Glass' Book ^"^ ^ Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2011 with funding from The Libra'ry of Congress http://www.archive.org/details/ruralschoolsituaOOtenn Rural School Situation in Tennessee BULLETIN OF INFORMATION R EGA R D I N O CONSOLIDATION OF SCHOOLS AN D TRANSPORTATION OF PUPILS ISSUED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION J. W. BRISTER, Superintendent FRED B. FRAZIER. El-EMENTARY SCHOOL INSPECTOR NASHVILLE, TCNN. 1912 Rural School Situation in Tennessee Tf7 BULLETIN OF INFORMATION REGARDI NG CONSOLIDATION OF SCHOOLS AND TRANSPORTATION OF PUPILS ISSUED BY THE Q^V^«W-«.<«>>Q ^ «^ .DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION J. W. BRISTER, SUPERI NTEMDENT FRED B. FRAZIER, Elementary School Inspector Nashville, Tenn. McQuiDDY Printing Company 1911 .\o\ V^'(^' vy »iir 19 IP'? \ ■ CONTENTS. Purpose and Plan. Rural School Situation in Tennessee. Statistical Tables. Comparisons. The Kind of Rural School Needed in Tennessee. Weaknesses of the Single-Teacher Schools. The Consolidated School — Its Meaning and Advantages, Public Transportation of Pupils. First Efforts at Consolidation in Tennessee. Progress of the Consolidation Movement. Progress of Consolidation in Tennessee. Success of Consolidation and Transportation in Shelby and Madison Counties. Necessary Steps in Organizing a County Plan of Consolida- tion. Conclusion. PLAN AND PURPOSE OF THE BULLETIN. The information contained in the following" pages has been obtained directly from County Superintendents by means of reports sent out by the State Department of Public Instruc- tion, by personal inspection of rural schools in a number of counties, by personal observation of the practical workings of consolidation and transportation in those counties of the State where it is being successfully operated. The purpose is to show the cost and inefficiency of the aver- age one-teacher rural school in Tennessee, and also the cost and efficiency of the elementary graded schools of representa- tive cities and towns. By a comparison of these facts a defi- nite idea as to the excessive cost and inefficiency of the aver- age one-teacher rural school is obtained. This demonstration is followed by a study of consolidation and transportation in certain counties of Tennessee and in other States. It is hoped by a recital of the history and prog- ress of this movement to show to the people of Tennessee that a wise school policy would substitute consolidated schools for the high-priced, inefficient, and inadequate single-teacher schools — indeed, that consolidation of schools with transpor- tation of pupils is necessary for a successful system of rural schools. It is proper to state that this investigation in Tennessee was suggested by the comprehensive and serviceable bulletin on consolidation and transportation issued by the State De- partment of Public Instruction of North Carolina. THE RURAL SCHOOL SITUATION IN TENNESSEE. The purpose of this bulletin is to direct attention to the ru- ral school situation in Tennessee, and particularly the rural elementary school. The most interesting phase of public- school education in the State to-day — or, rather, that which is most deserving of interest — is the rural school. This state- ment is made advisedly, and for the follovv^ing reasons : 1. The Rural School is an Important Factor in the Larger Problem of Rural Life. Without attempting to justify the use of the word " problem " in this connection, it may be said that the situation is sufficiently complex and involves a suffi- cient number of factors to warrant it. It is generally agreed that many of the institutions pecul- iar to country life are on the decline ; that the country church is weakening, the glamor is being lifted from the old-time country home, rural population is declining, and there is mani- fest a general decay of country life. The one fact of decreas- ing rural population and increasing city population gives rise to alarm and calls for serious inquiry into the cause. Thirty- seven counties in Tennessee showed a smaller population in 1910 than in 1900. The total increase for the whole State during the decade was only 164,173, and 70 per cent of this small increase is credited to the four coimties of the State having large, cities. The cry of " back to the farm " is not without significance ; it grows out of the realization on the part of thoughtful men of a serious condition. Whatever other hypotheses may be advanced as to the cause of the in- flux of population to the cities, it is certainly true that a large number of desirable inhabitants of the country are leaving their homes in order to secure proper educational advantages for their children. The need of improvement in the rural school is universally felt. It must play a prominent part in all the activities inau- gurated for the resuscitation of country life. To it, more than 2 "3 W cs- tf ^ S & AND Transportation of PuriLS. 9 to any other single institution which functions for country- life, we must look for the setting in motion of forces which will make for attractiveness and productiveness, which will produce a satisfying richness and fullness of life, and which will thus aid materially in the solution of the problem con- fronting us. 2. The Rural School Has Been Apparently Neglected. The thought of educators has been primarily about other phases of educational work. It is not meant that they have intention- ally neglected the rural school; indeed, they have not really neglected it. But in Tennessee and throughout the country, according to recent utterances from prominent educators, the rural school has not been held definitely in consciousness ; other educational agencies have occupied first place, and the interest in the rural school has been largely incidental. It is not too much to say that the chief concern of the leading edu- cators of Tennessee for the last decade has been teacher train- ing. It is true that the argument for teacher-training agen- cies rested always on the needs of the rural schools — ele- mentary schools; but the object was so great as to become almost an end in itself, and the ultimate purpose has been well-nigh obscured. The attention and interest centered on this one point have produced results, and there is now in successful operation a creditable system of Normal schools. But the mere fact of their establishment does not improve the rural school. An- other and a far step needs to be taken. Teachers must not only be prepared, but a place must be prepared for the teacher. The rural elementary school, then, must be brought into prom- inence; interest and attention must be focused thereon; for in the rural school lies our vital educational problem. 3. The Rural Elementary School Has Made Comparatively Little Progress. It is universally agreed that it is the most backward of all our educational agencies. While city schools, normal schools, colleges, and universities have been going forward steadily, it has been marking time. It is true that some progress has been made — that the term has been slowly lengthened, teachers' salaries have shown some advance, the revenues have increased ; but it needs no argument to demon- 10 Consolidation of Schools strata that it has not kept pace with other educational forces and is to-day lamentably lacking in efficiency and vitality. This is true not only in Tennessee, but all over the coun- try the same complaint is heard. The rural elementary school is not responding' effectively to the demands made upon it; it is not functioning satisfactorily for rural life. The shortness of term, the poor salaries of teachers, the consequent inex- perienced and untrained teaching force, the inadequate super- vision, the insanitary school conditions, the small school unit, the isolation, the antiquated course of study, the general in- efficiency — all are counts in the indictment which can be truth- fully drawn against the rural elementary school. It needs no argument to show that this rural school is of tremendous importance. The biggest part of our population is still in the country. If our State is to be educated, it must be through this agency; if illiteracy is to be abolished, the larger share of the burden is to fall upon the rural school ; if there is to be an intelligent electorate qualified to deal with the intricate problems of government and to meet the respon- sible duties of citizenship, there must be an efficient rural school. The greatest foe of progress, the biggest obstacle in the development of our State, is ignorance. The only de- struction of the foe, the only way to remove the obstacle, is in the school. It must be resuscitated and vitalized. The future of the State, its manhood and womanhood, depends upon it. Here, then, it must be insisted, is our vital educational prob- lem ; here is the educational agency most deserving of the peo- ple's interest ; here, if possible, we who happen to be in offi- cial lead to-day are determined to focus attention and cease not to call upon the men and women of all classes to come to our aid. It should be borne in mind that this is not a matter that concerns merely the people who live in the country, but the urban population of the State is just as much involved. The cities cannot live to themselves ; they draw much of their best citizenship from the country ; their life is conditioned on the rural environment. So that we have no array of country against city^ when we aim to focus attention on the country AND TlJANSrORTATION OF PUPILS. 11 school. We are holding up the city school to them, not as a model to be copied, but as indicating the educational advan- tages which their children ought to have ; and we are urging that country boys and girls everywhere shall have educational opportunities equal to those enjoyed by their city cousins. Below is suggested a program for the improvement of the rural school. While it is concerned primarily with the ele- mentary school, it considers in a general way the whole rural school situation. It is realized that there is nothing essen- tially new about it, it being merely an attempt to set forth a program or platform in more or less definite form, to be worked out as rapidly as conditions will permit. THE RURAL SCHOOL— A PROGRAM FOR ITS IMPROVEMENT. AIMS. 1. A General One. To give a rural coloring to the whole rural-school process. 2. A Particular One. To afford the opportunity for voca- tional training in occupations peculiar to rural life. The rural school should function so satisfac- torily and effectively for rural life that the ten- dency among boys and girls educated therein should be to remain on the farm. PLATFORM. 1. The Teacher. Professionally trained. Forty-four coun- ties of the State have established high schools, a number of them of the first class. The State Normal schools are in successful operation. The chief argument used to secure their establish- ment was the need of a trained teaching force and the certainty of their supplying it. The time has come when Boards of Education can consist- ently demand trained teachers and can make a minimum scholastic requirement of four years' 12 COISTSOLIDATIOK OF SCHOOLS high-school work. At the same time the nor- mal-school courses and those for teachers in high schools should be adapted to the training of rural teachers. The normal schools and the high schools will defeat the very purpose of their establishment unless they make some direct and valuable contribution to the rural elementary schools. 2. Buildings. Modern, sanitary, comfortable, attractive, with suitable furnishings, adequate equipment, accessible playgrounds, and sufficient acreage for agricultural teaching. To secure this, BOND ISSUES are absolutely necessary, it having long since , been demonstrated that ordinary annual reve- nues are insufficient. 3. Courses of Study. Graded, revised, vitalized, related to life, growing out of life's needs, functioning for them. (1) Correlation of English with nature study and ag- riculture. (2) Text-book in arithmetic dealing largely with quan- titative aspects of rural life. (3) Other subjects of the school course to bear more directly upon rural life. (4) Agriculture and domestic science introduced as rapidly as possible into the grades. 4. Consolidation and Transportation. The need of a larger school unit for teaching and supervisory pur- poses is imperative. To secure this, single- teacher schools should be abandoned, and schools with three or four or five rooms, with transpor- tation facilities provided, should be established at strategic and easily accessible points. 5. Supervision. Frequent, persistent, competent. (1) County Superintendents with longer terms, not en- gaged in any other occupation, chosen because of AND TRAXSrOKTATlON OF I'UPILS. 13 fitness, and not necessarily a resident of county when elected. (2) Assistant County Superintendents having special charge of agricultural and domestic science work; head of Department of Agriculture in central high school and supervisor and director of agriculture and domestic science in elemen- tary schools. (3) Elementary school inspector in each Grand Divi- ■/- ' ' * ^^lE', ^' Faeeagut High School. One of our best county higli schools. It is doing a work whose value is recognized throughout the county and the State. sion, to work with and under general direction of the State Superintendent and State elemen- tary school inspector. (4) County Supervisors with specific districts not too large for efficient work. 6. High Schools. (1) Some high-school work in consolidated schools, these being correlated with 14 Consolidation of Schools (2) Central high school, with four years' genuine high- school work; agriculture and domestic science departments in the high schools as thoroughly organized, as well equipped as any other depart- ments of the school. (3) Demonstration farms — at least one in the county in connection with the high school. (4) Corn clubs for boys and canning and poultry clubs for girls in every county high school, which as rapidly as possible should be extended to other schools. This club work should be supervised by State and county officials. By establishing them in the school and making intelligent use of government bulletins, we have at hand a most effective means of beginning real agriculture and domestic science teaching in all our schools. 