Daily Kennebec journal., 1884-03-28

hEsOCHCES AND EXPENDITURES.
Total school resources, current. sI,O79.-
0l5; increase over 1882, s46,145 Amounts
paid for new school houses, S75.664; de-
crease, sz3, 1858. Total expenditures, current
and general, 81, l07 ,725; increase, s25, ,s9l.
Average expenditures per scholar-whole
number in the State, 1913; whole number
attending, 81 81; increase, s.23. 1t will be
| seen that there is large increase in each of
the several items of school resources, and
more than corresponding increase in current
expenditures. the exact opposite to the eondi-
tions repoNed last year So large an in
crease in the current expenditures for school
purposes. would, in itself alone, seem to
point to very considerable improvement in
the schools. in the direction of longer schools,
or of schools taught by teachers of higher
grade, or in both combined.
SCHOLARS AND ATTENDANCE.
Whole number of scholars in the State.
2l3, 3,877; increase, $40. Number of different
scholars attending school, 1916 decrease,
l,072. Percentage of whole number attend
ing to whole number in State, So. For thir.
teen years with one exception. previous to
this. the number of persons of school age in
the State has been constantly on the decrease
An increase, not large bnt noticeable. 1t is
to be hoped that this is only the first of a
| series. But while these statistics of attend
ance fairly interpreted. as compared with
those of the proceeding year, show an i'm.
proved and improving condition of the
| schools, they nevertheless show conditions
much to be deplored. Assuming that no
pupils younger than FIVE years, or older thar
seventeen years, attending the schools, there
must have been at least 10. 1884 such persons,
or nearly one in every eight, who were not
in the schools.
LENGTH OF SCHOOLS.
! Average length of school for the year, 81
weeks; decrease one day. There appears to
have been very slight decrease in both the
average and aggregate length of the schools.
In view of the largely increased expenditures
SNOWMAN increase of five per cent, this
result was hardly to have been expected. II
will be shown further on, however, that
the large increase in expenditures re-
suited in. and is accounted for by an
equally large increase in wages of teach
ers. Hence the decrease in length
of schools is more than counter balanced by
increase in quality of instruction, and the
condition shown is indicative of improve
ment. The report says that this inequality
of educational privileges, existing in differ
ent parts of the same town, is a great wrong
and presents tables showing the average
length of choOls for our seven most compact
and thckly settled counties. In Gardiner
for instance. the length of schools during
the year is 1913 days; on the other hand in
Vienna it is but 88.
| CHARACTER OF SCHOOLS.
Whole number of different schools, 4,797;
decrease, 15S. Whole number of graded
schools, III; increase, 8 Whole number
of ungraded schools, 4020; decrease, l66.
The statistics grouped under this head
show improvement in two important regards
4 e sl. .l...Iz
schools taught and of l66 in the number of
ungraded schools, indicates movement
towards a much needed consolidation of
small schools. The other statistics under
this head show increased attention given in
the enlarged schools to the study of History,
Physiology, and Bookkeeping.
TEACHERS.
Number of male teachers employed in
summer schools, 257 decrease, 80. Number
of male teachers in winter schools, 1865;
decrease. 24S. Number of female teachers
in summer schools, All; increase, 2. Num-
ber of female teachers in winter schools
2,7SS; increase, 2O1. Number of different
/ teachers EMPLOYED during year, 1899; de-
crease, 1913. The statistics under this head
show. as the first thing noticeable. a decrease
| of 27S in the number of male. and an increase
of 203 in the number of female teachers en-
ploved during the year. As between the
sexes the services of females seem to have
been in the greater demand The increase
of 50 in the number of graduates of Normal
schools emploved. ia nearly equal to the
whole number graduating from these schools
durino the wear The increase of seven per
cent in case of male and five per cent in case
of female teachers-may he fairly assumed
a. tho minimum measure of the Improvement
made during the wear in the instruction of
the schools
TEXT BOOKS AND SCHOOL APPLIANCES
Number of towns reporting "Schools well
supplied with text books" 43l: decrease, 8.
Number of towns reporting SCHOOLS not well
supplied with text books" 55; increase. I.
Number of schools reporting "Schoels sup
piled With uniform text books, 1868; decrease,
80 Number of towns reporting Sehoois
supplleu Nv wiz" Tnn Ini nnna;,;ons obown rndor This
sreaSe, L. ..;stan,nrv ,h.n those under
neau are ,ess go. Ios,a,a nf ;ronrovsment
preceuhs - 80, nna of tho
.ne oppos1. Wv. - rav;av Asre,ard.
inn, paa" 80, ,ha ex;ls Of nor. sunnlv and non
teNt-oooks tue c'hS VI """ S"Pf.- 80" "'