The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1897-03-31
AGRICULTURAL.
A Talk About Schools.

Vermont schools are better tnan |
they used to be. There are exceptions,
and too many of them, but on the
whole, they are steadily growing bet
ter. Had the last legislature had the
courage to have made provision for ex-
pert supervision, the state would have
made much more rapid progress. AS
it is, few towns will probably adopt the
new supervision now provided for by
the laws. They do not realize the
value of this feature of school improve
ment. Some have learned the value oil
the town system, others have not. But
that system is really the greatest help
to this State of any educational change
that has been adopted for years. 1t
has opened the way for other needed
improvements. It the Ubiquitous III
corporated school district business could
be forever done away with, and all the
children of the state placed on an equal
footing in educational privileges, that
would be another long step forward.
The selfish spirit which would deprive
the poor of good schools by building
fences around certain portions Of GER
tain towns and shutting out the chill
dren of farmers from the privilege ell
joyed by the rich villagers, is gross
injustice, and contrary to the spirit Of
our laws and ideas of equality. All the
hogs in the State are not in farmers
pens.
One great obstacle to school improve
ment is the apathy of the great major
ity of the people. The schools affect
them the same way that the sunshine,
air, and water do. So long as these
blessings are daily enjoyed, the people
do not think much about them. But
when the sun does not shine for weeks,
when there is no rain, or when hurri-
canes deal out destruction, then PEG
pie are stirred up. If the schools are
from fair to middling, folks do not pay
much attention to them. 1t is gener-
ally only when something real bad &C.
ours that the people become reused.
What would be most desirable is that
all the people in each community
should feel deeply the need of having
good schools, realize their value and
cooperate in making the schools as
good as possible. There is no place
where real patriotism can be 80 we'll
shown by the average citizen as by be-
ing Jealous for the welfare of the
schools. The farmers are called mig
gardly, but, if they are, the villagers
are selfish. The latter enjoy many ad-
vantages, and yet they are not more pa
triotic as a whole than the farmers.
The educated and well to do, the peo-
pie who have means for culture, should
see to it that they are interested in the
schools, and do all they can to make
them better in country places. How
many Of this class of people ever give
the outlying schools thought? How
many are doing anything to make these
schools more helpful to the poor, to
those who live back, and to the non
progressive? One way to help is to
start libraries by giving few of the
best books for supplementary reading
Another way is to help to make the
rural school rooms and grounds more
attractive. Pictures, flowers, speci.
mems, tasteful arrangement of chill.
dren's ornamental handiwork are among
the ways the village and city people Of
wealth and culture could help the
country schools.
But how few of such are interested
in educational progress and reform
Why? One reason is that they do moi
read and hear scarcely anything about
these subjects. Even those men and
women in our towns who are school Of
ficers do not read up on educational
topics as they should. One way fol-
such people to learn about educational
progress is to read some one or more
good educational paper like the Jour.
nal Of Education. BY 30 doing one car
learn what is going on in the great ed.
ucational world, can keep thoroughly
informed and cultivate deep and in.
telligent interest in the schools. II
would be great blessing to the schools
of the state if the Journal of Education
was widely read by intelligent people
We suggest that our readers, and par.
ticularly those who are teachers, who
are interested, send to the New Eng
land Publishing Company, 8 Somerset
street, Boston, for sample copies OIL
this paper and the American Primary