7. Compulsory Attendance. With such a system as here outlined, attendance will naturally increase. But to protect the State against illiterary, to secure an intelligent electorate, all its boys and girls should attend school, and force should be ex- erted when the ordinary attractions of the school fail. 8. School Term. Minimum of six months, gradually grow- ing to nine, with its industrial work extending through the whole year. 9. Medical Inspection. The value of inspection has been demonstrated wherever tried. A State-wide law is necessary, which counties can put into oper- ation as fast as conditions warrant. 10. Community Cooperation. Not only by sympathy and financial support, but by active participation in the school activities. The school is for the whole community, adults as well as minors. It must make contribution to the economic, industrial, and social life of all the people, as well as to their intellectual life. When it does, it will become the center of community life, and its efficiency will no longer be in question. AXD TrAXSI'ORTATION of Pri'LLS. 15 NECESSARY' REVENUES. 1. State Appropriation to be Increased from 25 per cent to 33 1-3 per cent of its Gross Revenues. But for a parliamentary technicality, the schools would to-day be enjoying this larger bounty. The friends of the schools in the State must see to it that the school sentiment in the coming General Assembly is as strong as in the last, and leave no effort undone to secure this greater revenue. t iTiiiiTmir«lMOT^H f 'S ■ill . mrw MoNEOE County High School. It has recently acquired a splendid site for a Demonstration Farm and Boys' Dormitory. 2. Bond Issue for Building and Equipment as Noted Above. The annual school fund cannot stand the con- stant drain for building and repairing. The school term will remain short and the building be unsatisfactory as long as annual funds are thus perverted. The burden of permanent im- provements should be distributed over a series of 16 Consolidation of Schools years, and the wise County Superintendent will project plans to that end. 3. Larger Local Levies. The success or failure of the schools depend, in the last analysis, upon local school sentiment. The State at large can do only a small part of the work; the bulk of the revenues must come from the counties. Our great duty is to-convince the people of the value of school work. If we can only do this, adequate financial assistance is sure to come. Gkovb High School, Paeis, Tenn. Henry County has no institution of more value to the county and State. 18 Consolidation of Schools THE ONE-TEACHER SCHOOL. COST AND EDUCATIONAL EFFICIENCY OF THE WHITE ONE-TEACHER RURAL SCHOOLS HAVING FROM ONE TO THIRTY PUPILS IN DAILY ATTENDANCE. TABLE I. Total Number of White Schools per County Superintendent in Ninety- six Counties in Tennessee, Total Number of White One-Teacher Schools in Each County, and the Number of White One-Teacher Schools in Each County Having from One to Fifteen, Fifteen to) Twenty, Twenty to Twenty-five, and Twenty-five to Thirty Pupils in Daily Attendance. County u Number Number ^ White White Rural One- 3 Schools Teacher '4. Schools No. Schools Having Pupils in Daily Attendance as Follows: 1 to 15 • ! 15 to 20 20 to 25 25 to 30 Anderson . . . Bedford Benton .... Bledsoe Blount Bradley Campbell Cannon Carroll Carter Cheatham . . . Chester Claiborne Clay Cocke Coffee Crockett Cumberland , Davidson Decatur DeKalb Dickson Dyer Fayette Fentress Franklin Gibson Giles Grainger Greene Grundy Hamblen . . Hamilton . . . , Hancock Hardeman . . Hardin Hawkins Haywood . . Henderson . Henry Hickman Houston .... Humphreys Jackson .... James Jeiferson Johnson Kn ox I,ake I,auderdale . I,awrence . IvCwis I,incoln 1 64 47 3 2 10 10 ->, 57 36 1 3 6 3 68 66 i9 20 11 10 4 41 34 12 14 15 5 3 101 91 1 1 5 3 6 44 38 1 4 11 5 7 87 55 15 10 12 18 8 52 47 1 4 7 9 85 68 3 30 17 6 10 55 S5 3 4 7 11 60 43 2 5 10 9 12 13 36 94 33 78 5 9 6 14 46 36 8 17 4 17 15 87 77 4 4 7 12 16 (J") 54 8 14 12 17 40 28 8 5 3 18 58 51 6 25 15 12 19 66 21 1 6 5 7 20 44 41 13 11 9 11 21 70 48 28 20 18 4 22 68 59 3 10 13 9 23 65 45 10 13 10 30 24 41 32 20 7 5 1 25 52 48 12 14 12 10 26 63 47 3 10 8 13 27 64 46 4 7 6 14 28 74 SO 1 18 , 16 17 29 56 51 1 '> 3 6 30 120 90 1 3 30 40 31 111 100 1 2 5 2 39 35 24 3 5 4 3;^ 75 27 4 3 3 5 34 50 46 3 4 5 6 35 36 63 75 60 59 8 11 18 5 37 93 79 4 12 38 48 34 2 5 4 6 39 40 86 86 83 72 7 26 15 11 41 76 66 17 13 15 14 42 26 17 6 11 3 3 43 66 64 7 12 18 8 44 63 49 1 3 2 2 45 46 19 63 12 45 1 2 2 5 3 3 47 48 45 163 30 58 2 50 7 42 38 49 14 11 3 2 3 6 50 51 52 44 78 30 34 65 28 4 7 13 4 28 17 8 3 53 60 33 25 61 AND TkANSPOKTATIOX OF PUPILS, 19 TABLE I.— Continued. Total Number of White Schools per County Superintendent in Ninety- six Counties in Tennessee, Total Number of White One-Teacher Schools in Each County, and the Number of White One-Teacher Schools in Each County Having from One to Fifteen, Fifteen to Twenty, Twenty to Twenty-five, and Twenty-five to Thirty Pupils in Daily Attendance. Number White Rural Schools Number White One- Teacher Schools No. Schools Having Pupils in Daily Attendance as Follows: 1 to 15 15 to 20 20 to 25 25 to 30 Loudon McMinn McNairj' ... . Macon Madison ... . Marion Marshall Maury Meigs Monroe Montgomery Moore Morgan Obion Overton Perry Pickett Polk Putnam Rhea Roane Robertson . . , Rutherford . . Scott Sequatchie . . , Sevier Shelby Smith Stewart Sullivaii Sumner Tipton Trousdale . . , Unicoi Union Van Buren . . Warren Washington Wayne Weakley White Williamson . . Wilson- Average . 91 49 77 SS 59 91 50 47 116 30 74 67 21 55 86 55 49 40 50 70 77 67 17 101 60 63 52 87 103 62 123 53 85 81 62+ 48+ 7+ 16 54 61 55 16 56 15 57 8 5H 1 59 4 60 7 61 7 62 16 63 9 64 3 63 9 66 9 67 7 68 6 69 6 70 8 71 7 72 3 73 6 74 12 75 22 76 42 77 2 78 12 79 3 80 4 81 15 82 6 83 83 84 85 ii 86 25 87 10 88 4 89 47 90 9 91 9 92 11 93 8 94 28 95 24 96 20 Consolidation of Schools TABLE II. THE PER CAPITA COST OF INSTRUCTION IN REPRESEN- TATIVE ONE-TEACHER SCHOOLS Monthly Cost of Instruction per Pupil in Daily Attendance in Schools Having from One to Fifteen Pupils in Daily Attendance. u Number Length of Total Amt. Average Monthly u -3 Schools School Annually Annual Amt. Cost of Xi County fl with 1 to 15 Term in Paid to Paid Each Teaching per n 3 Pupils in Days Teachers Teacher Pupil in 3 K^ Attendance Attendance '4, Anderson 1 3 10(1 $ 625 00 $ 208 33 $2 84 1 Bedford 2 8 9 Benton 19 100 3,225 00 169 73 2 59 3 Bledsoe 4 12 1(10 1,800 00 150 00 1 50 4 Blount f) 1 115 184 (X) 184 00 3 40 5 () 1 90 135 00 2 13 6 Campbell 7 15 60 2,137 50 142 00 4 72 7 9 H Carroll 3 100 1,395 00 151 00 2 00 9 10 n 10 Cheatham 11 Chester 12 13 14 15 l** 13 Clay 8 4 100 82 1,600 00 410 00 200 00 102 50 1 75 1 90 14 Cocke 15 Coffee . . 1(5 17 16 Crockett 1 70 87 50 87 50 2 00 17 Cumberland . . . 18 6 80 720 00 120 00 2 85 18 Davidson 19 1 80 180 00 180 00 4 53 19 Decatur 20 13 98 10,420 00 200 00 3 33 20 DeKalb 21 28 80 4,500 00 150 00 1 00 21 Dickson 22 3 90 417 00 139 00 2 32 22 Dyer 23 24 10 20 100 107 2,000 00 5,8:38 00 200 00 291 90 2 50 3 74 ',^3 Fayette 24 Fentress 25 12 87 1,761 75 147 31 2 41 25 Franklin 20 3 88 490 50 163 50 2 55 26 ''7 V7 Giles 28 29 1 1 20 80 :30 0() 140 00 30 00 140 00 2 50 2 50 •?8 Grainger 29 3(1 :3() Grundy 31 2 100 400 00 200 00 2 22 . 31 Hamblen 32 32 Hamilton 33 4 160 1,300 00 325 00 3 74 33 3'1 34 35 85 Hardin m 8 100 1,275 00 159 37 2 84 36 '37 ;37 Haywood 38 2 100 630 00 315 00 3 25 38 Henderson — 39 40 41 7 17 126 115 1,281 00 2,918 25 183 00 171 65 2 53 2 50 40 Hickman 41 Houston Humphreys . . . 49 4? 43 7 100 i,;i56 00 192 85 2 97 43 Jackson 44 81 100 181 25 181 25 3 02 44 James Jefferson 45 45 4fi 3 100 450 00 150 00 2 66 46 Johnson 47 36 120 11,688 00 240 00 1 15 47 TCnox 48 49 ^0 48 I^ake 3 100 624 00 208 00 2 00 49 Lauderdale Lawrence 50 51 17 110 3,418 75 201 10 2 64 51 Lewis 52 8 100 1,257 50 157 28 2 88 52 Lincoln Loudon McMinn 53 53 54 55 6 1 100 900 00 150 00 2 39 54 55 5R 4 100 687 50 171 85 3 00 56 57 3 65 292 50 97 50 2 50 5V 58 5 136 1,485 00 297 00 3 52 58 59 5 100 925 00 185 00 2 60 69 60 2 100 350 00 175 00 2 08 60 Maury Meics (1I 5 100 1,320 00 264 00 2 18 61 62 1 80 120 00 120 00 2 21 62 AND TlfANSrOUTATION OF PuPILS. 21 TABLE II.— Continued. THE PER CAPITA COST OF INSTRUCTION IN REPRESEN- TATIVE ONE-TEACHER SCHOOLS Monthly Cost of Instruction per Pupil in Daily Attendance in Schools Having from One to Fifteen Pupils in Daily Attendance. County OJ a Number Schools with ltol5 Pupils in Attendance L,ength of School Term in Days Total Amt. Annually Paid to Teachers Average Annual Amt. Paid Each Teacher Monthly Cost of Teaching per Pupil m Attendance u Monroe Montgomery,. Moore Morgan Obion 63 64 (55 66 67 (iS m 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 4 6 1 1 9 113 100 80 100 98 $ 682 50 1,360 00 140 00 200 00 1,832 00 1175 00 226 66 140 00 200 00 203 50 $8 24 1 85 5 00 1 60 4 44 64 65 66 67 (i8 3 60 316 00 105 33 69 Pickett 70 Polk 6 3 1 117 100 109 1,550 25 525 00 190 75 258 37 175 00 190 75 3 38 2 70 2 62 71 Putnam Rhea 72 73 74 Robertson Rutherford Scott Sequatchie 9 16 4 2 1 1 96 120 100 80 100 180 1,651 88 3,000 00 160 00 230 00 183 54 218 00 160 00 110 00 162 50 450 00 3 44 2 75 1 42 1 33 3 06 6 25 75 76 77 78 79 Shelby 450 00 80 81 Stewart 82 Sullivan Sumner Tipton 2 16 1 1 1 120 100 120 80 120 384 00 2,400 00 300 00 192 00 150 00 300 00 . 120 00 180 00 2 90 2 26 5 00 2 50 2 14 83 84 -85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 7 11 7 100 80 93 1,580 00 1,580 00 1,150 00 150 00 143 50 164 25 90 Washington . . . Wayne Weakley White 2 95 2 54 91 92 93 7 96 1,150 00 164 50 2 54 94 95 96 Average . . . 7 111 |3 02 From the above facts we find — (1) That there are, on the average, seven schools to the county in th State, with a daily attendance of pupils from one to fifteen; (2) That the average length of school term is only 111 days; and (3) That the average monthly cost of teaching per pupil in daily attendance is $3.02, or approximately 15 cents per day. This does not include fuel, repairs, insurance, supervision, inciden- tals, or anything, save the amount paid for actual teaching. AND Tlt.VXsrORTATlOX OF Tui'lLy. 23 TABLE III, Monthly Cost of Instruction per Pupil in Daily Attendance in Schools Having from Fifteen to Twenty Pupils in Daily Attendance. County ii u s No. Schools with 15 to 20 Pupils in Daily Attendance Length of Term in Days Total Amt. Annually Paid to Teachers Average Amount Annually Paid Each Teacher Monthly Cost of Teaching per Pupil in Attendance a Anderson .. Bedford Beuton Bledsoe Blount I Ti 4 5 6 7 S 9 10 11 12 13 U 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 89 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55- 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 i 20 14 1 4 10 1 30 3 100 lOO 100. 100 115 90 100 100 100 120 $ 375 00 157 50 3,4.50 00 2 -,4.50 00 188 75 795 00 2,500 00 150 00 5,125 00 540 00 $ 1.S7 .")() 157 5(1 172 50 175 (10 188 75 198 75 250 00 150 00 156 50 180 00 $ 1 92 2 52 1 94 1 75 3 50 2 72 2 94 1 97 1 94 1 84 1 2 3 4 5 Bradley Campbell Cannon Carroll Carter 6 7 8 9 10 11 Chester 12 Claiborne Clay Cocke Coffee Crockett 5 17 4 8 90 100 85 110 810 00 1,000 00 410 00 1,285 00 162 00 162 (10 102 50 165 00 2 20 2 00 1 90 9 00 13 14 15 16 17 Cumberland. . . Davidson Decatur DeKalb Dickson Dyer Fayette Fentress Franklin ... Gibson 25 6 11 20 10 1 7 14 10 80 180 98 80 95 m' 88 87 875 00 2,430 00 1,760 60 3,600 00 1,593 75 "'2^55406" 2,238 50 1,549 13 140 00 405 CO 200 00 160 00 159 40 1 70 2 80 3 83 1 15 1 92 18 19 20 21 22 365 00 159 75 154 91 2 99 2 02 2 03 24 25 26 97 Giles Grainger Greene Grundy Hamblen Hamilton 18 2 3 2 4 3 116 90 100 100 120 108 3,420 00 315 00 465 00 400 00 780 00 1,200 00 190 00 157 50 155 00 200 00 195 00 400 00 1 87 2 00 2 06 2 22 1 99 3 80 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 Hardin Hawkins Haywood . . . . 17 4 5 26 13 11 12 3 1 2 100 99 140 1,275 00 666 43 1,470 00 159 37 166 43 294-00 2 84 , 1 08 2 75 86 37 88 39 Henry Hickman Houston Humphreys , . . Jackson 120 116 100 100 100 60 100 5,928 00 2,803 25 1,787 50 2,200 00 587 50 90 00 350 00 228 00 215 00 155 50 183 30 195 00 90 00 175 00 2 25 2 20 1 88 2 04 2 34 1 50 1 84 40 41 42 43 44 45 Jefferson Johnson 46 47 38 2 140 140 24,712 00 630 00 305 90 315 00 1 47 1 80 48 X,ake 49 Ivauderdale JUawrence . . . ■ 50 10 3 ino 100 2,059 75 562 50 205 00 187 50 2 56 2 50 51 52 I^iucoln lyOudon 53 12 5 22 10 19 3 1 19 4 14 13 4 1 100 77 100 65 147 100 140 160 73 110 160 110 100 1,845 00 154 00 172 00 165 75 113 75 275 78 183 00 210 00 250 00 110 00 175 00 240 00 182 65 200 00 1 88 84 2 25 2 00 2 25 " 2 04 1 S7 1 09 1 87 2 25 156 2 18 2 39 54 55 McNairy 3,863 20 1,137 50 5,240 00 550 00 210 00 4,760 00 440 00 2,743 75 3,120 00 800 00 200 00 56 57 Madison Marion Marshall Maury 58 59 60 61 62 Monroe Montgomery .. Moore Morgan 63 64 65 66 24 Consolidation of Schools TABLE III.— Continued; Monthly Cost of Instruction per Pupil in Daily Attendance in Schools Having from Fifteen to Twenty Pupils in Daily Attendance. County 3 No. Schools with 15 to 20 Pupils in Daily Attendance Ivcngth of Term in Days Total Amt. Annually Paid to Teachers Average Amount Annually Paid Each Teacher Monthly Cost of Teaching per Pupil in Attendance Ih V g 3 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 b4 85 86 87 88 89 911 91 <)9 13 134 |4,317 50 $332 11 |3 25 67 Overton 68 Perrj' 1 (iO 120 90 120 90 2 24 69 Pickett 70 Polk 4 8 1 6 21 117 100 100 100 106 1,082 25 1,600 00 175 01) 1,175 50 4,284 77 270 56 200 00 175 00 195 00 204 04 2 92 2 35 1 94 2 15 2 53 71 Putnam Rhea 72 73 74 Robertson Rutherford 75 76 Scott Sequatchie .. . 6 4 4 1 100 80 99 180 1,420 00 490 00 650 00 2.520 00 ■ 240 00 123 00 130 00 405 00 3 12 1 34 1 76 3 75 ■ 77 78 79 Shelby Smith 80 81 Stewart Sullivan Sumner Tipton 9 3 12 6 1 120 120 100 130 80 1,995 00 630 00 2,150 00 1,755 00 120 00 221 66 210 00 175 00 270 (X) 120 00 2 26 2 20 2 00 2 00 2 50 82 83 84 85 Trousdale 86 87 6 3 7 3 16 34 5 8 4 100 56 100 120 80 96 96 180 65 975 00 279 80 1.225 00 570 00 2,270 00 6,323 00 837 50 2,160 00 416 00 102 00 93 27 175 00 190 00 141 75 185 91 167 50 270 00 104 (.)0 1 66 3 20 2 00 2 44 2 07 2 55 1 82 1 98 1 79 88 Van Buren Warden Washington. .. 89 90 91 92 Weakley White Williamson Wilson 93 94 95 96 93 94 95 96 Average . . . 8.3 99 $2 14 From the above facts we find — (1) That there are in the average county 8.3 schools, with an at- tendance of between twelve and fifteen pupils; ■ (2) That the average length of school term is 99 days; and (3) That the average monthl}' cost of teaching per pupil in daily attendance is $2.14. AND TRANSrORTATION OF PUPILS. 