USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > Westford > Town of Westford annual report 1956-1962 > Part 49
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Mr. Theodore Lapierre, head of the Academy Science Department, now on a Sabbatical leave of absence for the 1960-61 School year, is to be congratulated for his successful application to Harvard Univer- sity's Academic Year Institute. From some eight hundred well qualified applicants, only fifty were selected for this coveted fellowship.
We were saddened by the sudden illness this past year of Mr. Kenneth Robes, veteran mathematics teacher and look forward to his re- turn for at least part of the day for the second semester of the 1960- 61 School year.
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Mr. John Spinner, retiring custodian of the Sargent School, was honored at a PTA meeting on November 21st with a purse donated by the Sargent PTA and a letter of commendation presented by the School Com- mittee. The teachers of the Sargent School made a separate presenta- tion just before Mr. Spinner's retirement December 1st.
Finding qualified personnel to fill the above positions as well as the many vacancies created by resignations has been very time consuming this past year. The August 2nd resignation of Mr. Joseph E. Joyce, Jr., Academy Principal, was filled September 9th following many hours of special meetings and interviews. Mr. Daniel L. Desmond, appointee, was unable to assume his new duties until October 13th. Mr. Eugene Hayes, Vice Principal, very capably opened the Academy and administered in the interim.
Filling the newly created position of Supervising Principal of the New Nabnasset School proved even more time consuming but the appoint- ment was finally made early enough for Mr. Robert Noy, appointee, to plan his summer's preparation for the opening of the new school.
Sargent School was without leadership following Mr. Harold Hershfield's resignation in February to become the Supervisor of Ele- mentary Science at the State Department of Education. Mr. Henry Leyland, Cameron School Teacher, so successfully carried his interim appointment that he was named Teaching Principal of Sargent School on April 13th.
In all there are thirty names on the School Roster in the 1960 Annual Report which do not appear on the 1959 Roster. It is sincerely hoped that the salary for 1961-62, detailed in the statistical part of this Report, might serve to stabilize our Staff and nullify the usual large annual turnover.
As previously mentioned, our new Nabnasset School was opened in September 1960. There was a two week delay in the opening but the Building Committee, Architect and Contractor are all to be congratu- lated that the School was ready to open as early as September 19th, three months less than two years from the date of appointment of the Elementary School Building Committee. Now a Secondary School Building Committee is pointing towards a September 1963 opening date for a mid- dle School of about twice the capacity of the New Nabnasset School.
During the past year your School Committee has continued with the scheduled maintenance of our older Schools to assure that the problem of plant replacement will not compound the problem of providing spaces for our growing enrollments. Sargent School floors were refinished and the building was painted inside and out. Cameron School firedoors were replaced and the corridors relighted. Reshading of Cameron was completed this year. The Frost School blackboards were refinished and doors and windows of both Frost and Roudenbush Schools were weather- stripped. Incinerators were installed in Frost and Roudenbush and the last set of fixed furniture was replaced with new movable furniture.
The much discussed Academy Septic System extension project has been on every agenda this past calendar year. Funds were appropriated
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at the Annual Town Meeting in March. Plans and Specifications, pre- pared by the Firm of Metcalf & Eddy of Boston and approved by our Board of Health have been bid. The contract with the Power Construction Com- pany of Roslindale has been signed and the work must be completed by May 15, 1961. This project has been time consuming because 1) the Academy Plant had first to be accepted by the School Committee before the School Committee could act and 2) the Engineers, the State De- partment of Health and our own Westford Board of Health had to be in substantial agreement each step of the way. The first set of Plans and Specifications, which would have seen the project completed by September 1960, was rejected. Cold weather had set in before a second set could be submitted. Hence, the postponement of the completion date to May 1961.
THE 1961 OPERATIONAL BUDGET
The estimated operational costs of the Westford Schools for 1961 is $564,325.00. This is an increase of $60,121.00 over the 1960 Budget or about 12%. Anticipated enrollment increase for the fiscal year is about 5% almost entirely at the secondary level.
