The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1901-03-26
DISTRICT
SCHOOLS
Soon to be q Thing Of
the Past in Ohio.
new SCHOOL LAW
Being Put Into Fovee--Provides
for Township High Schools
and TRANSPORTATION Of
Scholars,

Discussing educational matters, a
prominent educator of Canton said to
News-Democrat reporter, Saturday
morning: -. -
"A few more years. and the old time
country school will be thing of the
past. 1t will live only as memory
or exist in out-of-the-way places and
sparsely districts. The tendency in
Ohio is to centralize district schools
to township high schools. This has
been made possible under law passed
by the last legislature, which is being
taken advantage OF In some sections.
The first townships to take ad.
vantage of the new law were Green and
Gustavus, in Trumbull county, up
among the yankees These descend
ants of the Puritan fathers are always
| foremost in educational matters, and
to them more than any one else Is due
the passage of the law. Such provi.
sion for centralizing schools has been
in vogue in the New England states
for some time, but Ohio is the pioneer
in the movement in the west.
THE law not only provides for the
merging of the schools into township
high schools, but requires the township
board of education to provide convey.
ances to carry the scholars to and from
the school who live in remote parts
of the district. In Trumbull county
during the past winter the scholars
have had royal time. While the
ground was bare of snow in Stark al
most the entire winter, up there they
had six weeks of the best kind of
sleighing, and large bob-sleds were
used to haul the scholars to and from
school. The rigs were piled full of
rollicking boys and girls.
"The combining of the districts al
lows the use of the entire township
school funds for the one school, and
a graded school is established equal to
that of the larger towns. The best of
talent can be secured for teachers
and that, too, without increasing the
rate of taxation. The old school
houses have been sold at auction in
those townships and the peSple are
perfectly satisfied with the new order
of things.
"The experiment is being watched
by adjoining townships, an6taindeed,
by educators all over the state. The
result is that number of townships
are taking steps preliminary to doing
away with the district school. 1t is
a reform that will come slowly, owing
to the prejudices of some of the elders.
They oppose this innovation Just as
they did the use of carbon oil lamps
music in the churches, etc. But the
younger generations rule now, and they
do not hesitate to trample upon the
customs of their fathers.
"The law requires that when such
change is desired, the matter must
be submitted to the qualified voters
of the township. II the majority vote
favorably to the new system, 1t is the
duty of the township board to as soon
as practicable centralize the schools |
as provided by the law by erecting
suitable house and securing corps of
teachers. The board of education con.
sists of five members elected at large |
throughout the township, which has
exclusive control over the school,
There is much sentiment clinging
around the old school houses and there |
are those that claim that in these |
modest temples CT learning the founda.
tions are laid for the best and most
practical educations. We hear much
of the great men who get their edu
cations IN log school hOpses or at the
district sch ,ols remote il ON the towns
or course The G Is mach tC support this
theory, and there Is one fact that even
the best educators have to admit, and
that is that at the teachers examina-
tions scholars from country schools
come in and pass creditably when grad
yates from the Canton and other high
schools fail miserably. Just why this
is cannot be figured out, yet it is fact.
lr,A