25 TABLE IV. Monthly Cost of Instruction per Pupil in Daily Attendance in Schools Having from Twenty to Twenty-five Pupils in Daily Attendance. • County No. Schools withL'Otol'o Pupils in Daily Attendance Anderson Bedford Benton Bledsoe Blount , Bradley Campbell Cannon Carroll Carter Cheatham . . . Chester Claiborne Clay Cocke Coffee Crockett Cumberland . Davidson Decatur Dekalb Dickson Dyer Fayette Fentress Franklin Gibson Giles Grainger — Greene Grundy Hamblen Hamilton Hancock . . . Hardeman. .. Hardin Hawkins Haywood . . . . Henderson . . Henry Hickman . . . Houston Humphreys . Jackson James Jefferson Johnson Knox I9 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 8-4 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 20 139 17,143 75 1357 19 $2 72 67 Overton 68 Perry 6 60 746 41 124 41 1 89 69 Pickett 70 Polk Putnam Rhea 9 12 3 15 18 117 100 100 100 108 2,486 25 2,400 00 550 00 2,815 00 4,26;^ 57 276 25 200 (HI 183 00 187 60 236 87 2 20 1 90 1 67 1 40 2 l6 71 72 73 74 Robertson 75 76 Scott Sequatchie Sevier Shelby Smith Stewart Sullivan Sumner Tipton 15 2 7 6 4 11 3 20 7 4 2 12 1 7 3 11 21 6 30 21 1(H) 80 99 180 140 120 120 100 145 80 120 110 70 101 120 80 115 94 180 80 3,375 (X) 320 (X) 1,069 25 1,800 m 1,050 00 2,400 (K) 6(i6 00 3,500 00 2,550 00 640 00 1,860 00 2,040 00 129 50 5,760 60 615 00 1,660 00 4,840 00 955 00 9,450 00 2,730 00 675 00 iro 00 152 75 416 50 222 50 218 18 220 00 175 00 350 m 160 00 180 00 170 00 129 50 175 10 205 10 150 10 230 47 160 00 315 17 130 00 2 14 1 22 ■ 1 39 2 59 1 75 1 83 1 80 2 00 1 80 2 00 1 25 1 43 2 40 1 50 1 91 1 65 2 18 1 57 1 65 . 1 29 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 Trousdale Unicoi 86 87 88 Van Buren — Warren Washington . . . Wayne Weakley White 89 90 91 92 93 94 Williamson — Wilson 95 96 Average . . . 9+ 107 + $1 90 The above figures show — (1) That there are, on the average, nine schools in each county in the State, with an attendance of from twenty to twenty-five pupils; (2) That for this class of school the average length of school term is 107 days; and (3) That the average cost of tuition per pupil is $1.90. Ageicultdral Class in Gkove High School. This kind of work is finding a place in up-to-date country schools. 28 Consolidation of Schools TABLE V. THE PER CAPITA COST OF INSTRUCTION IN REPRESEN- TATIVE ONE-TEACHER SCHOOLS. Monthly Cost of Instruction per Pupil in Daily Attendance in Schools Having from Twenty-five to Thirty Pupils in Daily Attendance. Lh No. Schools Length of Total Amt. Average An- Monthly u ,Q with 25 to 30 School Paid all nual Amount Cost of X! County d Pupils in Term in Teachers Paid Each Teachingper a % Attendance Days Annually Teacher Attendance % Anderson 1 10 100 $ 2,350 00 % 235 00 % 1 68 1 Bedford ■y 6 91 864 00 144 00 2 37 2 Benton :! 10 100 1,900 no 190 00 1 51 3 Bledsoe 4 5 100 1,225 00 220 00 2 00 ■ 4 Blount 5 3 115 603 75 201 25 1 30 5 Bradley 6 5 100 1,200 00 240 00 1 83 6 Campbell 7 18 100 4,475 00 265 00 2 05 7 Cannon S 7 100 1,225 00 175 00 1 30 8 Carroll 9 6 100 1,181 25 165 00 1 47 9 Carter 10 120 1 410 00 201 00 1 22 10 Cheatnam 11 11 Chester Y}, Claiborne 13 6 90 1,125 00 i87 50 1 58 13 Clay 14 15 1(1 17 17 12 12 34 100 94 110 110 1,600 00 1,686 00 2,424 00 7,480 00 200 00 140 50 200 00 220 00 1 80 1 00 7 00 1 55 14 Cocke 15 Coffee 16 Crockett 17 Cunaberland . . 18 12 80 540 00 180 00 2 00 18 Davidson 19 7 180 2,835 00 405 00 1 90 19 20 21 11 4 98 100 1 00 1 35 '>0 DeKalb 3,500 00 200 00 21 Dickson 92 9 90 1,546 50 171 83 1 45 22 Dyer '>3 20 100 2,500 00 250 00 2 00 23 Fayette 24 1 180 288 00 288 00 1 61 24 Fentress 25 10 90 2,226 25 175 75 1 43 2b Franklin 2H 13 92 2,293 00 176 40 1 46 26 '>7 -n Giles 28 29 17 6 118 100 3,570 00 1,1S5 00 210 00 187 50 1 43 1 35 9« Grainger 29 Greene 80 40 100. 1,590 00 198 75 1 25 30 Grundy 31 2 100 375 00 187 50 1 25 31 Hamblen n 4 120 810 00 202 50 1 25 32 Hamilton 88 5 160 1,960 00 392 00 2 05 33 34 34 %'S 35 Hardin 86 5 100 1,025 00 205 (K) 1 65 36 Hawkins 87 12 100 2,050 00 170 83 77 3Y Haywood S8 6 140 1,750 00 315 00 2 10 38 Henderson Henry 39 39 40 11 120 2,685 00 244 00 1 54 40 Hickman 41 14 116 3,349 75 239 24 1 55 41 Houston 42 3 100 576 00 195 00 1 42 42 Humphreys . .. 43 8 100 1,887 50 235 95 1 68 43 Jackson 44 9 ITO 400 00 200 00 2 00 44 James 45 9 98 325 00 162 50 1 25 45 Jefferson 4(i 5 100 875 00 175 00 1 29 46 Johnson 47 7 120 1,680 00 1,080 50 1 50 4V 48 49 50 42 6 4 140 164 118 48 I^ake 2,755 00 1,180 00 459 00 295 00 1 00 3 22 49 I,auderdale 50 l,awrence 51 20 110 4,897 50 244 87 1 66 51 Lewis 52 9 100 400 00 200 00 1 40 52 Lincoln 58 50 129 1,950 00 225 00 1 20 53 Loudon 54 16 100 3,t)25 00 189 00 1 30 54 McMinn McNairy 55 61 77 55 56 16 100 3,200 00 200 00 1 40 56 57 58 15 8 65 125 2.071 80 1,875 00 138 12 234 50 1 57 1 38 bV Madison 58 59 7 100 200 00 200 00 1 43 59 Marshall 60 4 140 980 00 245 00 1 35 60 Maury 61 7 160 1,800 00 257 00 1 15 61 62 7 80 1,060 00 151 42 1 36 62 Monroe 63 16 114 3,193 75' 178 00 2 80 63 AND Transportation of Pupils. 29 TABLE v.— Continued. THE PER CAPITA COST OF INSTRUCTION IN REPRESEN- TATIVE ONE-TEACHER SCHOOLS. Monthly Cost of Instruction per Pupil in Daily Attendance in Schools Having from Twenty-five to Thirty Pupils in Daily Attendance. County .a 3 No. Schools with 25 to 30 Pupils in Daily Attendance X,ength of School Term in Da5'S Total Amt. Paid all Teachers Annually Average An- nual Amount Paid Each Teacher Monthly Cost of Teaching per Pupil in Attendance 3 Montgomery . . Moore Morgan 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 77 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 9 3 9 9 160 120 100 137 S 2,720 00 626 48 3,307 50 3,170 00 $ 302 50 242 16 367 50 352 29 § 1 36 1 41 1 56 2 34 64 65 66 67 Overton 68 Perry Pickett 6 60 728 90 121 50 1 49 69 70 Polk 8 7 3 6 12 117 100 100 100 110 2,398 50 1,400 00 660 «) 1,275 00 2,835 00 299 81 200 00 220 00 212 50 236 25 1 77 1 49 1 31 1 57 1 72 71 Putnam Rhea 72 73 74 Robertson 75 76 Scott Sequatchie 42 2 ^ 12 3 4 15 6 33 31 14 100 80 98 180 140 120 120 100 160 80 1,890 00 460 00 1,925 00 1,800 00 1,120 20 2,523 00 1,332 00 6,175 00 2,200 00 3,920 00 225 00 154 00 160 00 450 00 240 00 168 00 220 00 187 12 400 00 . 280 00 1 08 1 69 1 47 2 38 • 77 78 79 Shelby Smith 80 81 Stewart Sullivan Sumner Tipton Trousdale 1 10 1 40 1 41 1 12 2 00 82 83 84 85 86 87 Union Van Buren — 10 4 12 9 9 11 8 28 24 100 66 100 120 80 116 100 180 95 1,750 00 472 75 1,000 00 2,007 00 1,400 00 2,793 00 1,425 00 9,828 00 3.705 00 175 00 118 19 1 25 1 83 88 89 90 Washington. . . Wayne Weakley White Williamson . . Wilson 229 66 162 10 253 81 178 50 351 00 154 37 1 61 1 44 1 84 1 33 1 00 1 29 91 92 93 94 95 96 Average . . . 11 + 106 $ 1,938 38 $ 212 78 $ 1 52 The above figures show — (1) That there are, on the average, eleven schools to the county, with a daily attendance of from twenty-five to thirty pupils; (2) That the length of school term is days is 106; and (3) That the average monthly cost of tuition per pupil is $1.52. rEEPAR.\TIOXS AI!B BEING MADE FOR CONSOLIDATING SEVERAL SMALL SCHOOLS IN This BdildinGj and Transportation Will be Provided. AXn TUANSl'OKTA'L'ION OF i'Ul'ILS. 31 TABLE VI. EDUCATIONAL EFFICIENCY OF THE ONE-TEACHER SCHOOLS HAVING FROM ONE TO THIRTY PUPILS IN DAILY ATTENDANCE. The following tables show the amount of work to be done in the average rural one-teacher schools in the State, the time available in which to do the work, the qualifications of those undertaking to do the work, and the quality and quantity of supervision given to the work: Number of Daily Recitations per Teacher in Schools Having from One to Thirty Pupils in Daily Attendance. County No. Daily No. Daily No. Daily No. Daily Recitations per Recitations per Recitations per Recitations pei V Teacher in Teacher in Teacher in Teacher in ;-< B Schools with Schools with Schools with Schools with .Q 1 to 15 Pupils 15 to 20 Pupils 20 to 25 Pupils 25 to 30 Pupils in Daily in Daily in Daily in Daily ^ Attendance Attendance Attendance Attendance 1 28 28 28 28 1 ') 27 27 97 2 3 3 4 22 20 30 40 4 b 20 23 24 24 5 6 30 28 31 31 6 V 26 18 16 16 7 8 15 15 16 8 9 24 20 18 14 9 III 24 24 24 10 11 n 12 12 13 24 26 26 13 14 30 30 30 30 14 lb 26 20 24 24 15 Irt 28 82 86 16 17 18 17 28 20 18 18 28 18 18 48 ly 38 33 33 38 19 20 20 20 20 20 SO 21 28 15 12 * 9 91 22 30 30 30 30 9.'>; 23 20 24 25 25 S3 24 29 21 21 21 94 25 20 22 22 25 25 26 26 24 25 24 S6 97 27 28 29 98 25 25 20 29 16 16 16 16 SO 22 22 22 30 31 31 20 22 25 25 32 19 21 25 32 33 18 24 26 27 33 34 34 35 35 36 20 20 20 20 36 37 22 25 25 37 38 22 14 14 15 38 39 39 40 30 30 30 30 40 41 80 30 30 80 41 42 20 20 29 20 42 43 28 28 28 28 43 44 20 24 28 31 44 45 15 15 15 15 45 46 30 31 33 35 46 47 25 15 18 18 47 48 24 20 20 20 48 49 20 12 12 12 49 bO 16 20 17 50 51 51 20 22' 18 Anderson . . Bedford Benton Bledsoe Blount Bradley .... Campbell . . Cannon ... Carroll Carter Cheatham . . . Chester Claiborne . . . Clay Cocke Coffee Crockett .... Cumberland Davidson Decatur DeKalb Dickson . . . Dyer Fayette Fentress Franklin Gibson , Giles Grainger — Greene Grundy , Hamblen Hamilton . . . Hancock Hardeman . Hardin Hawkins Haywood Henderson . , Henry , Hickman Houston Humphreys. Jackson James Jefferson . . . . Johnson Knox I2 CoisrsoLiDATioisr or Schools TABLE VI.— Continued. Number of Daily Recitations per Teacher in Schools Having from One to Thirty Pupils in Daily Attendance. County No. Daily Recitations p^a 'n (Tl ^ " H =1 iH ^ 0-^ o P-tCPn <1 1 ^ 1 -0.2 '^.2-G 2.SW ° > S h4 '^ V U ^ ■*-' 6 P.t/} &< 6 6 6 6 5 6 6 30 40 20 2S ;i5 26 20 30 15 20 25 13 9'/< IS 14 11 15 20 12 9-; 12 15 6 • 6 6 6 6 6 1) 6 6 (> 6 30 43 20 28 35 25 20 30 80 20 24 13 18 14 11 16 20 12 13 14 15 57 58 Marion 59 (50 Maury Meigs 61 6-' (53 Montgomery Moore 64 65 Morgan Obion 6(5 67 68 6 10 6 10 69 Pickett 70 Polk 6 6 6 17 25 28 19 14 12 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 (5 5 20 25 28 20 30 21 26 20 30 21 17 14 12 14 16 17 12 19 13 16 71 Putnam 72 Rhea 73 74 6 6 6 6 6 5 25 18 26 20 22 18 16 20 12 19 17 18 75 76 Scott 77 78 79 Shelby 80 81 Ste'wart 20 26 24 21 16 18 " " 1.5' " " 15 15 25 22 6 6 6 5 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 5 20 26 24 20 16 18 25 20 25 24 20 25 32 19 18 14 15 15 16 25 15 15 20 82 6 6 5 6 6 83 84 Tipton 85 86 87 88 20 20 ... ^^.... 25 30 ■ 19 18 20 18 20 15 12 20 20 89 6 6 6 6 6 6 5 90 16 20 15 11 20 20 91 Wayne Weakley White 92 93 94 Williamson 95 96 Average 25 14 26 13 Assuming that the teacher actually teaches six hours during the day, and allowing no loss of time in changing from one recitation to another, we find from the above facts — (1) That the average length of time to be allotted to each recitation in schools with from one to fifteen pupils in daily attendance is four- teen mintttes; AND TkAXSI'OIJTATIOX OF ril'll. 37 TABLE VII.— Continued. Average Length of Time in Minutes Allowed for Each Recitation in Schools Having from One to Fifteen, Fifteen to Twenty, Twenty to Twenty-five, and Twenty-five to Thirty Pupils in Daily Attendance. Tu-enty to Twenty-five Twenty-five to Thirty '£ i^ tn c: . «o| .2 2 •C.2 ^o| 5 -« 2 §>■£ ^1^ -^ rt O V-r' asm u V c 0,". J; MSB J- w <1> 11 " o OJ a 2 J ^ "re . V U " - a.-x - < y'^ 2 S i-la . oj o 3 ■" a'J3 Oi < %%°. z " Z < " 2 < o7 (i oil 13 6 80 13 57 •58 6 42 f'K 6 40 8K 58 59 6 25 15 6 25 15 59 60 ti 28 13 6 28 13 60 61 6 40 10 6 40 10 til 6-2 6 24 16 6 26 15 62 63 6 20 20 6 20 20 63 64 6 30 12 6 30 12 64 (io 6 30 13 6 30 13 65 66 6 20 15 6 20 15 • 66 67 6 28 15 6 25 15 . .67 68 68 69 " q" 15 6 20 69 70 70 71 (3 2i 16 6 24 14 71 72 6 25 14 6 25 14 72 73 6 30 10 6 . 30 10 73 74 H 20 14 6 20 14 74 75 6 30 16 6 30 16 75 76 6 21 15 6 20 24 76 77 • 6 26 12 6 26 ■ 15 77 78 6 25 15 6 25 26 78 70 6 30 13 6 30 13 79 SO 5 25 13 5 25 13 SO 81 6 80 13 6 30 13 81 82 6 20 14 6 20 14 82 83 6 26 15 6 26 15 83 84 6 24 15 6 24 15 84 85 5 • 20 15 6 18 20 85 86 6 18 21 6 15 ■ 24 86 87 6 •» 18 6 ''2 92 87 88 6 27 14 6 30 13 88 89 6 20 20 6 20 20 89 90 6 6 25 24 ."'" ie 6 6 25 24 90 91 ik 91 92 6 24 12 6 24 12 92 9.3 6 25 15 6 25 15 93 94 6 32 11 6 32 10 94 95 6 16 20 6 18 20 95 96 5 18 20 6 18 20 96 26 13 2S 12 (2) In schools with from fifteen to twenty pupils in daily attendance the average time for each recitation is thirteen minutes; (3) In schools with from twenty to twenty-five pupils in daily at- tendance the average time for each recitation is thirteen minutes; and (4') In schools with from twenty-five to thirty pupils in daily at- tendance the average time for each recitation is twelve minutes. 38 COA'SOLIDATIOK" OF SCHOOLS TABLE. VIII, Length of Teaching Experience and Academic Preparation of Teach- ers in Schools Having from One to Thirty Pupils in Daily Attend- ance. County Anderson . . . Bedford Benton Bledsoe Blount Bradley Campbell ... Cannon .... . Carroll Carter Cheatham ... Chester Claiborne . . . Clay...; Cocke Coffee Crockett Cumberland. Davidson Decatur DeKalb Dickson Dyer Fayette Fentress Franklin Gibson Giles Grainger Greene Grundy Hamblen Hamilton ... Hancock . . . Hardeman . . Hardin Hawkins Haywood . . , . Henderson . . Henry Hickman Houston . , . Humphreys. Jackson James Jefferson . . . . Johnson Knox Lake Lauderdale . Lawrence . . . Lewis Lincoln Loudon McMinn McNairy Macon Madison Marion u 'r: u aj o a ^^> J! ^ ^ OJ bJDC ^ " n c iw ^ ti! 2 u « 15 26 21 35 25 26 12 16 24 20 '33 " 30 30 30 85 6 15 20 35 10 25 20 23 25 15 "so" 20 23 121/2 23 8 121/2 10 10 19 10 '21'" 63 25 18 20 60 18 io" 20 29 35 40 15 30 50 10 20 131/2 40 ?,.E o OJ W ;Ko 40 30 22 "0' ' 13 25 •> 20 3 10 33 14 45 15 30 26 6 13 '36'" 5 25 25 23 15 15 15 19 20 7 40 121/ 10 10 20 22 11 15 7 35 7 20 10 28 10 o=«a C C I* 125^ 8 ;K'offi 8 10 12 8 20 33/3 'io'" 3 5 50 10 5 20 16 23 sVi 7 20 5 26 40 "s"" 20 10 10 10 5 10 5 14 5 15 33 10 5 10 AND TraXSPORTATIOX OF PUPILS. 39 TABLE VIII.