Salaries including teacher, administration, clerical, health and custodial, comprise 78% of this Budget and salary increases including normal increments and schedule revision, account for $24,830.00 of the total increase. Additional personnel, because of enrollment growth, accounts for another $28,733.00. This figure includes two thirds the salaries of the additional personnel September 1960 plus one third the salaries of additional personnel scheduled for September 1961.
The balance of the increase is due mainly to operational costs of the New Nabnasset School and to additional texts and supplies. Copies of the 1961 School Budget have been placed in the .J. V. Fletcher Li- brary where details and the explanations are available to all.
THE DECADE AHEAD
The 1959-60 New Settler's Guide for Locating in Today's Greater Boston Area characterized Westford as "an agricultural suburb of Lowell, starting to become a residential town for executive and professional workers in plants along part of Route 128." How will Westford be de- scribed in 1970 and what is the educational significance of the next decade to the residents of Westford? If detailed answers to these two questions could be accurately provided by today's remarkable electronic computers, plotting the course for the Town of Westford and for West- ford Schools could be reduced to a manageable needsvs. resources pro- gram. Unfortunately, we can only guess what 1970 will bring, basing our prophesy on past experience and current trends. However, even an inaccurate guess, subject to constant revision is to be preferred to year by year planning without benefit of long range goals.
OUR CHANGING SOCIETY
In 1950 there was general agreement among the Census experts that our nation's population would gradually level off around 175 million. Summaries of the 1960 Census omit any reference to a "leveling off" or even to a temporary plateau in population. Rather, there are dire
98
warnings of explosive growth when the children of the great post war boom come of marriageable age in the next decade.
Interesting predictions have been made concerning the distribution of our nation's population in the years ahead. It is felt that there will gradually evolve great metropolitan areas embracing and gradually eliminating the individual identities of cities within wide geographic limits. Southeastern New England will be one of these great metropoli- tan areas. Another will be the eastern seaboard extending from New York through New Jersey. Greatly improved communications will acceler- ate this mass migration. The responsibility for feeding America's mil- lions will more and more devolve to the highly mechanized, highly tech- nical, huge farm corporations.
The increased productivity per man hour in both industry and on the farm and the ever lengthening life expectancy due to remarkable advances in medical science, both indicate greater leisure time in the years ahead. Guiding the profitable and beneficial use of this leisure time will be an extremely important obligation of our society with ob- vious implications to education.
The anticipated scientific progress over the next decade defies the imagination: "manned space flight by 1963; a moon landing by 1966." These fantastic feats will be accepted as readily by our chil- dren as we have come to accept commercial air travel. Will the educa- tion which we received serve the needs of our children?
OUR CHANGING COMMUNITY
Westford, only 30 miles from Boston, falls easily within the Southeastern New England metropolitan area. Bracketed by two new major interstate highways, our community can expect to feel the full impact of the explosive population growth predicted for the nation during this next decade. Between 1955 and 1960, Westford's growth almost tripled the growth recorded for the period 1950 to 1955. If growth in the next two successive five year periods follows this pattern, Westford will be housing 16,000 citizens by 1970. (Chelmsford's 1960 Census figure - 14,959) We should not lose sight of the fact that Burlington's popu- lation quadrupled during the 1950 to 1960 decade. So it is not beyond the limits of reason that Westford could grow from 6500 to 16,000 in a decade.
In 1950 nineteen percent of Westford's 4262 population was in the public schools. By 1960, the figure had increased to twenty two per- cent, indicating that young families with school age children were re- sponsible for a significant part of the population increase. At the present rate, by 1970 some twenty five percent of Westford's popula- tion may be in the public schools. A school enrollment of 4000 pupils by 1970 (i.e. 25% of 16,000) does not compare favorably with the pres- ent forecast of 2400, a figure derived from the assumption that the average growth rate over the past five years will continue for the next decade.
