special help in Reading in addition to work done in their regular English classes.
Eleventh grade pupils in the high school and 8th grade pupils in the Junior High School have taken the differential aptitude Test Battery and soon will be having counseling interviews in which their scores will be interpreted to them. Eighth-graders will be assisted in selecting integrated programs of study for their 4 years in high school while post high school education and vocational plans will be stressed with eleventh graders.
In May and again in September of this year we cooperated with the Educational Testing Service in the final standardization of their new School and College Ability Tests. At both times these tests were ad- ministered to all 10th, 11th and 12th grade students. We have already received the scores for the tests administered in May, and preliminary examination indicates that they will be useful to us in the future since these tests are part of a program initiated by Educational Testing Service to provide a standard instrument for measuring development of academic ability from grade 4 through grade 14.
In cooperation with the Woburn office of the U.S.E.S., fifty-four non- college, non-business senior boys and girls were given the General Aptitude Test Battery during October and November. When results of these tests are received they will be used in vocational counseling of these pupils.
Last May, 40 juniors were encouraged to take the Scholastic Aptitude portions of the College Entrance Examination Board Tests as a means of helping them think more realistically of their college choices. To date almost 60 seniors have signed up for the C.E.E.B. tests. Repre- sentatives of various institutions of higher learning have visited and are visiting the high school to confer with interested students. Eleven seniors took the special scholarship examinations sponsored by the C.E.E.B. in October.
Juniors and seniors in College Preparatory English Classes have been given the Nelson-Denny Reading Test this year for a better evalu- ation of their reading abilities in comparison to college students. As in the past, Cooperative Achievement Tests in appropriate subject matter areas were administered last spring and will be administered again in the Spring of '56.
Through subscription to the Chronicle Guidance Service and by making selective purchases from other sources, our library of vocational and related materials continues to improve. This year as in the past, a series of well organized Occupational Conferences has been arranged in cooperation with Roland Darling and Northeastern University. In
120
addition, programs on the Armed Services and other pertinent subjects have been arranged.
The screening of retarded elementary pupils for possible special class placement will get underway soon. A relatively large number of pupils were tested by Dr. Foote and the traveling clinic last winter with home visitations and follow-ups being made by Mrs. Clewley and my- self. Several conferences were held subsequently with elementary prin- cipals and parents, and as a result we now have one special class of 10 pupils ranging in age from 11 to 14 in the Junior High School. As the school population continues to grow, the need for more classes of this type will become more pressing and it is likely that we may have to provide for such additional classes at the primary and secondary levels in the relatively near future.
Steps have been taken to provide a more adequate and continuous form of Cumulative Record. Meetings have been scheduled with ele- mentary principals and teachers to discuss and decide ways and means whereby the new folders can be used most effectively.
Little or no work has been done in some areas that need much attention. Job placement and follow-up of graduates and drop-outs is still very much a "catch-as-catch-can" proposition. Statistical anal- ysis and scientific evaluation of test results and other procedures are still nothing much more than an unfulfilled wish. Systematic record- keeping and adequate follow-up of counselors remains a practical im- possibility. Progress is being made in some areas but many problems will remain unsolved or at best partially solved until the guidance staff is adequately manned.
ANNUAL REPORT - SUPERVISOR OF HEALTH Margaret B. Clewley
All essential health services - testing of vision, hearing and physical examination, with the resultant notices and parental confer- ences - were completed for the year ending June 1955. Vision testing with the Massachusetts Vision Tester was done in the Senior High School for the first time. Due to lack of a room in which to function, previous testing had been done by the old Snellen E card, hung in the classroom, a totally inadequate procedure. Audiometer tests were not attempted in High School.
The program of inoculation with Triple and Double Antigen (Diph- theria, Pertussis, Tetanus) was planned and clinics held in all the elementary schools in the spring. Four clinics for infants and children were held in the Town Building, from March into June.
The organization, administration and physical carrying out of the clinics for the giving of the Salk vaccine for Polio was a highlight of the year. The short time for preparation and multiplicity of details required, imposed a terrific strain and necessitated hours of work.
The Dental Clinic is a function of the Board of Health. Last year we cared for 234 children, several visits for each child.
The vision testing for this year is completed with the exception of a very few absentees to be picked up later. The parents of all pupils
121
failing the test are notified and examination by an eye specialist recommended, unless the records show the pupil to already have the best correction possible.
No. of pupils failed 187 No. of parents notified 132
No. already seen by eye specialist 58
A complete report is submitted to each school so that the teachers may be informed. After the report from the doctor is entered upon the pupil's health card, it is put in the pupil's individual folder. In the absence of a report showing that the pupil has received care, a follow-up will be instituted in the form of a visit, a letter, or whatever seems best in the individual case.
All the children who are tested annually due to a known hearing deficiency have been done, plus a group requested by teachers. The Eaton and Highland Schools are completed and in January the program will be continued to completion. The method of reporting failures, follow-up, etc., is the same as with vision.
The practice of notifying parents of children due for a physical examination was resumed this year. The parents are thus given the opportunity to have the examination done by the family doctor if they wish, in which case they are furnished with a record form to be filled out by the examining physician and returned to me. This pro- cedure is recommended by the State Department of Public Health. There is no quarrel with the philosophy behind it but it results in more paper work, postage, and many parents who do not follow through and have the examination done.
It has been a pleasure to work with Dr. Wakeling. The technique of the examination is good, complete, and his manner is pleasant; he likes the children. The number of defects is few and strikingly fall into two classifications - dental and an accumulation of wax sufficient to occlude seeing the ear drum, a condition easily remedied, which may impair hearing. I have devised a form for reporting this condition. Only occasionally do we have a family in Reading who refuses to recognize the need of correcting physical defects.
The addition of Mrs. McKenney to the health staff has been of great advantage. It has enabled us to complete the vision testing program in the first term of the school year, as well as be well through other phases of the program. There has been more time for home visiting during the hours when the child in question is in school; this is of great advantage. There has also been more time available for conferences in the classroom; this will be even more so in the next term of the school year.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.