— Continued. Length of Teaching Experience and Academic Preparation of Teach- ers in Schools Having from One to Thirty Pupils in Daily Attend- ance. o K ;^ rt ° (3i - O '^ O ■*; a 20 min. VA hrs. 4 hrs. 2 hrs. Ihr. •2% hrs. 4 hrs. 4 hrs. li/io hrs. 3 hrs. " ik hrs' 8 hrs. 5 hrs. 1 9 Bedford Benton 3 4 5 6 7 8 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 10 20 21 Bledsoe Blount Bradley 2 hrs. 4 hrs. 4 days 2 hrs. 4 hrs. Campbell Cannon Carroll .. , Carter Cheatham Che>;ter 12 44 10U(2) 25 10 Cill 60 105 10 50 25 15 50 2i) 20 1 4 2 4 ■ 2 3 2 2 9 2 .s 2 2 2 3 40 min. 1'/" hrs. 4 hrs. Ihr. 3 hrs. 2 hrs. 2 hrs. 2 hrs. 4 hrs. 2 hrs. 2 hrs. 3 hrs. 3 hrs. 2 hrs. ly. hrs. Claiborne 30 min. 4 visits Ihr. 3 hrs. 2 hrs. 2 hrs. 4 hrs 6 hrs. 6 hrs 1 hr. 1 hr. 8 hrs. 30 min. Ihr. Clay Cocke Coffee Crockett Cumberland. . . Davidson Decatur DeKalb Dickson Dyer 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 Fayette Fentress Franklin Gibson Giles 20 36 40 30 29 all 50 55 50 50 8 2 9 2 2 9 i 3 2 2 5 2 hrs. ly. hrs. 1 y hrs. 2 hrs. 2 hrs. 4 hrs. ■ 3 hrs. IK2 hrs. 2 hrs. 2 hrs. 45 min. 1 hr. l'/2 hrs. Ihr. 4 hrs. Ihr. all " 1 hr. Ihr. 1 hr. Ihr. 30 min. Grainger Greene Grundy Hamblen Hamilton Hancock Hardeman Hardin Hawkins ... Haywood. Henderson 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 40 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 1 63 : (U 25 30 15 45 30 9 3 9 3 2 3 hrs. 30 min. IVo hrs. 1^ hrs. 2 hrs. W2 hrs. 20 min. 1 hr. Ihr. Ihr. Hickman Houston Humphreys . .. Jackson James Jefferson ... Johnson 60 110 40 15 75 30 40 75 12 11 40 25 100 40 18 50 2 9 4 2 2 3 2 4 3 2 3 2 2 2 3 3 hrs. 2 hrs. 2 hrs. iy2 hrs. 2 hrs. 3 hrs. 2 hrs. 3 hrs. 30 min. 2 hrs. Ihr. 2 hrs. 2 hrs. 3 hrs. 4 hrs. 2 hrs. 1% hrs. Ihr. Knox l,ake 1 day 6 hrs. 3 hrs. Ihr. Ihr. 30 min. Ihr. Ihr. 2 hrs. Iday Ihr. Ihr. 2 hrs. I,auderdale Lewis lyincoln McMinn McNairy Macon Madison Marion Marshall Maury Meigs Monroe 60 50 12 1 2 2 2 ' 1 hr. 2 hrs. 3 hrs: Ihr. 2 hrs. 1 hr. 63 64 65 Moore 65 1 AND 'I'l; ANsi'OiriAlloN (i|' IMl'IL.s. 41 TABLE IX.— Continued. Quality of Rural School Supervision in Eighty-six Representative Counties in the State. 'County a 3 Total No. Schools per County Superin- tendent Total No. Days Given to visiting Schools During School Term Average No. Schools Visited per Day by County Superin- tendent Average Time Spent in Each School on Each Visit Average Amount of Time Given to Super- vising Each School Dur- ing Session u 1 IMorgau Obion ()(■> (17 (W Oil 70 71 72 73 7J: 75 70 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 81 85 S6 87 8S 89 99 91 92 93 9-1 95 90 34 00 3 2 hrs. 1 hr. 1 hr. 1 hr. 00 07 Overton (W Perry Pickett 09 "I'hr. 30 min 1 hr. 1 hr. 2 hrs. 2 hrs. 2 hrs. Ihr. 70 Polk 30 50 -18 52 m 00 52 20 ■'"so 140 50 41 40 30 50 18 25 •2 3 1 3 2 •) i 2 hrs. Ihr. 114 hrs. 1 hr. 2 hrs. 2 hrs. 2 hrs. 1 hr. 71 Putnam 72 Rhea 73 74 Robertson 75 Rutherford 70 Scott Sequatchie 77 78 79 Shelbv Smith 2 •2 •2 2 2 .3 2 2 2 2 hrs. 4 hrs. 2 hrs. 2 hrs 2 hrs. 2 hrs. 3 hrs. 8 hrs. 2 hrs. 3 hrs. 4 hrs. 2 hrs. 2 hrs. 1 hr. 2 hrs. 3 hrs. Ihr. 2 hrs. 80 81 Stewart 82 Sullivan 83 84 Tipton Trousdale ..... 85 SO 87 Union 88 89 Warren . 80 40 eo 40 40 100 51 2 2 2 3 3 2 2 hrs. 2 hrs. « hrs. 2 hrs. ly, hrs. 2 hrs. 2 hrs. 1 hr. 2 hrs. 3 hrs. 1 hr. 11/ hrs. 2 hrs. 2 hrs 90 91 Wayne Weakley White 92 93 94 95 Wilson 90 Average .... 40 . 2.4 2:10 1:50 From the above table we find, in the average cottnty, (1) That the County Superintendent spends forty days annually visiting schools; (2) That he visits, on the average, 2.4 schools per day; (3) That he spent, on the average, two hours and ten minutes at each school; and (4) That he gave, on the average, one hour and fiftj^ mimttes to supervising each school during the session. MONTGOMEKT COUNTY HiGH SCHOOL. A combined city and county school. AXD TEAXSrOKTATIOX OF PUPILS. 43 TABLE X. COST AND EDUCATIONAL EFFICIENCY OF TEACHING BELOW THE HIGH SCHOOL IN THIRTEEN REPRE- SENTATIVE CITY SCHOOLS OF TENNESSEE. Monthly Cost of Teaching per Pupil in Daily Attendance in the Ele- mentary Department of Thirteen Representative City Schools of the State, Average Number of Daily Recitations per Teacher; Aver- age Length of Each Recitation, and Average Length of the School Term in Days. Cities Monthly Cost of Teaching per Pupil m Daily Attendance Average No. of Daily Recitations per Teacher Average Length of Recitations in Jlinutes Length of School Term in Days Bristol SI 71 1 36 ■ 1 95 2 30 1 55 1 10 1 63 1 43 1 05 1 76 1 20 80 1 00 6 9 9 S 10 7 10 9 10 9 10 10 11 45 30 30 ■ 30 30 45 35 30 30 30 45 30 25 174 Brownsville Covington Chattanooga Clarksville ........ Harriman . . 180 180 173 180 173 ISO Knoxville 180 Jlartin 180 200 Park Citv 180 Sparta TuUahoma 180 180 Average $1 27 8 S3 180 TABLE XL Length of Teaching Experience and Academic Preparation of Teach- ers in the Elementary Department of Thirteen Representative City Schools of the State. Cities Per Cent of Teachers Having no More than One Year's Teaching Experience Per Cent of Teachers Having College Diploma Per Cent of Teachers Having Normal Training Per Cent of Teachers Having the Equivalent of a Four-Years' High-School Course Bristol Brownsville Covington Chattanooga Clarksville Harriman 17 30 10 10 8 14 6 4 12 50 50 37 20 22 30 50 60 100 20 38 20 10 50 20 100 20 50 50 50 50 100 40 64 20 50 100 lOO 100 100 100 100 100 Knoxville Martin Nashville Park City 100 100 100 ino 100 Tullahoma 100 Average 6 39 46 100 From the above facts, taken from reports of thirteen City School Superintendents of the representative citj^ schools of the State, it will be seen that the average cost of teaching per pupil in daily attendance in the elementary department of these city schools is only $1.27, the average number of daily recitations is only eight, the average length of the recitation is thirty-three minutes, and the average length of the school term is 180 days. 44 COXSOLIDATTOX OF SCHOOLS TABLE XII. Average Monthly Cost of Teaching per Pupil in Rural Schools Hav- ing from One to Thirty Pupils in Daily Attendance, Compared with the Average Monthly Cost of Teaching per Pupil in Daily Attend- ance in the Elementary Department of Thirteen Representative City Schools of the State. City County Average Monthly Cost of Teach- ing per Pupil in Daily Attend- ance inthe Elementary Depart- ment of Thirteen Representa- tive City Schools of the State . . . • SI 27 Average Monthly Cost of Teach- ing per Pupil in Daily Attend- ance in Schools Having from One to Twent}- Pupils in Daily Attendance ?2 14 TABLE XV. Average Number of Daily Recitations per Teacher, Average Length of Time to be Allotted to Each Recitation, and Average Length of School Term in Schools Having from One to Twenty Pupils in Daily Attendance, Compared with the Average Number of Daily Recitations per Teacher, Average Length of Time to be Allotted to Each Recitation, and Average Length of School Term in the Elementary Department of the Representative City Schools of the State. County Avetage Number of Daily Reci- tations per Teacher in the Elementary Department of Thirteen Representative Citv Schools of the State '. 8 Average Length of Time in Min- utes Allotted to Each Recita- tion 33 Average Length of School Term in Days 180 Average Number of Dailj' Reci- tations per Teacher in Schools Having from One to Twenty Pupils in Dailj' Attendance 2f5 Average Length of Time in Min- utes Allotted to Each Recita- tion 13 Average Length of School Term in Days 99 TABLE XVI. Average Length of Teaching Experience and Academic Preparation of Teachers in Schools Having from One to Twenty Pupils in Daily Attendance, Compared with Length of Teaching Experience and Academic Preparation of Teachers in the Elementary Department of Thirteen Representative City Schools of the State. Per Cent of Teachers With no More than One Year's Teach ing Experience Per Cent of Teachers Having College Diploma Per Cent of Teachers Havintr Normal Training Per Cent of Teachers Having the Equivalent of Four Years' High-School Course Countv 6.3 8.5 AXD Ti;AN.-Sl'OKTATiON OF Pui'ILS. 45 COMPARISON OF THE SINGLE-TEACHER RURAL SCHOOL WITH THE ELEMENTARY GRADED SCHOOLS OF CITIES AND TOWNS. The foregoing tables are compiled from reports of County Superintendents and Superintendents of thirteen representa- tive cities and towns of the State. A study of them reveals some interesting facts as to the relative cost and efficiency of the one-teacher schools of the country and the graded schools of cities and towns. Below is given a comparison in detail : I. As to Cost. The average monthly cost of teaching per pupil in the ele- mentary grades in the cities and towns is $L27; for the same work in the one-teacher rural schools, with from one to fifteen in attendance, of which there are more than 400 in the State, the cost is $3.02 — that is, the monthly cost of teaching a boy or girl in the weak one-teacher rural school is $1.75, or 138 per cent more than in the graded schools of cities and towns. In the schools with attendance ranging from fifteen to twenty, the total number of such in the State being 765, the average monthly cost is $2.14 — 87 cents, or 69 per cent, more than the cost in the cities and towns. In schools with an average attendance from twenty to twenty-five, and there are 955 such schools in the State, the average monthly cost is $1.90 — 63 cents, or 50 per cent, more than it costs in the cities and towns. In schools with attendance ranging from twenty-five to thirty, of which there are 1,151 in the State, the average monthly cost per pupil is $1.52 — that is, 25 cents, or 20 per cent, more per pupil than it costs in the cities and towns. II. As to Time Devoted to Recitations. The teachers of the one-room country schools have, on an average, twenty-six recitations per day ; the teachers in the AND TUAXSPORTATIOX OF PuPILS. ^7 elementary grades of representative cities and towns in the State have, on an average, only eight recitations per day. The average time devoted to each recitation, exclusive of all time allowed for interchange of classes, in the one-teacher rural school, is, approximately, twelve minutes ; in the ele- mentary grades of the representative cities and towns the teachers have, on an average, thirty-three minutes for each recitation. III. As to Length of School Term. The average length of school term in days in the one- teacher rural schools of the State is 99 ; in the elementary grades of the representative cities and towns it is 180 — a dif- ference of four months in favor of the city schools. IV. As to Qualification of Teachers. Thirty per cent of the teachers of the one-room country schools of Tennessee are raw recruits every year ; in the cities and towns an insignificant number are without teaching expe- rience. In the one-room schools of the State 22 per cent of the teachers have had not more than one year's teaching expe- rience ; only 6 per cent of the teachers in the elementary grades of the cities and towns have a minimum of one year's experience. Of the teachers in the one-room country schools, 6.3 per cent have college diplomas ; while 29 per cent of the city teachers have such credentials. In the one-room rural schools 8.5 per cent of the teachers have had Normal training; 46 per cent of the city teachers have had the benefit of such training. Only 21 per cent of the rural school-teachers have had the equivalent of a four-years' high-school education; not a teacher is reported in the representative cities and towns without an education covering a four-years' high-school course. V. Supervision. County Superintendents in the State spent, on the average, last year forty days visiting their schools. Each Superintend- ent visited, on an average, 2.4 schools per day and remained at each school two hours and ten minutes. Some schools were 48 COXSOLIDATIOX 01' SCHOOLS never visited ; so that one hour and fifty minutes is the aver- age time given by the County Superintendents to supervising each school during the year. These two conchisions, then, are certain from a study of the statistics contained in this bulletin : 1. The Single-Teacher Schools are Relatively High-Priced. They cost more, relatively speaking, than the schools of rep- resentative cities and towns. The average cost of tuition per A \VELL-Ai'i'(ii.\r];u IUkal Cuxsuliuaxed S(."huOl. It will be a proud day for Tennessee when all the children can have schools as good as this. pupil in the single-teacher country schools is $2.08, against $1.27 in the graded schools, or tuition in the typical country school costs 64 per cent more than in cities and towns. In actual dollars and cents the country school is costing less. The citizens of the rural districts are not investing in school work as much, in proportion, as their city neighbors ; but, after all, the rural school system is not economical. 2. The Single Teacher Schools are Inefficient. The facts AND TilANSPOlMATlUX 01' i'Ui'lLS. 49 indicate beyond question that the instruction in the city scliools is of a niucli l)etter type than in the sinole-teacher rural school. In time of recitation, length of term, c|ualifica- lion of teachers, and supervision, the typical country school is far behind the town and city schools, h'or inferior schools the country people are pa3'ing a large price ; and when effi- ciency is joined with expense, the cost of the country school is many times greater than that of the city. Ax Atteactive Consolidated School. 50 COXSOLIDATIOX OF SCHOOLS THE KIND OF RURAL SCHOOLS NEEDED IN TENNESSEE.