As indicated in the The New Settler's Guide, Westford is starting to become a residential town. Whether it will develop as a limited
99
manufacturing community will depend a great deal upon the commercial desirability of Interstate #495 and #3. Who could have anticipated the influx of industry along Route #128? It is entirely possible, even likely, that within the next ten years Westford will become a far more self-sufficient community, with its own shopping centers, banks etc. Commercial interests will reach out for land which we presently consid- er of little value. Space for community use such as parks, playground areas and public buildings, may become available only at premium prices. Our confidence in a slow and controlled community growth, inspired by the presence of extensive fields and woodlands and by a limited water supply, may melt abruptly as shrewd developers, receiving an assist from rising taxes, pressure our large landowners to release their hold- ings.
As a point of departure, and very likely a conservative point, let us assume, for educational planning purposes, that by 1970 Westford will be a limited industrial community of ten to twelve thousand people. Some residents will work in local industry as well as in local shops and business offices. Many will commute to the great industrial cen- ters of Boston and points beyond. The work week and the work year will be shorter. The number of years of retirement will be lengthened. Many new jobs will be created by new industries but these new jobs will demand greater and greater technical preparation. Demand will have long since exceeded the space limitations of our area four year colleges, although there will be ample space yet for a while in the state and locally supported two year colleges which will be springing up during the next decade. The higher the requirements for job pro- curement or for college admission, the greater will be the parental demand for excellence in all phases of education, both terminal and college preparatory.
SIGNIFICANCE FOR EDUCATIONAL PLANNING
In the preparation of an educational plan for the next decade, two variables must be given serious consideration, enrollment and change. It seems evident that our enrollments will continue to in- crease for a while, but for how long and how fast? To assume that the current educational program, which has been criticized for being out- moded especially since Sputnik, will find acceptance in the next dec- ade, seems utter folly. Every day we stand still we lose ground. Change must occur but in what direction and again how fast?
ENROLLMENTS
Consider first the School Plant Requirements for the next decade. The basis of our plant needs is the official enrollment forecast which is summarized below. It should be noted that for the past three years the forecast has been revised upward each year. In 1958 the forecast for 1963 was 1594 pupils. In 1959 it was revised to 1635 pupils and in 1960 to 1672 pupils. The 1960 forecast is presently accepted as the official forecast.
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YEAR
ELEMENTARY GR 1-6
SECONDARY GR 7-12
TOTAL GR 1-12
1961
772
689
1461
1962
798
729
1527
1963
919
753
1672
1964
953
771
1724
1965
1054
780
1834
1966
1095
820
1915
1967
1187
821
2008
1968
1286
852
2138
1969
1311
974
2285
1970
1381
1019
2400
Westford's New Nabnasset School was opened in September 1960 adding 300 pupil spaces. Here follows the summary of pupil spaces and enrollments October 1960:
SCHOOL
CLASSROOMS
CAPACITY
ENROLLMENT
Academy
Gr 8-12
21
525
498
Roudenbush
Gr 7 & Sp
5
150
137
Frost
Gr 1-6
6
150
132
Cameron
Gr 1-6
8
200
143
Sargent
1-6
8
200
171
Nabnasset
Gr 1-6
12
300
325
60
1525
1406
Old Nabnasset - not in use
2
50
Both the Elementary School Building Committee and the Secondary School Building Committee have resolved that Westford will require additional secondary school space by September 1963. At that time the official forecast estimates 516 pupils grades 9-12 only. During the period 1963 to 1968 little growth is anticipated in the top four grades. However, grades 6-8 will grow steadily from 380 in 1963 to 520 in 1968.
The Elementary enrollment will be 919 in 1963 and 1286 by 1968. If 1968 is the critical year when grade 9 must be held at the Junior High level, returning Grade 6 to the Elementary program, then additional elementary space must be planned for that year. Here follow charts showing space needs and how they might be met through the next decade. It should be noted that we are discussing the need only for additional spaces. There is no thought of replacing any of our buildings which are presently in use. Funds have been expended on a scheduled plan each year for the proper maintenance of our total school plant to assure that the Town of Westford would not be faced with replacement costs over and above the cost for additional class- rooms .
