Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1894-10-06
THE TEXT BOOKS.
The Uniform System Now Ex-
isting in Our Schools.
THE CONDITION PAST AND PRESENT

THE CONDITION PAST AND PRESENT.
The situation rs County Superintendent
Marshall Found 1t. and as 1t 10 Today
Through the Reforms Inaugurated by
Him-Work ON His Part That Speaks For
Itself and Is Appreciated.
Four years ago Rock Island county
could probably present as great a
variety of school text books as anv
county in the state. The following
is list Of few in use at that time:
Readers - Swinton's, Osgood's,
Modern, Appleton's, McGnffey's,
Harper's, Franklin's, Educational
reader, Normal, Barnes.
Biographies - Harper's, Mon
tieth's, Swinton's. McNally's, Mitch
ellis, Guyot's. Warren's, Barnes,
Eclectic, Buffers.
Arithmetics-Goff's, Rays. Robin
sons, McVicker's, Felter's, Deans.
Harper's, Fish's, Whites.
Grammars- Harvey's. Pinneo's,
Green's, Sill's, Barnes. Reed & Kel-
logg's, Swinton's, Raub's, Clark's.
Text books on other subjects were
proportionately numerous, and
changes were being made constantly
at the suggestion of book agents, and
teachers who preferred books which
they had previously used.
The law provides that changes in
text books shall not be made oftener
than once in four wears; but no one
felt any particular responsibility for
the introduction of books into these
schools. No record was kept of such
introduction, and but little attention
was given to the 4-years' limitation
Changes were fitful, irregular and
often without any resulting benefit
to the scholars; in fact, a good text
book was often replaced with an in
ferior one. With nearly every
change of teachers came the call fol
books. books, books; until the people
really wondered whether the school.
were being operated in the interes
OF the children or of book publishing
houses.
Uniformity Required
Another requirement of the schoo
law relating to text books, provide;
that directors shall enforce uniform
ity of books in their particular dis
tricts. In some districts this wa.
done, and in others it was not, anC
in either case. it was attendant will
evils and hardships which count,
uniformity corrects. There are hun
dreds of tenant farmers and laborinc
men in this county who are con
stantly changing their residence
from place to place as opportunitie
for work may require; and when the,
moved from one school district into
another before uniformity was en-
forced, they were required in every
instance to buy more or less books
and in many instances, an entirel,
new list. This was a peculiar hard
ship upon class of people who wer,
the least able to bear it, and was in
eXcusable because it was unneces
sary.
Ii in the cities of Rock Island anC
Moline, different series of book.
were used in each building, and tn,
people were required to buy new
list or part of new list, every
time they should move from ont
ward into another. they would full,
appreciate the condition as Mr.. Mar.
shall found it in the district schools
In those districts where uniformit,
was not enforced, new pupils were
permitted to use the books brought
from other districts. The only prac-
ticable classification of pupils, al
least in the lower grades of the dis
trict schools. is one based on The
text books, and this diversity of text
books meant multiplicity of classe:
which otherwise might have been
grouped together. thus enabling the
| teacher to economiZe time and to de
velop better the subject of each reel
tation. 1t was not uncommon tt
find teachers in these schools strug
CLING through from twenty to thirty
daily recitations.
| County Superintendent Marshalrs Reform
County Superintendent Marshall
quickly appreciated this weakness in
the system, and set about to secure
uniformity of books. Realizing thai
this could be done only through the
voluntary cooperation of the schoo
directories of the county, he called 8
meeting in each township and ad
dressed the directors on the import.
ance of the feasibility of his plan to
secure this end. In this way an in.
terest and determination was
aroused in every part of the county
which gave the movement an impet
us, which book publishing houses
were powerless to counteract.
text book committee made up of suct
men as l.. ID. Edwards, Sam Heath
Fred Titterington, William Mat
thews and others, was created, which
acting with MIR. Marshal, selected /:
standard series of modern text books
The committee did not advise radi
cal changes, but suggested that tn,
| books be introduced into the school,