* There is no more important factor in the development of country life than the country school. The largest part of the population of the State still resides in the country, and there are hundreds of thousands of boys and girls who are entirely dependent upon the rural school for an education. They have neither the means nor the opportunity to go elsewhere for their training, and yet the rural school is not offering them the advantages they need and demand. It is frequently said that the rural school as at present constituted is robbing the farm boy of his natural heritage and sending him to a far- away country. The entire trend of its education has been away from the farm and into the city. The subject-matter of his text-books, the ideals of his teacher, the desire of his par- ents, the ambition which has sprung up in his own soul, have generally been away from the country, and the big things of city life have drawn him powerfully in that direction. It is realized that a change is necessary ; that a rural color- ing must be given to the whole rural-school process — not for the purpose of making a farmer out of every boy in the coun- try, not with the hope or desire of keeping every country girl in her country home, but to create a tendency among young people, reared in the country and educated in the country school, to remain on the farm. The redirected rural school of the future must become a dynamic force to bring the farm boy into his own rich inher- itance. It must breathe the very atmosphere of country life ; it must be country life itself; it must be home life and must *This article is based on a paper read by Principal Adams Phillips, of the Farragut High School, Concord. Tenn., at the last meeting of the East Tennessee Teachers' Association. It was so timely, so full of suggestion, that permission was asked to use it. It has been changed, however, to such an extent that he will scarcely recognize it. Due credit should be given him for any excellencies that appear in the article, but he is not responsible for any defects. AXD TKANSl'OltTATlO.N OF i'Ul'lL.s. 31 inspire better conditions in the home. Here the boy should learn to appreciate the beauties and value of his environment ; he should Imve held up before his eyes the manifold possibili- ties for development in the various lines of agricultural pur- suits. Here, too. he should learn to discover himself, to find out what his natural tendencies are; and in this atmosphere of natural life he should be able to make some measure of his own possibilities. Factors in the Development of the Rural School. The factors which are to contribute to the redirecting and vitalizing of the rural schools are four — the teacher, the course of study, an aroused public sentiment, and better buildings, equipment, and grounds. The State makes the course of study and prepares the teacher ; the teacher must arouse public sentiment, and this public sentiment will bring about better buildings, better equipment, more attractive surroundings. I. The Teacher. The most important factor in the development of the rural school is the teacher. There are other factors, of course, as have just been pointed out; but the teacher is such a big part of the educational machinery that it is easy to agree that " as is the teacher, so is the school." Its success or failure can usually be traced to him. It is true he must have the co- operation of the patrons ; and if he clearly appreciates the task before him and has the necessary training for his work, he can easily win their respect and admiration, and just as surely their cooperation. It is unfortunately true that the teaching force of the State is unsatisfactory. As long as it can be said that 30 per cent of the rural school-teachers are without expe- rience, that 22 per cent have had no more than one year's experience, that only 21 per cent have had the equivalent of a high-school education, that only 8^ per cent have had any Normal-school training, and that only 6 per cent have any kind of college diploma, the teaching force will remain unsatisfac- tory and no adequate system of instruction in the rural com- munities will be possible. Boards of Education sometimes act as if any kind of teacher will do for the rural schools, and 52 COXSOLIDATIOX OF SCHOOLS the one-room schools are frequently used as a trial school in which to train teachers for the more important positions. The time has come when boards should make a iiiinimum scho- lastic requirement of a four-year high-school education of all applicants for positions, and, as rapidly as possible, should put into the schools men and women who have been especially prepared for teaching work. Nothing can be more apparent than the fact that the train- ing of the teacher who is to do the work of the rural school of the future must be radically different from the training which he has heretofore received. It was to give this specific Sewing Class — Hamilton CorNTY. Sbowius the possibility of broadening the course of study in the consolidated school. training for rural-school teachers that the three State Normal schools were created. Those who have the opportunity of taking advantage of the splendid course of study offered in these institutions should be enabled to undertake the great work of redirecting rural education. All teachers who enter upon the rural-school work without the proper vision of the things to be accomplished are bound to fall far short of what they ought to do. It is upon the teacher, the teacher trained in our normal schools, that the burden of building up the new type of educational institutions demanded in the country must necessarily fall. His is a great opportunity, his is a great work. AND TUAXSrORTATJO-X Ol' PUPILS. 53 The rural-school teacher should at least have all the courses offered in the State Normal schools in agriculture, home eco- nomics, rural sanitation, manual training, in addition to the regular work required. The young woman who takes agri- culture as well as home economics and school sanitation will be much better equipped for rural-school work than a young man who knows nothing of home economics. She is pre- pared to be a real leader in her community. She can be an inspiration to the boys as well as to the girls ; she can be of help to the farmers as well as to their wives. The young man who would make his impress upon country schools and country life must know something of home economics as well as agriculture. Without such knowledge he cannot render the highest and best service in his position. II. The Course of Study. The course of study of the. school is next in importance to the teacher. It is generally agreed that the present course needs revision and that certain new subjects should find a place in it. As the State prepares the course of study for all the rural schools, it will be a comparatively easy matter to bring about such changes as will best suit it to the needs of rural life. It is being more and more felt that a mistake has been made in copying the course of study of the rural schools from that given in city schools. It is not so much a change of subject-m.atter, however, that is contended for as it is a change in the point of view from which the subject-matter is presented. To this end many of the school text-books should be rewritten. Reading, writing, spelling, arithmetic, Eng- lish, geography, and history must continue to be embraced in the course of study ; but in their presentation the needs of the country boy and girl should be constantly kept in mind. In arithmetic, for instance, he should learn that the subject of percentage may apply to other things than dollars, and cents; and he can soon be made to learn, especially from his lessons in agriculture, that it applies much more frequently to other things than it does to money. While all parts of arithmetic may be studied by the farm boys, emphasis should be placed upon the principles which will be of special use to him ; and the quantitative aspects of rural life should make 54 Consolidation of Schools up the bulk of his arithmetical problems. The English work should be correlated with nature study and agriculture, and he should be allowed to write about subjects that come with- in the range of his experience. Most of the poor composi- tion work is due to a lack of ideas on the part of pupils who write. It seems to have been long thought that grammar was English and English was grammar ; it is coming now to be realized that one can study English in the growing of corn, the feeding of chickens, and going in swimming; and that Judging Coen in a Hamilton County School. The school is no longer preparation for life ; it is life itself. grammar is merely a guide to help in presenting to others the ideas that have been gained on these various subjects. Geog- raphy also will become almost another subject if presented from a farmer's point of view : and in history a rural teacher will find quite as much of real value in the study of agricul- tural and industrial development of the country as in the rec- ord of bloody battles and massacres. In addition to the subjects mentioned above and correlated with them should be fundamental courses of practical agri- AND Tl^A^■s^o^lTATION or TuriLS. 55 culture, home economics, rural sanitation and hygiene. The fundamental principles underlying these subjects are few, the applications are many, 'ilie farm boy and girl should be well grounded in these fundamental principles by the time they are ready to leave school. The introduction of these new subjects is advocated by some for merely practical reasons, but there are others who see their deep pedagogical signifi- cance and whose advocacy is based on a sound educational philosophy. They want to see the work of the school related intimately to the life of the pupil. They see the necessity of so doing. They recognize that if school work grows out of human needs, the pupil will come to see the value and need of school tasks, and their work will possess an intrinsic inter- est which will insure progress. We are in a transition period in educational work, and the changes which are imminent will amount to a revolution in their effects. It is hoped that a sane philosophy will guard our highest educational interests and will prevent the wanton destruction and unwise sacrifice of things of value which gen- erally characterize revolutions. There are many who are advocating to-day special agricul- tural schools for the rural regions and special industrial schools for the cities. There are others who believe that a wiser course would be to add these industrial subjects to the school curriculum, to correlate them with the work that is now being done, to make them an integral part of the edu- cational system which now exists. If this can be done, we can save all that is best in the old and can utilize the valuable in the new, and thus develop, evolve, a system of instruction which will be most helpful and valuable and applicable to the conditions of modern life. It is felt everywhere that school work must be naturalized and vitalized ; the school must be recognized as not merely a preparation for life, but as life itself. Already the criticism is heard from various sources that eight years in the elemen- tary school and four years in the high school is too long a ]beriod to be taken out of the average boy's life. If, however, we can work out a course of study so that the school will not be out of harmony with the pupil's surroundings ; so that. 56 COXSOLIDATIOX OF SCHOOLS while he is at school, his economic, social, and industrial rela- tions are constantly sustained, then such criticism will be without basis. For this reason it is felt that the corn clubs, the canning and poultry clubs which are being advocated and established over Tennessee to-day, possess not only practical value, but are sound pedagogically. Th.e aim now is to make them an integral part of the school work, to have them di- rected by teachers who appreciate their value and relations, and thus enable the boy in school to make some contribution to economic life as a result — indeed, .as a part — of his educa- tional work. This industrial work in the schools should gradually be extended ; in the rural regions especially it should come, to cover the general field of agriculture, should embrace home economics and other industrial work for girls which will keep them in touch with the peculiar activities in which they will likely engage. And in all the work it should be felt that they are not merely getting ready, through their schooling, for satisfactory and remunerative industry ; but that their school includes industry, remunerative industry; that it is a vital, an essential, actual part of the educational process. For such reasons as are herein expressed, for others not here mentioned, the course of study, especially in the elemen- tary schools of the State, need radical revision. It is hoped that a wise educational leadership will work out a satisfactory and comprehensive scheme which will be modern, pedagog- ical, and full of life. in. Public Sentiment. IV. Buildings, Equipment, and Grounds. As a factor in developing the type of rural school desired, an aroused public sentiment is of vital importance — not merely a sentiment in favor of schools, but an intelligent in- terest in school work, an appreciation of school values which will demand a school that will give efficient instruction and satisfactory educational opportunities to all the people of the rural districts. Fortunately, public sentiment throughout the countr}^ seems to have taken on new life in favor of a high type of schools. In many places it is not only aroused, but is becoming active and aggressive ; in others, it is sad to record. AND 'l'liANSlH)i;rAI'l().\ Ol:' PlIMl.,- 57 it is still enjoyino- a Rip \'an AX'inkle slumber. What is needed is local public sentimciU that will regard the rural school as the t^reatest institutinn in the huul. a sentiment that will look upon the rural school as a part of each home, a place where the character of the child is to be greatly influenced, where its life and destiny is to be determined. The buildings and grounds should be made just as attractive as means will allow. The buildings should be properly lighted; the desks should be comfortable and adapted to the size of the students; good, beautiful, and elevating pictures should adorn the walls ; The Old and the New. Showing improvement in grounds and bnildinj school libraries should be established, with an abundance of good, readable books ; the ventilation of the buildings, the water supply, the toilet rooms, the floor dressing, the screen- ing of the doors and windows, should be models of sanitary arrangements for the entire community. The school grounds should be sufficient to furnish opportunity for games and sports and also for the teaching of agriculture. The arrange- ments and planning of the grounds should be such that not only the students, but the parents as well, will be interested in carrying out the same kind of w^ork in their homes. Prop- erly aroused public sentiment, like a good rule, works both ways. The school must inspire and help the community, the 58 COXSOLIDATIOIS^ OF SCHOOLS community will inspire and help the school. Where this mu- tual sympathy exists, school sentiment is bound to grow. One good work suggests another. The more the people do for the schools, the more they will see to do and the more they will want to do ; and herein lies the secret of progress. The school belongs to the community ; they can make it what they will ; and when once they come to see the value of the school work, have an intelligent appreciation of what it means in their lives and the lives of their children, in the development of their community, there will be no limit to the zeal and en- ergy and support which they will give to it. The Log Schoolhodse is Past Disappearing. Is There Much Inspiration in This foe the Country Child? Consolidated schools ought to be substituted for schools like these. COXSOLIDATIOX OF SCHOOLS WEAKNESSES OF THE SINGLE-TEACHER SCHOOL. In advocating a general policy which involves a change in the present school organization, it will be necessary to con- sider the weaknesses of the present organization as well as the advantages which the proposed change offers. The typical country school in Tennessee to-day is the one- teacher school. There are, of course, many schools with two and three teachers ; but the single-teacher school exists in every county of the State, there being 4,605 of them. County Superintendents have advised the State Department of Edu- cation that, in their opinion, from 40 to 60 per cent of these weak schools can be advantageously abandoned. The questions naturally arise : What is the reason for ad- vocating their abandonment? Are they inherently weak? Is it possible to develop a satisfactory system of education for the rural districts and adhere, to any great extent, to the one- teacher school? It is proposed in the next few pages to an- swer these ciuestions. It has already been shown — I. That the Single-Teacher Schools are Relatively High Priced. It costs more for tuition in them than it does in the graded schools of representative cities and towns. It may be repeated here that the one-teacher schools of the country are costing 64 per cent more than the graded schools of cities and towns, the average monthly cost of tuition per pupil in the country being $2.08, as compared with $1.27 in the graded schools. II. That They Offer Insufficient Instruction. They have not sufifiicient time for recitations. They have an inferior teach- ing force, and competent supervision of them is practically impossible. It has never been questioned that the single- teacher school was costing more and at the same time was giving less in the way of instruction than the city school, but AND Ti;ansi'()i;i'.