SCHOOL
GRADE
CAPACITY
1961-62
1962-63
Academy
8-12
525
553
*606
Roudenbush
7
150
136
123
Elementary
1-6
850
772
798
Totals
1525
1461
1527
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*The Academy will be obviously hard pressed to fulfill pupil pro- gram needs in 1962-63 and some electives may have to be deferred for a year for purposes of space economy. In the table below, the Academy capacity has been reduced to 500 pupils to allow for the elective 9-12 program.
SCHOOL
GRADE
CAPACITY
1963
1964
1965
1966
1967
Academy
9-12
500
516
506
484
506
509
New J. H.
6-8
600
380
397
456
443
453
Roudenbush
Elem
150
Reopen Roudenbush
Elementary
1-5
850
776
821
894
966
1046
Totals
2100
1672
1724
1834
1915
2008
In 1968 with a large Grade 9 and a large Grade 6 indicated and a Grade 1-5 enrollment already exceeding Elementary space limitations (including Roudenbush) new space should be provided, either through an addition to Nabnasset or by building a new Elementary School in another section of Town or both. The table below assumes eighteen additional Elementary classrooms.
SCHOOL
GRADE
CAPACITY
1968
1969
1970
Academy
10-12
500
369
423
409
Junior High
7-9
600
483
551
610
Roudenbush
Elem
150
Roudenbush remains in use
Elementary
1-6
1300
1286
1311
1381
Totals
2550
2138
2285
2400
So, in the next decade two additional School Buildings will prob- ably be needed. A Junior High, or middle school, seems a wise first step for two reasons. First, it is secondary space which is required and Secondly, by providing spaces for middle grade students, our grade organization can be adjusted upward or downward in accordance with space needs. Perhaps the date for opening a new Elementary School may be deferred to the 1970's. Perhaps it might be needed prior to 1968 - time will tell but the fact should be. underlined that, to most effi- ciently use the spaces available, both in 1961 and in later years, Elementary School district lines will have to be crossed many times. Every attempt will be made to affect such pupil transfers as are re- quired to balance class size before school opens each September rather than to interrupt any pupil's program. Presently Grade 1 and Grade 3 classrooms in the New Nabnasset School are overloaded and our Grade 1 classes are light in Frost, Cameron and Sargent and Grade 3 is light in Frost. Also there are two available classrooms in Cameron and one in Sargent. Any transfers will require careful bus routing to enable all buses to run on schedule. The advantage to pupil and parent of such transfers is that a child in a class of less than thirty pupils enjoys an educational opportunity which he would be denied in a larger class group. The advantage to the Town is of course the saving which results from the efficient use of the total educational plant.
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THE PROGRAM AND THE STAFF
The demand on the part of Westford residents for excellence in the Educational Program, inspired by the ever increasing competition their children must face for job procurement and College entrance, will encourage the School Staff to seek more effective ways of provid- ing for individual differences. We have long known that children do learn at different speeds but we have never fully exploited this knowledge. During the past decade many interesting innovations in pupil grouping and staff utilization have been introduced in school systems across the country. These experiments have been subsidized by various corporations such as the Rockefeller, Carnegie and Ford Found- ations, The Fund for the Advancement of Education and of course, our Federal Government. Colleges and Universities have been eager part- ners in this nation-wide study to strengthen Elementary and Secondary School Programs. Few of these studies can as yet present conclusive evidence to support new theories, mainly because most of the projects are so recent. However, some of these experiments do show real prom- ise and will doubtlessly have an effect on the Westford Staff and Pro- gram in the decade ahead.
At the Elementary level, teachers will gradually emerge from the isolation of their classrooms to work more and more as a team. There is already evidence that this trend is underway in Westford. Some teachers are sharing classes, each teacher preparing a special lesson in the area of her strength. To date only teachers at the same grade level have been pairing off in this effort. But grade lines will be crossed allowing more than a pair of teachers to compose the team. Rather than grouping children by age - or by grade which amounts to the same thing - efforts will be made to group children more in ac- cordance with level and speed of learning. Serious obstacles will be encountered in improving our present grouping plan in some of our schools because of the fact that these schools have but a single group at each age level. However, we know from our testing that at each age level we have a wide range of achievement and potential. There is much overlap and duplication under our present grouping plan and we are not making the greatest use of individual teacher skills and in- terests.
