The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1894-02-02
supt Young Tells What Was Ac.
eomplishod During the Term
That Ended Jan. ~
The Cost Per Capita as Compared
With tho Same Time Last
Year.
Some suReestioas IN Regard 20 runatu
siity ssd Attendance That Parents
Would DO We'll TO Heed.

} presented hia report for the half year. IL
contains matters Of interest 20 the tax savers
as we'll as 10 the mothsrs. fathers and guar
dians Of the boys and girls Of the city. The
? supeTintehdsnt says:
. Al the meeting for the sIsetion Of teach.
srs last Nay full corps was elected. In all
> fofty-three. During the summer one Of
those elected. MrG O'BAnnon. fled her res.
ignatioa on account of ill-health. AZ the
opening OF the schools in ssptsmber was
i iDstrustsd. # possible. 70 distribute the
pupils Of the third grade. BRYANT school,
the school 20 which Mrs. O'Baanon had
been assigned. In saeh a manner as 10 obvi.
ato the necessity OF hlling the vacancy. In
. view Of the fact that the snrollmant 40 the
opening Of the schools was greater BY nfty
or seventy Ave than 81 the beginning Of the
, preceding year. and that the attendance
throughout the city was uneVenlT distrib-
utsd. the adjustment desired Was q matter
OF no little dihneulty. The dificulty was
still fertilizer increased frem the fact tia,
the grammar grades we're nush fuller than
svsE before. However. acting under your
, instructions. ! made the following distTibu-
tioD Of classes
Al the Bryant school the b class Of the
third grade was placed in with tho second
grade, Gnd the A class Ia she room with the
fourth grade. while there were crowded int
the hfth grade room four classes, tive Of the
} hfth grade and two Of the sixth grade. In
the Jefferson school l was compelled
10 place three classes In the fifth grade and
like number in the sixth grade. Similar
Arrangements we're made 81 the Emerson
ahd Carey schools. The schools therefore
we're opened with eight rooms into which
we're crowded from one 20 two elaases Ia
exssss OF the usual number.
Under such unfaVorable conditions II
was NOT 70 be expected that the pupils
could make the progress or 80 thcrsuGhly
master the subjects aa whore the sohoola
contained tbs usual numbsr of classes
} However. apgrsciating the uhuauAl oendi-
tiona existing, ana the necessity Of eoono-
miIing a. every possible point, the tsAohss
took hold OF the work with VigoT and have
accomplished all that 10 was Reasonable or
} luat TO eKpsot Of them. IL IL. however, a
fact tina, suck doubling up Of schools is
followed By loss TO ths pupils whioh makes
the saving In dollars and cents a species of
qaeattonablO soonomy.
Again, IL results In an unjust diGoTimina-
, heh against the ohildren attending these
mixed schools Taxpayers IN all parts Of
the city pay equally for the sUpPort OF the
sehoels and their children aye theTsfors en-
titled 70 equal advantages. bat mAnifostly
IN the eases alludsd 10 they have aot re-
esivsd them. l an aware Of the fact that
the conditions have bsen the rssult Of popu.
lar sentiment Termed largely By the IN
, Usual financial depression, bat / am per-
shaded that more intelligent eonsidsfa-
tion ON the part Of eur taxpayers, Of all the
Interests involved would osut ia a verdict
against impAiriRg the efficiency Of the
schools BY multiplying the number Of
classes in tbs various grades
Daring the haif year, there has been q
total eHrollmsnt Of i. 7t3, gain OF seventy
seven over she snrollmsnt for the CORE
spending term Of last year. Based upon
the total en- ollmsRt the number Of pupils
yer rosm 10 1912. The average daily at
tendance p0r room 10 40.01. The total
number be onRiag al present is !, BOB, show
Ing that 24O OF those wac enrolled since
Sept. have fer various causes Withdrawn
from the schools. or the fetal enrolment
! $40 arc bows and e94 are girls. IL may bo
interesting to n0te that tue propoTtion of
boys and girls enrolled IL about the sane.
bat IL the seventh and eighth grades and
the high school. there are thf girls en-
rolled TO two bsys. IL therefore follows
that below the seventh grade there is a
greater proportion of boys than girls.
The attendance and puHotuality in the
schools have never bsen what they should
be- although there 10 psrosptibls improve
rnent from ysar TO yea TIE ir sgulaTty
IL due for the most part to illness inc en-
ent weather and detention al home 20 work |
Mach OF the absence and some Of the tardi- |
heaa ~ uuhNuAuhDAFt buN ~ II NhIe 10 saw
that fair per cent OF the former and very
large per cent OF the latte is caused By the !
carelessness of pupils and not inffeouentlv
BY the indifference shown by parents. !
Doubtless many OF the csses OF fsilu Of
promotion may be traced TO these
oaussS. There has been a constant
and oommendAbls effort on the part
OF the teachers 10 ssours better results In /
these particulars. In most instances the /
parents have heartily seconded their ef-
l feFNa avtA - A. -
senee for she term 20 be q. COS anu the cases
of Ia dinsss go, az against 6.142 and 9ll re-
spsetiVslT for last year. While the i'm
rroVeinsnt IL gratifying, IL 10 far from be-
ing what - should BE-. There should not
be over $50 easss of tardinesb aud 1000 days
Of absences fOr she time given. Tins record
viii easily be made when tha home infu-
ence becomes IS fully aroused 60 the i'm
portanee Of regularity Of attendance from
day 10 day as 10 ia to the dssirability Of
rromotion % the CLOSE Of the term. OF ths
GO eases OF Hardness. 3l2 we're reported
rom tsn Schools. IL IL also ne that about
oue-third Of the absences eecsrred la the
same rooms that reported 90 large pro-
portion Of the tnrdinesA The percentage
Of attendance ana PHnctuality for the term
CLOSED Is %. 81 aHd 914 respectively. The
rspo. fer the csrrsaponding term OF last
year was 30. II aud % GO. 1hs schools
standing highest In attendance and puno-
tuality Tor the term are - followsi Hias
Woodruff. IS. 20: Miss HArley's, 9s.71; high
school, 9347; Miss Whites 9S47; Miss
Burteh's. 9S.27; Miss @ ans, Is &c; Miss
Mabel BlaekStons's. 1924. and Miss SAN
dsrs. 9s.22.
Daring the Lest week Of the term
the eemi annual examinations we're
held. There we're At this ume !, 503 pupils
belonging 10 the schools. OF this number
l.496 look tie examinations. OF VIXEN l. 261
we're deemed worthy 81 advancement aud
we're promoted TO advanced classes. while /
80 falling below the required grade we're /
held 10 re, eat the terms wo-k. The re
suits OF examinations by departments be- /
low the high school were 80 follows
Number Number Number Number
med noted. urss. Absent. I
Urinary .....ep sos ia iss
Il will BE- noticed that ef the 2i5 Who
failed OF promotion. 1t were IN the pri- I
mary grades. ihis numbsf ineludsd those /
who catered the schools late in the term. 1
and Who could not rsasouably be eIpsotsd 4
/ 90 pass 60 higher olaaaeL
The examination aud promotion Of pa /
pills is one Of the moat i'm ortAnt aa veil as ,
delicate duties which develvss upon aups 4
iutsndrnt and tsachsfa. Failurs 10 be ro- +
NOTED IL sd disapPointmsnt 10 the pupil /
a. well 49, 20 HE parents. The latter are /
anxious 20 see their children advanced AZ
rapidly a. possible, an ambition that IL /
natural and laadsble. Inc numbar OF /
fsilurss reportsd above vould be largely /