\liun of PlI'IL.s. 61 this is perha]:)S the first time in this State when we could make these conclusitnis from unerring- figures — not from a few coun- ties, but from comprehensi\-e reports from nearly every County Superintendent in the State. III. The Single-Teacher Schools are Inadequate to Meet the Demands which are Being Made Upon Them To-day. The area served by such schools is 8 to 10 square miles. Most rural sections in the State are sparsely settled, and for an area of this size there is a small adult population and smaller school population and a still smaller school enrollment and attendance. This means schools with • attendance ranging from one to fifteen, and in some instances from one to thirtv ; LuxCHEOx Seeved by the Domestic Science Claps, it means from one to eight pupils in each class and from twenty-five to thirty recitations per day. In such schools it is almost impossible to arouse that competition, interest, and enthusiasm among the pupils which is essential to their educational progress. In communities of this size we cannot hope to make the school the social and intellectual center for the people. The size and isolation of these schools are natu- ral limitations that check educational development and pre- vent progress. As some one has said : " It tends to keep the community's childhood in the beaten paths of the past, and thus prevent the future community^ from realizing its fullest possibilities." In such a school, with a term of ninety-nine 62 COXSOLIDATIO^T OF SCHOOLS days, with an inexperienced and untrained teaching force, with eight grades of work to be cared for by each teacher, division of labor is impossible, there can be no specialization, and a high type of instruction cannot be expected. In the single-teacher school it is impossible to expand or to vitalize the course of study. There is a growing demand for the introduction of agriculture, domestic science, sanita- tion and hygiene, and industrial arts into all our schools — ele- mentary as well as high. It is generally recognized that the Domestic Science. It adds interest and value to school work. It can find a place in the consolidated school. school course must be revised and vitalized ; that it must grow out of the pupils' life and be related to their life in order to equip them for usefulness and service in their community. The biggest educational problem confronting us to-day is to make the school not merely a preparation for life, but life it- self. It is believed by introducing these new subjects into the school course, correlating them with the subjects of in- struction now required, by fostering the establishment of corn AND TliANsiL'OKTATlON 01'' i'll'lLS. 63 clubs, poultry and canning clubs, and others of a similar nature, among the boys and girls in the schools, it will be pos- sible to do away with much of the artificiality and aloofness from life which now characterize our school work, and thus render void the criticism which is made of our school system. It needs no argument to show that this revised course of s,tudy can hardly have a place in our single-teacher schools. It is impracticable, impossible, to add to the burdens now car- ried by the teachers of such schools. They are already en- deavoring to do so much that their work is. necessarily ineffi- cient ; and if we are to meet these new demands which are made upon us, the single-teacher schools must give place to larger organizations, with three or four teachers, with suitable buildings, with adequate equipment, with sufficient acreage for carrying on the necessary work of the school and giving to the children of the county the educational advantages to which they are entitled. It is universally agreed that the Consolidated School is the condition of educational progress in the rural districts. The remaining pages of this bulletin are to be given to the consideration of the consolidated school — its history, its char- acter, its advantages, its adaptability to educational conditions in Tennessee. 64 COXSOLIDATIOX OF SCHOOLS THE CONSOLIDATED SCHOOL— ITS MEANING AND ADVANTAGES. A large number of bulletins have been issued in the last year or two dealing especially with the consolidated school, in every one of which its advantages have been set forth. In this paper it is riot proposed to name all of the possible ad- vantages that may come from the consolidation of schools, but only to point out a few of the more important ones. It is not meant that all of these benefits will follow from the mere fact of abandoning two or three one-room schools and substituting a larger school with two or three teachers, but it is true that the advantages herein pointed out are possible in a consolidated school and are practically unattainable in the one-room school. Definition of Consolidated School. The term " Consolidated School " has not yet been satisfac- torily defined. Grouping two schools together is a consoli- dation, grouping three is a better consolidation ; but it is com- ing to be more and more felt that the ideal consolidated school should mean not less than four teachers, that it should serve an area of from twenty to thirty square miles unless the popu- lation is very dense, and that facilities should be provided for transporting pupils to and from school. Only two counties in the State have transportation provided at public expense, but in a number of other counties there are schools sufficiently large in which pupils are transported in private vehicles and perhaps deserve the name of " Consolidated School " even in the ideal sense. It is believed that the people all over the State are becoming better acquainted with this new type of school and that it is growing in favor. It is hoped that it wall find a place at an early date in every county in the State. Consolidation does not mean the ruthless, indiscriminate abandonment of single-teacher schools. The County Super- AMI TkANSPOKIAI'ION Ol' rii'ii.s. 65 intendent and Ccnint}- I'xiavd of iMlucatinn sliduld make a thor- ough studv of their school situation, shouhl work out a coni- prehensixe i)hin of cijnsoHihition of schools, and tlicn hegin on it where sentiment is most favorable to it. When such a school is established in a county, its l)enehts will come to be realized by all the people of the county; and, as is the case already in some counties of the State, there will be requests — yes, demands — for similar schools in other sections of the county. In working- out the plans of consolidation, care should be taken to leave none of the school children unprovided for. This is the one danger in consolidation, and that danger van- ishes whenever transportation facilities are provided. With this explanatory statement, let us consider some of the advantages which belong to this type of school. I. The Consolidated School Means Better Teaching. Even with our present teaching force, we can expect this result. A\'ith three or four teachers in the same school, no one will have more thari two or three grades of work, the time devoted to each recitation will be lengthened, each grade will come for a longer period under the direct influence of the teacher, and the wdiole work of the school will necessarily be improved. If in such a school there is one experienced, broad- minded teacher as principal, the young and inexperienced as- sociates working under his supervision will gain strength and inspiration and be able to give much more efficient instruc- tion than if working alone. II. The Consolidated School Means a Better Teaching Force. Such a school offers inducements and attractions which are lacking in the single-teacher schools. There is opportunity here for specializing, and the teacher who has prepared himself for a particular line of work will find a congenial place. The community spirit, the social atmosphere, will attract a high class of teachers. The isolation of the single-teacher school repels, but the spirit of cooperation which will characterize the school community under the more favorable conditions will be a great attractive force. This school spirit, intangible as it may appear, will be the most forceful factor in develop^ AND TeANSPORTATION OF PUPILS. 67 ing the school. Three or four teachers working harmoniously together, with a large group of pupils under their instruction, catching inspiration from them, will make a combination im- possible to resist. There will be no backward movement in such a school, but continued progress. III. The Consolidated School Means Better Supervision. Under present conditions, with the multiplicity of small schools, it is impossible to have competent oversight. When they are reduced from 40 to 60 per cent in number, as County Superintendents agree can be advantageously done, it will be possible for supervisors to make the round of the schools and to give sufficient time to their inspection and control. If we are to have an adequate teaching force in the State, it must be made largely out of those who are now engaged in the work, and it will be impossible to improve this teaching force with- out competent supervision. The consolidated school ofifers the best opportunity for securing it. IV. The Consolidated School Means Larger Enrollment and Increased Attendance. In every county, in every State where consolidation has been given a fair trial, this result has been secured. Superin- tendents Bynum and Williams, of Madison and Shelby Coun- ties, respectively, bear testimony to the fact that the attend- ance and enrollment in all consolidations show an increase of from 25 to 100 per cent. A notable illustration of this increase is found in the case of the Mimosa School, in Lincoln County. Three single-teacher schools in the neighborho.od had a com- bined enrollment of about 70. In the first year the consoli- dated school which took their place had an enrollment of 168. Illustrations of this character might be indefinitely multiplied. Another significant fact deserves to be noted in this con- nection. Reports indicate that a much larger per cent of pu- pils enrolled in the consolidated school completes the eight grades of the elementary school than in the small single- teacher schools. This of itself will stimulate high-school interest, and there will be an increased number from the grade ready to enter upon high-school work. The consoli- dated school will do some high-school work, and will turn 68 Consolidation of Schools over year after year to the central county high school a large percentage of the boys and girls of the county. If this condition holds when consolidation is adopted as a general policy, results of great educational and economic im- portance to the State will follow. It will mean large contri- bution to progress and development through increased effi- ciency, greater intelligence, and better citizenship. V. The Consolidated School Means a Revised Course of Study which will be Better Adapted to the Conditions of Ru- ral Life. It has already been shown that agriculture, domestic sci- ence, nature study, and kindred subjects, can find a place in consolidated schools and specialists in the various subjects can be secured. The whole work of the rural school can thus be given a rural coloring, and it will accordingly function more satisfactorily for country life. The boy or girl in the coun- try with this revised course of study can get an intimate ac- quaintance with their surroundings as well as with the larger life of the world, and will be better equipped for the duties which are likely to devolve upon them. VI. The Consolidated School is Economical. It will offer instruction equal to that of the single-teacher school at a less cost and far superior educational advantages at the same cost. For the same expenditure the terms would be materially lengthened, salaries of the teachers substan- tially advanced, and the efficiency of the school system greatly increased. But the main question to be considered is not cost, but ef- ficiency. Poor schools are dear at any price. If, as is gen- eralh'' agreed, the one way to provide adequate means of edu- - cation in the country is through consolidated schools, then the only economical course is to establish them. VII. The Consolidated School Will Solve Many Rural School Problems. It will give the country boys and girls the opportunity of securing a reasonably good education without disturbing their home relations. It will make it unnecessary to send them from home for school privileges or to break up country homes in going to town to educate their children. The consolidated AXD TRANSl-OUTAriOX OF I'UPILS. 