During the next decade we will gradually accept as a most natural situation children progressing at varying speeds. Under our present plan children progress pretty much as a group, exposing the capable to boredom and the slow to frustrations. Two new teaching aids will ac- celerate this change - paper backed texts and teaching machines. A child with his very own paper back text and exercise book will be en- couraged to progress as rapidly as he can assimilate the information. Paperbacks are already competitive pricewise costing about one fourth the price of the school bound text. The average life of a school text is four to five years unless it becomes obsolete before then.
The second aid which will contribute to a more individual program is the Teaching Machine. In the decade ahead this device will become much less expensive as companies compete for the school market. The function of the machine is to teach a single basic concept through carefully prepared questions, each question preparing the child for
103
the next question, much as a skillful teacher presents a new topic to her class. The effectiveness of the machine will of course depend upon the excellence of the programming. In the decade ahead some exception- ally skilled teachers will carve a new career for themselves in prepar- ing programs commercially for this new teaching aid.
Specialists will be added to the Elementary Staff at the rate of about one for each two hundred additional pupils, roughly the present ratio. A second Reading Specialist is scheduled for 1961-62 to provide special reading assistance for our pupils for the full school year rather than on the present half year basis.
Under serious consideration is the need for an Elementary School Adjustment Counsellor to assist children who have learning problems of an emotional nature. At present we are extremely limited in our abil- ity to do anything more than identify these pupils. Pupils with learning problems are now referred by the teacher to the building Principal who, with the approval of the child's parents, requests the services of the School Psychologist. The School Psychologist tests and recommends special class for those who fall into the very slow
learner category. For others he can only conclude that their failure to learn must be due to other problems. At this point the Adjustment Counsellor would come into the picture and, working directly with the child as well as with teacher and parent, attempt to resolve the child's problem. The position of Adjustment Counsellor demands unusu- al personal qualities and qualifications. Such people are hard to find and expensive but it is more than expensive to subject children, intellectually capable, to failure and discouragement. It is tragic because the services of potential contributors to our society are lost. Children with learning problems are becoming more numerous in our Schools for two reasons: 1) these children formerly constituted an appreciable percentage of our drop-outs and the number of drop-outs in recent years has decreased considerably and 2) it is becoming more and more common for both parents to find it necessary to seek employ- ment, leaving their children with less than the all important parental supervision.
Other special positions which will come in for consideration this next decade include Foreign Language, Television and Audio-Visual Co- ordinator, Science, Physical Education and Curriculum Coordinator. It is difficult to determine at just what point an additional Specialist should be procured. The need must be carefully evaluated in compari- son with other educational needs. The possibility that the need for a Specialist might be recognized with no qualified candidate available should also be anticipated.
At the Secondary level the need for a greater team effort will also be recognized. A student's program will gradually cease to be so many isolated areas of study and gradually assume a degree of co- herence more meaningful to the student. Recently, in preparing the educational plan for the proposed New Junior High School, our Staff members recognized the natural relationship of certain areas of study within our present Program, i.e., Foreign Language and the Language Arts including Literature, Composition, Speech etc; Practical Arts including Homemaking, Crafts, Art and Industrial Arts; the Social
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Sciences, History, Geography, Civics, Government, Economics and finally the natural Mathematics - Science relationship. As this approach evolves teachers will naturally fall into a team effort and the student will find a more meaningful program made available to him.
Teachers and Administrators are beginning to question the neces- sity of scheduling each course five days per week and assigning each course to a single teacher. The next decade will find much more flex- ible scheduling at the Secondary level. Children will be meeting in large groups for Special Lectures and demonstrations, adjourning to normal sized class groups for discussions and devoting themselves to much individual study and research on specially assigned projects. The length of time in any particular area of study might vary from day to day and week to week. Television will play a much more important part in the Instructional Program as will other Audio and Visual Aids. The Teaching Machine will become common at the Secondary level also. The focus of the entire Instructional Program will be the development
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