St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1890-12-04
POLITICS IN SCHOOLS.
Supt. Kiehle Talks Of Eleeting
Non-Partisan County Sup
epintendentS.
Several at Least Interesting
Suggestions in His An
nual Report.
Nine Jurors Secured to Try
the Mysterious Horton
Murder.
Last Nights Assemblies Of the
Cohorts Of Organized In
ddStpieS.

The advance sheets of the sixth BIZ
ennial report of the superintendent of
public instruction were issued yester-
day. The various tables of statistics
showing the growth of the schools
during the past two years have been
published in the GLOBE. Prof Kiehle,
in his report, strongly favorS the aban-
dOnment OF the present neig hbOrhOod
system OF organization, and the subSti-
tuition in its place of the township SyS-
tenn. On the present system the super
intendent says:
The districting by neighborhoods occa-
sions great waste and very great disparity in
the distribution of financial burdens. by it
some districts are rich, have good schools,
and have money in the treasury. while others
lying hard by are small. and support POOR
schools the shortest time allowed by law, and
that mt heavy rate of taxation.
The short term OF school each year makes
it qui e impossible 10 support teachers on
annual salaries. Few teachers are hired by
The year. and ii is a common thing to eu-age
one teacher for the winter term and cheaper
one for the summer.
Hence, the best qualified teachers, wishing
permaAent situations and better salaries.
look toward the graded schools tor employ
ment and leave rural schools 10 cheap and
ltinerant teachers.
udice against the Normal schools. which
nave fitted these young teachers for good
PAGES. These unprogreSSive schools add to
all other acknowledgements an unappreciative
attitude towards anything new that may be
introduced.
There is a general lack of orderly graduation
IN study and instruction. There are no rec
ords of progress from term to term Each
teacher begins at the eginning by inQulring
of the children where they have studied and
what they wish to study, and then proceeds
as best she can. And SO The children study
through the term. only TO repeat the same
routine with The next teacher. who is likely
TO be both young and experienced.
Supt. Kiehle also suggests that the
county superintendent of schools should
he elected at a time when the undivided
attention of the people can be given 10 t
and he non-political. Also that the
length OF the school year should be in
creased to six Or seven months.
The report deals at great length with
the question of compulsory education.
which is perhaps the most important be-
fore the people of the state today. The
future of the state and country demands
that the growing generation should be
well educated, ana the sentiments eX-
pressed i'll the report of the supprin-
tendent have been many times voiced in
articles on this subject. Prof. KIehle
says:
The reports of counties show that but
I33,.S7 OF The youth between eight and six
Teen were IN school as required by Law the
past year No school census is taken in this
state, but by an approximate estimate il ap-
pears that only 81 per cent of those whogare
required by law TO attend schnnl at least SlYty
days, were i'll school. This disregard of the
law IS by two classes of laren.s The first
are of foreign birth, taste education and
Ideas. They are ignorant of Americas his
tory, customs. principles of government, and
of its language. They refuse our language
Tor themselves and their children. We be-
leYe, that with a change
of language comes change of nationality
tastes and attachments. In this act havlny
taken their children from the fatherland,
they now. in this land of strangers prevent
them the full enjoyment of political citizen
snip ana participation in the social and in
dustriai lite by these imposed limitations Of
foreign nationality.
The second class are those who, through
utter Indifference and selfi,hness, deprive
their children of even the elements of an
education, some Icing LETT TO all The evil in
huences OF street vagrancy and idleness,
others kept at seryile labor i'll childhood
Without schooling.
IN these classes is bred the moral rotten
ness and decay that recruits our prisons and
ILLS the haunts of vice. Here is nurtured
the Ignorance that can only slavishly follow
q master, and do the bidding of another
IL is here, therefore that the state must in
ter1ere for the protection of children in their
rights OF American citizenship against the
influence ana injustice of their own parents
III seems as If one of the first duties of the
state IS 10 provide for q school census to be
taken bienniaily
The present compulsory law should be SO
amended as to make it effective in the large
cities, where truant officers are required and
separate scho Dis for irreguIars and Migrants