The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1899-01-19
Annual Report of
State Board.
PUBLIC SCHOOLS.
Their Condition in the Main
is Good.

Frank A. Hill, secretary of the state
board of education. presented the ed
report to the legislature yesterday,
which covers substantially the school
year of 1897-'9S. The report, in sub
stance. reads as follows:
A table gives facts about the rela-
tons of the total expenditures for the
public schools to the total average mu-
ntcipal tax of the state for the past 10
years.
The column giving the school tax as
per graduated tables does not include
the entire school tax even though build
tngs are excluded. It gives what is
raised by taxation and expended for
the support" of schools as support is
defined in the statutes, and so includes
expenditures for only the following
items: Wages of teachers, Transporter
ton of children Included for the past
three years., fuel, and care of fires and
school rooms. The sum thus expended
Is increased by small additional sums
from the dog tax and other sources
Then the towns having the right to use
such sums for schools or not, neverthe-
less expend them for schools.
The sum as thus determined forms the
basis for the distribution of the income
of the school fund. To determine the
fun sum for current school expendi-
lures, buildings still excluded. there
must be added the expenditures for
supervision, for text books and supplies
and for Sundries.
The table shows apparently that the
schools are receiving a slowly increas-
ing percentage of the states valuation
An absolute annual increase in expen-
ditures for schools is to be expected
because school children are becoming
more numerous and public sentiment as
TO their schooling is getting to be more
eXact1ng. II the increase in valuation
keeps pace with these increasing school
demands, the situation is entirely nor
NAL
If, however, a steadily increasing pro-
portion of what the people set apart for
municipal purposes is going into
schools, this means a steadily red11cine
proportion for streets, lighting, water,
police, aid to the poor, and SO on. If
certain municipal expenses are reduced
IN order to put the schools into better
condition, or if the people in MAKING
sacrifices choose to sacrifice elsewhere
rather than in their schools, this would
be creditaible showing, and would 90
10 justify the trend to which attention
is here called.
Before attaching too much conse-
quence TO this upward trend. however.
1t is worth while to inquire whether If !
is really so great as the figures seem
70 say. AS matter of fact, the trend
While it doubtless really exists. has
been much exaggerated because of a |
certain lncompleteness of statistics |
considerable expenditures of money for
schools, heretofore omitted. are now
returned. Had these sums been in
Guided during all of the last 10 wears.
instead of during the last 8 onlv. the
contrast hatHGpn ba
the ending Of the period would have
been less striking
The relation of the total amount
raised exclusively by taxation for all
school purposes except buildings to the
tolal amount raised for all municipal
purposes, is the safest and best for de-
termining whether the school tax is
gaming on the general tax or not In |
1sSS-S9 this school tax was 20.5 per cent |
or, in a round number. q per cent Of
the whole tax; in 1928 it was %. 8 per
cent or IN round number, % per cent |
OF the whole tax-an increase so slight |
as TO occasion no solicitude, especially |
IN view OF the fact that the increase is
undoubtedly exaggerated little for |
reasons already given. The increase. |
II there is value to show for it, is more |
likely to be worthy Of praise than
The total tax for all municipal DIP
poses has risen from $14 IA in 1850 |
TO $l5.S9 in 1S97-98-an increase of * |
cents. The total tax for schools. build |
lngs excluded, has increased during the
same time. from SOB to $3.50, or so |
cents in all. The total tax for schools |
buildings included, has risen from s.. 6s
IN 10 years TO S4.94, or 81. 20 in all; bur
lt needs to be repeated much of this
increase of 81. 26 does not belong to +ha
Years to which it has been assigned
10 snow the fluctuations in that mart
ffT II. :
Dy the repair and construction of school |
buildings, it may be said that building
expenditures increased the school ex-
pehses IN 1859 by 65 cents on $1,000
of valuation; in 1SS9-9O, by 80 cents; in
ioS9-Si, by 80 cents; in 1912, by 81 IS: |
IN ISs2-S5, by 81 cents; in 1S93-94, by So |
cents; in 1694-95, by 81. OIL; in 1856, bv |
I.25; in 1869, by 81. 25, and in 1895 |
by 81 Al. The last three years. as
clearly shown by these figures. have |
been years Of extraordinary activity in |
building school houses.
The following portions Of the report |
OF the state board are of interest:
Feachers-The number Of different |
teachers employed was 13203-an in |
crease og $50. The number of men en-
ployed was 1174-an increase of 81; of
women L, 2O9-an increase of 306. The !
number of teachers required was Il 67S |
an increase of 377. The ratio of the
number of positions to be filed to the |
number of different teachers was to !
1.16 in 1888 and l to IL in 1898. indicat |
ing an increase in pelmanency of ten
ure. In Boston, for 1898, the ratio was
to .o6; in the SO towns that in 1897 paid
their women teachers less than $50 a
month, the ratio was / to / Al In other
words changes in places that pay good
salaries are comparatively few; in
places that pay poor salaries, somewhat
numerous.
Tenure of office act-One hundred and
eleven towns appoint their teachers un-
der the tenure of office act 10 serve
during the pleasure of the school com
nittee, or, practically, during good be-
havior
Wages Of teachers-The returns give
the average pay of men per month as
$l37. 50-a decrease of 81. 30; of women,
$51 IA decrease of rs cents. The de-
crease is probably more apparent than
real, the averages having been com