69 scluutl with as mam- as four teachers will be able to do one or two grades of high-school work, and it can be articulated with the central county high school in such a way as to give a chance for tirst-class high-school education to every boy and girl of the county. VIII. The Consolidated Schocl can Become the Center of Community Life. In this school will be encouragement to establish literary societies, social and agricultural clubs, farmers' associations, mothers" meetings, reading circles, athletic and field games, TijAxsroirrixt • IIILDKEX Tn THE L'EXXr.AL COXSOLIDATED SCHOOL. all of which are valuable to community life. The effect of such a school will be to socialize the various elements of the community; the school will be the center of attraction and interest and endeavor, and will make contribution not only to the intellectual life of the people, but to their social, industrial, and economic life as well. The consolidated school will man- ifest the value of cooperation, being itself a constant object lesson in cooperative effort ; and if by any means it can assist in developing the social spirit which will express itself in co- operative buying and selling and cooperative methods of pro- 70 Consolidation of Schools duction, it will have abundantly justified its existence and will have exhibited its social influence in the most beneficial and striking way. IX. The Consolidated School Means Equality of Opportu- nity. It will make possible for the country boys and girls educa- tional advantages equal to those enjoyed in the city — not the same advantages, but just as good and better adapted to their peculiar needs. Until this obtains we shall have no ideal edu- cational system in Tennessee. All the children need to be educated. The State gives its money for all, the State is in- terested in all ; and educational conditions should be equal- ized, not by lessening what is done in the more prosperous sections, but by strengthening the schools where the need is greatest, giving every child an opportunity for the best. AND TK'ANSrOlClWriON i)V L'UIMI.S. 71 THE PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION OF PUPILS. Consideration of Some of the Objections Urged Against it and Statement of Some of Its Advantages. It has been several times suggested in this bulletin that the one danger in consolidation is the possibility of leaving some school children without educational advantages, and public- school officials make a great mistake when this is done. It will not do to place the schools so far apart that the children will fail to be within reasonable distance of the school. This does not mean reasonable walking distance, for it is undoubt- edly true that we can never have sufficiently large school units in the State if all the children are forced to walk. Two coun- ties in the State, Shelby and Madison, have inaugurated a method of publicly transporting school children to and from school. A number of States have been doing so for years. Transportation has been demonstrated to be practicable in every section of the United States. In the broad prairie re- gions of Indiana and the mountainous districts of Vermont, in the sparsely settled regions of Florida and Mississippi and the more densely populated portions of Massachu- setts, transportation has been tried and shown to be suc- cessful. Indeed, to secure successful operation of consoli- dated schools, transportation of pupils is necessary. It equal- izes distances, brings the pupils who reside farthest away in close contact with the school. By reference to pages 93-96 of this bulletin, one can read of the successful experience of two of the largest counties of the State with school wagons. So successful has it been in these counties and in other States that there is absolutely no fear of going back to the old method. County Superintendents who have tried it invari- ably write that the people now are asking that single-teacher schools be closed and the larger schools established and wagons provided ; and there are many instances where the people themselves furnish their own means of transportation. P .2 O &: C5-2 AND TkANSFOIITATION OK i'Ul'lLS. 73 sending the children by the weak one-teacher school to the larger school at a farther distance away. Of the various objections that are urged against transpor- tation we may consider three : I. Bad Roads. Letters frequently come from County Superintendents and from citizens of the rural districts expressing the belief that the consolidated school is what they need, but stating that they cannot hope to secure them until pike roads have been built. It would, of course, be easier to provide transportation facili- ties where pike roads exist ; but it is a great mistake to wait on better roads. Experience of other States demonstrates that good roads follow consolidated schools and transporta- tion of pupils, but that it is not always true that consolidated schools and transportation follow good roads. Our expe- rience in Tennessee bears out this testimony. There are a number of counties which maintain a splendid system of pike roads and have done so for several years, yet no great im- provement in their rural schools is evident, and in some of them efforts for consolidation have failed. On the other hand, there are many instances in which successful consolidations have resulted in improved roads ; in fact, one of the chief argu- ments for pike roads in some counties has been the desire of easily transporting children to the consolidated school. The writer personally knows a number of consolidated schools to which children are sent by private convej^ance from three to six miles on the worst kind of roads ; there are consolidated schools where pupils are transported at public expense at a much greater distance. The experience of our neighboring State, Virginia, in regard to transportation is so significant and the words of the State Superintendent of Public Instruc- tion, describing it, are so pertinent that they are recorded here at length : " Most of the Virginia roads are bad — very bad — in win- ter, but it takes even worse roads than the average to prevent transportation of children. Good roads and good schools should go together ; but since neither exist in many of our communities, it is the purpose of the advocates of good schools to go right ahead, hoping that good roads will follow. Fur- thermore, there are to-day inadequate, unsatisfactory one- 74 . Consolidation of Schools room and two-room schools near to each other on some of the best roads in our State. These could easily be consolidated into large, well-graded schools. Some of them are being con- solidated ; others will be just as fast as we can educate the people to see the advantages. " Do not, therefore, be deceived or misled by frequently ut- tered statements that we cannot have consolidation of schools and transportation of pupils until we have better roads. You can hear this all over Virginia. It is true that good roads make it easier to have consolidation and transportation, pro- vided the people are intelligently interested in their schools ; but experience and observation show that good schools do not necessarily follow good roads. Experience and observa- tion have shown also that good roads do follow good schools, and that the consolidation of schools brings to bear on the county authorities great pressure for the improvement of roads leading to such schools. I say to you frankly that if we wait in the South for good roads before beginning a movement for consolidated schools and public transportation, we will make a fatal mistake. There are hundreds of schools in Vir- ginia and thousands of schools in the South that can and should be consolidated, whether the roads are improved or not; My advice, therefore, to my fellow-workers is to go ahead and not wait for that millennial period when we shall have good roads everywhere. In Virginia every school man preaches good schools and good roads, and I am glad to add that the number of good-roads men who preach good roads and good schools is increasing." It should be added that public transportation of pupils is by no means a theory in Virginia. In 1905 the policy of trans- porting pupils was begun, and that year a little over $2,000 was expended for the purpose. The movement has steadily grown, proving so successful and satisfactory that last year approximately $50,000 was expended for transportation pur- poses alone. II. Fear of Expense. The testimony of those who have tried it shows that this fear is groundless. No definite statistics are available for consolidated schools in Tennessee, but those from other States are significant and convincing. For instance, in Virginia it is stated that the average monthly cost of instruction per pu- pil in average daily attendance in the one-teacher schools without transportation was $1.65. After consolidation and AND Transportation of Pupils. 75 with transportation at public expense, the average monthly cost of instruction is about $1.25. An Illinois report on consolidation sums it up by saying that— " Consolidation and transportation tend to lessen expense so that the same grade of school can be had much cheaper, or a better grade at the same expense as patrons may desire ; or, if they please, a full equipment of the best city schools may be established and conducted at a higher grade cost than here- tofore and at a much lower rate than in the city." It goes on to say that country people are not only paying more for elementar}^ instruction than city schools cost, includ- ing the high-school course, but, in addition, they pay out vast sums for tuition and other expenses for their older children attending city schools for what is not offered at home. In the two counties in this State in which consolidation and transportation have been successfully operated the Superin- tendents tell us that it is cheaper and a great deal more satis- factory for both pupils and officials. Drivers are paid, on the average, $35 per month, and school wagons may be had from $80 to $200 each. The drivers pay the expense of caring for their teams, and the board pays for nothing more than neces- sary repairs to the wagons. In the last analysis, however, it is not cheap schools that the people of the rural districts ought to want, but efficient schools. Even were the consolidated school more expensive, there would be ample compensation in the additional advan- tages that are secured. But when one takes into consider- ation the relatively high price of the single-teacher schools and the great expense which many farmers have in sending their boys and girls to the preparatory schools or to the city schools, it is easily capable of demonstration that by estab- lishing a system of consolidated schools throughout the county, together with an adequate four-years' public high school, proper educational advantages can be secured for their children at a less cost than what they are now paying. IIT. Prejudice Against Removal of Home Schools. Here, after all, is the chief objection against the consoli- dated school and public transportation of pupils. Heretofore 76 Consolidation of Schools it has been felt that the best way to extend educational ad- vantages in the country was by multiplying" schools. A school- house at every man's door was the slogan. We have apoth- eosized the little red schoolhouse, the little brown school- house, and the little old schoolhouse without any paifit at all. People in the covmtry have wanted a school. It has not mat- tered so much as to its efficiency, but the cry has been to get a school — to get one as near to each patron as possible. It has been believed that the ideal school for the country was a single-teacher school, as many of them as funds would permit, as close together as circumstances would warrant ; and there are many people to-day who prefer a small, inefficient school near their home to a better one some distance away. The idea prevails that the near-by school increases land values and makes homes more desirable. This is true if the school is ad- equate and satisfactory, but there are many schools that do not add much to the attractiveness of the community in which they are located nor to the values of adjoining lands. It would not be kind or just to disparage or discredit or unnecessarily criticise the work of the single-teacher school. It has done a great and noble work; it has had as teachers heroic souls who have labored under the greatest difficulties and have accomplished great things for the State; it has turned out many splendid men and women who, with no train- ing except what it supplied, have made valuable contribution to progress and development. In other days and under more primitive conditions these schools have functioned well, and there are many localities in which for many years to come single-teacher schools will have to suffice (physical condi- tions will make it necessary) ; but the thinking people of Ten- nessee will not be blinded by prejudice so that they cannot recognize the inadequacy of this single-teacher school. When they read these pages of the successful operation of the con- solidated school in many States about us, in some counties of our own State ; when they learn that it makes possible a bet- ter school than can otherwise be provided for their children unless they move to town ; and that this kind of school will give their young folks educational opportunities as good as those enjoyed in the cities, will equip them thoroughly and -' & 78 Consolidation of Schools satisfactorily for their life work, there can be no question but that they will give their support, moral and financial, to con- solidated schools. Advantages of Transportation, Consolidation and transportation are closely linked to- gether ; indeed, they constitute one and the same educational movement ; and what is said as to the advantages of one will be necessarily true of the other. The benefits of consolida- tion which we have already enumerated apply as well to the matter of transportation, but in this connection it may not be amiss to emphasize some of the advantages that follow from the public transportation of pupils. I. It Secures a Larger and More Uniform Attendance. With a safe and satisfactory method of transporting chil- dren, the school is^placed within easy reach of the entire school population. When comfortable conveyances are pro- vided, bad roads and bad weather do not seriously interfere with attendance. It not only brings more children to school, but under such a system tardiness is reduced to a minimum. The wagon travels on schedule time, comes to each meeting place at practically the same hour each day, and leaves no ex- cuse for absence or belated appearance. It will be readily un- derstood how uniform attendance stimulates rapid progress. If transportation did this and nothing else, it would increase many fold the efficiency of the instruction given in the rural schools and would be easily worth any cost that might at- tach to it. II. Public Transportation of Children Will Contribute Greatly to Their General Health. Protected from all kinds of inclement weather, they go into school with dry shoes and dry clothes, and are thus saved from the ordinary ailments which affect school children and which are incident to the long walks over muddy roads in all kinds of weather. III. Transportation Means Better Moral Conditions. It protects children from the danger of those oflfenses to decency and good morals which are so common on the road and which are well understood by everybody who has ever AND TkANSPOUTATION OF PUPILS. 