The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1899-03-29
CITY TEXT BOOKS
Supt. Snyder Filed a Report
On Them With the Board
of Education.
STATISTICAL ACCOUNT
Committee Disapproves Of the
Use OF States = Contrac-
tors Prices Lower Than
In Other Cities.
STATISTICAL ACCOUNT

LII Otllci O1oAOS'
This important and interesting docu-
ment was filed with the Board of Educa-
ton by Superintendent Snyder, on behalf
of the Committee on Text Books
To the Board of Education
Gentlemen-During Jun of last year,
when this Board had under Consideration
the estimate of appropriation required by
it for the fiscal year 1883, some state
ments then made regarding the appro-
priation for books and stationery sug-
gested a line of inquiry which would give
amount expended for books and station
cry in our schools, in accordance with the
requirements, of the law providing for
free public school education.
That law is as follows:-
School trustees and boards of educa-
ton shall purchase text books and other
necessary school supplies for use in the
public chools of their respective chool
districts, as such new text books and
supplies are required in addition to those
at present in use in the hands of pupils
or owned by the school districts, out OF
a free textbook fund of the district, to
be raised by special school tax, which
shall be assessed and collected in the
same manner as moneys for public school
purposes are now raised by law, and
when so procured the necessary books
and school supplies shall be furnished
free of cost for use in the public schools
of said districts, subject to the orders
Of the school trustees and boards of ed
ucation thereof, whose duty it shall be
to provide for the return of and for the
safe-keeping and care of the books. which
shall be returned at the close of the an
nual school term in each year, or as the
board may direct
At the suggestion of the Committee on
Books and Stationery and the Commit
tee on Text Books and Course of Study,
the G1anarinfaudpn has nrnclrad from the
principal of each school, excepting, OF
course, the new ones, a statement show
ing in detail the manner in which the
moneys allotted to his school for the
fiscal year 1878 have been spent, and
another statement showing the amoun
spent by each pupil in each grade, in
addition to the amount spent by the city,
for such books and stationery as were
necessary for the proper education of the
pupil.
Several reasons induced this inquiry. It
is well to know whether we comply with
and, If not, to what. extent we do not
so comply; from comparison of the diff
ferent statements suggestions in the line
of economy might be made to various
schools. h Text Book Committee
would know just what books We're used
in the schools. and with that knowledge
would be enabled to clear the text book
list of works obsolete, a~ntiquated, and
those which the principals considered of
no use in the schools. The proportionate
CADtilQllulG VI tCALH DO0hos SAiN
books, stationery, maps, globes and APP
paratus would be ascertained. and finally,
a basis obtained for an accurate estimate
of the amount of expenditure required to
secure a fair compliance with the law.
The amount allotted to this Board to
be expended for books and stationery for
the fiscal year 1873, was $1S,G0o.. Ii may
not be out of place to remark here IN
passing that the same amount was allot-
ted for the year 1888, with six schools
Of this amount 10go was set apart for
the incidental expenses for stationery.
etc, in the office Of the Superintendent
this proportion is barely sufficient
although rigid economy is exercised. This
left 1852 90 to be apportioned among the
pupils upon which this superintendent was
made was 10, 1853. A simple mathematical
calculation shows hat the city therefore
allots 31.6 cents to each pupil for BOOKS
and stationery for one year.
This amount was expended as follows
For text ~ 9oS.o 81
For ma. and apparatus:..... 80. 4I7.41
For stationery and supplies...... 5,73S.74
Tota1.... 49,. SIG. 1920
OF the amount expended for books of
! reference, Spills, or more than half, was
| spent by the High and Training School;
$f49. SO was spent by the High School and
| the greater portion of this was expended
for standard work of history, literature
and science, so that pupils might have
at their mana fSuDn NUlul1lcS d. WOdld CA-
| courage them in original research.
s121.65 was expended by the Training
School, entirely for teachers manuals and
for single copies of text books Tor use IN
| pupil teachers of the training class, and
| for use as reference books by the model
| teachers and specialists and their pupils:
There was expended for reference books
in the other schools $261.T7, and this was
distributed as follows:-
| Dictionaries $13.9o
Cyclopedia .............. ...-......-.... 4o.v0
Reference atlas aye
Teachers manuals ................ S4.3l
Total .S2el.H
A careful examination of the subjects
treated in the teachers' manuals pur-
chased shows that, by the use of the
manuals, ext books in the hands of
pupils might and probably were dispensed
with. Those teachers manua were
almost wholly on drawing. elementary
arithmetic nature study, elementary lam
guage and kindergarten work.
This feature is also noticeable in the
purchases classed under maps and APP
paratus. The $477.41 expended under this
head was spent as follows:-
Maps and globes .$195. IA
Blackpoards . ..-...,-....- 49,
kindergarten material ............ 17.24
Writing. music and nature charts. 71.79
Phonetic cards FUSED by teacher in
lGdCulIlS ICdulHSJ ....t.ss......-.-... zo.zJ
Miscellaneous ~. ..........-.... 2.92
Total. ............. SIT. Al
This combination of good teaching and
economy is deserving of high commenda-
ton. 1t is evidene of an earnest desire
on the part of principals and teachers to
improve the methods Of teaching and at
the same time attain greater results with
less expenditure of the city's money. The
use of these manuals. charts, globes, ETC.,
means more work for the teacher than if
the same amount were expended for text
books to be placed in the hands of the
more work outside of school hours-but
the sacrifice is made, and both the pupils
and the city at large receive the benefit.
The total amount spent for books of
reference, maps, charts and apparatus, Is
only S1,010.G2, and almost all Of this was
expended by the High School and the
Training School. The other schools spent
very little for these purposes because of
the necessity of using as much of the APP
preparation as possible for the purchase
OF text books, but while 1t is admitted
that tex books are Indispensable. it
must, at the same time, be urged that
books of reference. maps and apparatus
are just as important to the teacher If
the best results in education are to be
obtained. Just as there has been con-
slant Improvement in all fields. OF indus
try and especially in text book making,
SO there has also been Improvement IN
the devices used in school work. It is,
of course. advisable that our schools
hould nave the advantage OF very i'm
proved facility. We expect that our
teachers shall do as successful work as
that they may do this, we must furnish
them with the necessary implemenfs. II