The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1891-04-10
OUR PUBLIC SCHOOLS.
Letters on the Subject from Resi-
dents of the County.

/
| Tothe Editor OF The Republican.
| There appears t. he general out
cry by the eitizpns for longer terms
Ofschool. A prepOnderrnce of sen.
| ,ilnent seems to favor six month";
period ~ most desirable. But this
falls below the requirement of the
general law. ANY county that fails
to keep its schools open seven and
one. half months in each and every
year shalt forfeit the April install
| ment from the State. This amount
isabOut $500 year and has been
donated TO us at each session of the
| legislature since 1880. But it is
against the spirit of the Constitution
as well as the letter of the law aud
considerable dissatisfaction has hpen
manifested at this discrimination IN
our favor and we may as we'll under.
stand that Garrett County will have
to rely on its own resources in the
near future as all the other counties
do on theirs.
/ We should keep the schools open
Iseven and One-haif months. as we
cannot we'll abandon any portion of
our allowance from the State,
In my fnrmer letter | outlined Il
plan which if adopted, might he Of
service in helping the people to help
themselves.
In a great many districts subscrip.
ton schools are taught but under the
present arrangement the county gets
no credit for these in the distribution
of the State fund.
Under the present castirOn system
the schools are opened on Il given day
and closed on a given day with bare
| ~ time enough between the opening
and closing to make out the four
months. II any school fails to get a
! teacher or if on account of sickness u
month is lost, it is lost finally and
cannot he made up afterward Our
system is too narrow. too rigid, it
lacks elasticity. We are hpdged in
between two high walls which allow
| Us to do only so much and to do that
only in certain way. If we want
to do anything on our own account
we must get outside of the schCo Sys.
tenn to do it.
Now 1 object to this. I would like
IT, see the schools begun on the first
of O 'tober and close in May so as to
cover the seven and one. half month
which the law demands. | would
like to see Sl2,0n0 or $4,000 levied
for school purposes and then | won d
like to have the School Commissions
erS place whatever amount would he
allotted to each school at the disposal
Of the trustees TO he used to the best
advantage under certain rules and
re. uIations jet to the approval of
the School B ,ard. Authorize the
opening of the school early in Oct0.
Der. hut do not require it, as thr con-
diiions are not all alike. In some
neighbOrhOods it would suit to have
a fall and spring term. while in most
places it would be hest to have all of
the winter months taken up with the
schools and rs much as possible of
the late fall and early spring.
l assume that if this plan were
adopted the schools would he going
on, or portion of them at least dur.
ing the seven and 0ne-half months
between the opening and the closing
periods. We could then justly claim
the full allowance from the State.
Let me, as an illustration. cite The
circumstance of my own school dis
trict: Last spring after the public
schools closed we employed teacher
and had two months subscription
school and again last TALL our teacher
taught some fifteen days before the
public schools were begun. Now
suppose the School Board had said to
us: "Here are $40" or whatever
sum it might he. You are at liber.
ty to use it IN your school district to
the best possible advantage. If you
choose to board your teacher gratis
and employ him or her at SIS. S1S or
| $50 n month and continue your school
six or seven, or seven and one half
months, it is all right; do the hest
you cam" We could have had lon
ger term with probably less expense.
We had six and one. half months of
school rs ii was and with out little
more effnrt il could have been con-
timed a mcnth longer. 1t would be
b, tier for the teachers wherever this
arrangement could be eff cted because
they would haye longer term to
tparh and might retain much larger
proportion of the money which they
earn.
There is no inducement whatever
and no encouragement under the
nroSont cuofouo fnr tho sphOOlS tn bp