79 taught a country school. Quarreling', fighting, vulgar lan- guage are prevented, for in the care of responsible drivers the moral conduct of the children is carefully guarded. The driver is a truant officer and the guardian of the children on the way to and from school. He may be placed under bond and will be likely to attend to his duties. IV. The School Wagon is a Socializing Agency. The need of cooperative effort in the rural regions has sev- eral times been mentioned in this paper, and it would be well to consider the school wagon as having a vital part in this socializing tendency. Children of various ages, representing the various social classes that make up the community life, are absolutely on par in the democratic school wagon. The wagons that are used for the school in the day may be put into service during the evening to bring the children and their parents to literary concerts, school and social entertainments of all kinds that become practical when the consolidated school is established. School wagons thus bring the school within the reach of all the people of the community — not merely the children, but their mothers and fathers as well. It brings larger opportunities to all the people and contrib- utes to their whole life. The Last Log SciDHH.HDrsE ix Hajiiltox Couxti". This Has Taken the Place of the House Above. A beautiful aud attractive substitute. AND THAxsi'oirrATioN OF PuriLs, 81 FIRST EFFORTS AT CONSOLIDATION IN TENNESSEE.- Under the school law of 1873 the establishment of school districts was in the hands of the County Courts, and they were made without any reference to other district lines. It frequentl}' happened that a few people, dissatisfied with the school or with the directors of their school district, would ap- ply through a local magistrate to the County Court for a new school district ; and in this way the school districts in the vari- ous counties were multiplied until in some instances there were as many as ninety districts. In a few counties each school was made a school district, and these were divided into smaller districts when a few families, dissatisfied with the teacher or for other cause, applied for a new school, and, of course, a new district. This meant in some counties between 250 and 300 persons signing warrants upon the school fund, and the school money became an easy prey to canvassing agents. Of course the greatest objection to this system was the establishing of so many small schools, frequently with only ten or twelve pupils, where of necessity the interest for good work could not be maintained, and from a pedagogical stand- point 75 per cent of these small schools were complete fail- ures. Appeals had been frequently made by State Superin- tendents to County Courts to restrict the number of districts and thus prevent the establishment of incompetent schools, but these appeals were unavailing. The subdivision continued, and little schools running from ten to twelve weeks were found in a majority of the counties of the State. It was im- possible to ascertain the exact number of these schools, for in many cases the required reports were not furnished the *By S. A. Mynders, President West Tennessee Normal School. 82 Consolidation of Schools County Superintendents and were not included in the regular statistics. The Legislature of 1903 passed an Act under which the school and civil districts were made coextensive, and the power to create school districts was taken away from the County Courts. The same Act required that the small schools should be abolished. Under this Act it was estimated that fully one thousand small schools in the State were discon- tinued, and the report the succeeding year shows a large num- ber of good houses were erected. It was the intention of the law to establish in each civil dis- trict, where the number of pupils permitted, one secondary school, centrally located, and as many primary schools as were absolutely necessary, and then one high school, centrally lo- cated, for the entire county. Experience has shown that the secondary schools were probably unnecessary in counties hav- ing high schools ; but the scheme did succeed in preventing school directors in small districts from declaring every pri- mary school a secondary school, and probably reduced the number of secondary schools a larger per cent than it did pri- mary schools. While the Act of 1903 did not immediately contemplate consolidation of schools as now understood — that is, the bring- ing together of many of these small schools by the use of the wagonettes and thus establishing a central graded school — it did pave the way for this kind of consolidation by educating the people to a better understanding of the great advantages of a large graded school over a small ungraded one, and at the same time brought about opportunity for better handling of the public school fund. The Act in question, while not altogether successful, per- formed a very important duty and marks the beginning of consolidation in Tennessee. The same Legislature passed an Act creating a County Board of Education for Montgomery County. This Act was prepared by the very efificient County Superintendent, Prof. P. L. Harned, and was another step in the important work of consolidation. The Legislature of 1905 extended this Act in the main to a few other counties in the State, and in 1907 the AND Transportation of Pupils. 83 present school-board law, prepared by State Superintendent R. L. Jones, was passed. . Under this Act consolidation in the more modern acceptation of the term is possible, and what we now need is a more thorough education of the people as to its advantages and legislation that will give the necessary lenoth of term for a successful sraded school. 84 Consolidation of Schools PROGRESS OF THE CONSOLIDATED-SCHOOL MOVEMENT. The people of Tennessee Avho read this bulletin will under- stand that the conclusions as to the cost, inefficiency, and in- adequacy of the small single-teacher school are applicable not merely to this State, and that the opinion as to the necessity and desirability of adopting" consolidation as a settled school policy is held not alone by local school men, but there is practical unanimit}' among educators who have to deal with the rural-school situation that adherence to the policy of single-teacher schools will prevent proper school development and that consolidation is the condition of educational prog- ress. The school men of the State especially are aware of the character and scope of the movement for consolidated schools, and. in general, are convinced of its wisdom. They are putting it into operation as fast as possible in their re- spective counties, and are using every means possible of cre- ating such a sentiment in favor of it as to extend its operation. *Rural-school consolidation in the United States began in 1869. For many years no great progress was made, and there are those who argue that, because of the little progress in its first years, it does not promise to become an influential fac- tor in our educational system. Recent events, however, have made this opinion no longer tenable. During the last six or eight years more consolidated buildings have been constructed in the United States than during the tAventy-five years pre- ceding. Perhaps it is fortunate that during the early period *This article is adapted from the first pages of a most vahiable bul- letin on " Consolidated Rural Schools," prepared by George W. Know, of the United States Department of Agriculture. AM) 'ri;.\\SP()l!TATION OF PUPlLS, 85 of its qrowth consolidation did not spread with greater rajjid- it\-. It was assimilated in the rural-school system as a result oi iil)scr\-ation and careful exi)criment, and, fortunately, lacks every element of a fad. It gains a footlu)ld chiefly where civic ambitions and high educational ideals establish high standards and determine to attain them. There is an im- pressive snbstantialness about these schools which indicates School Improvement in Knox County. that the people who built them have unbounded faith in them. Consolidation of rural schools has won a permanent place among the distinctly American institutions. Consolidation, with its attendant function of public con- veyance of pupils, is now a part of the rural-school system of thirty-two States. Although in most States it is still limited to scattered localities, it has in several assumed noteworthy prominence. Indeed, it is already sufificiently broad in its scope as to be characterized as a national movement. 86 Consolidation of Schools The typical consolidated school carries with it facilities for transportation of pupils at public expense, and we may take the expenditures in several States as indicating the progress of the movement. The following table is significant: state First Report Amount Last Available Report Amount 1889 1895 1905 1904 122,118 12,941 2,101 86,000 1908 1908 1911 1908 1908 1911 $292,213 73,465 50 000 290,073 25 243 Florida 54 000 It is to be regretted that we have not fuller and later sta- tistics, but these are sufficient to show that when once con- solidation with transportation has been adopted it grows steadily in favor. The fact of increased expenditure evidences the hold it has upon school authorities and the public gener- ally. It is significant also that in the course of an investiga- tion conducted by Mr. Know, of the United States Depart- ment of Agriculture, not one case of the abandonment of a complete consolidated school was found. From many other States besides those noted above come reports of successful consolidation, the movement having re- ceived great impetus during the last few years. The Super- intendent of Public Instruction of North Dakota writes that " the number of schools [in that State] which have been con- solidated, complete or in part, have doubled within the last two years." Louisiana has made phenomenal progress. The first consolidated school in that State was established in 1903, and in 1909 there were 629 such schools, involving the aban- donment of 1,939 one-room schools. INIississippi likewise has entered upon the movement with great vigor, and in many counties successful consolidations have been carried out. In North Carolina, Missouri — in fact, in nearly every State — the movement is well under way, and the consolidated school bids fair to become the typical country school of the future. It is estimated that in eleven Southern States during the last year at least 543 school consolidations were made. AND Transportation of Pui'ils. 87 Successful operation in more than thirty States furnishes ample evidence that there are no serious obstacles in the way of a much greater extension. Consolidation is as successful in Idaho as Florida, and serves the needs of the country dis- trict in Louisiana as effectively as in Indiana. As has been several times suggested in this bulletin, it has been tried in Tennessee, successfully tried, and in the counties of Shelby and Madison public transportation has been used with great success. It is believed that if the school officials of the coun- ties of the State which have hesitated about adopting it will study its successful operation in Tennessee and in other States about us, they will lose no time in putting it into operation. ^^^^^H M, : i'.^|||| AND 'J'i;an.si'oi!Tatiox of i'uriLs. 89 PROGRESS OF CONSOLIDATION IN TENNESSEE. Attention has frequently been called in these pages to the fact that Tennessee is not without experience in the matter of school consolidation. There is scarcely a county in the State in which small schools have not been abandoned dur- ing the last few years and two or three or four grouped into strong centralized schools. Many counties in the State have in small villages, and even out in the country, graded schools with handsome buildings and reasonably adequate equipment. Hamilton, Knox, and Davidson Counties, especially, have ex- cellent systems of rural schools; and many other counties in which there are no large cities also furnish gratifying evi- dence of school progress with substantial community schools. Seventy-six counties report 887 schools having two teachers, and seventy counties report 254 schools having three or more teachers. In these reports are not included, of course, any city or town schools, but only rural schools which are directly under the control of the County Boards of Education. Da- vidson County has sixteen schools with three teachers, four v/ith four teachers, and three having seven, eight, and nine teachers. Shelby County has five three-teacher schools, four with four teachers, and eleven with more than four. Wash- ington County reports six schools with four teachers ; Rob- ertson County, the same number. Gibson County has nine schools with three teachers and five with four or more. Knox County has twelve three-teacher schools and twelve with four teachers and more. The following table sets forth in detail the progress of the movement during the past year : 90 Consolidation of Schools TABLE XIII. Showing School Consolidation in Tennessee During 1911, County Bedford Bradley Carroll Carter Cocke Cheatham . . . . Davidson Uyer Franklin Giles Greene Hamilton Hawkins Haywood Hickman Henry Jackson Knox I,ake Lauderdale. . . Lewis Loudon Lincoln Marshall Marion Maury Montgomery , Monroe Morgan McMinn Overton Robertson . . . . Sevier Scott Warren Wilson Washington . Cfl 73 ^ O 11 . o ^ 8 o ^WS 1 ^ c 2^ u •2 3 3 O < o o .c o ^o o m 1/ S..2 CO . O o 6< 6< i^a< Z K '<5 2; Oj < 1 Totalj . 65 149 p a OS's 1-1 — 3 152 31 70 285 80 100 120 (>0 KKI 55 48 90 158 92 HO 175 70 110 132 80 75 155 50 175 d71 180 160 111 175 33 60 160 90 830 1,011 75 190 55 5,462 14 25 15 16 10 16 16 16 12 12 10 8 16 10 16 16 17 16 10 16 12 10 12 16 12 16 12 20 16 15 16 16 10 16 12 16 10 $1,800 (X) 2,000 m 3,500 00 1,000 (K» I.IKX) 00 13,200 00 3.(X)0 00 1,091 00 3,301) 00 .SIH) 00 1,200 00 5,900 OO 1,200 00 1,350 00 1,200 00 750 1)1) 2,4(K) ()0 8,200 00 1,4(H) IK) 2,10) 01) SCO 00 1,251) 00 6.0(K) 00 1,5