The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1901-05-15

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awaken public interest in
the many improvements needed in our
public school system. especially that
of eliminating the written eXamina-
ton fad, which is the usual corOllary
of the mory-cramming method. we
alluded to the Rochester. n. y. school
board having done away with one
grade out OF nine that intervened there
between kindergarten and high school
work
In that it brought itself simply
into line with this. among other cities.
\ few places have come down to seven.
with results quite as good. But
Rochester has taken. in other school
directions. various steps Of progress
quite beyond us: and. as some of our
readers doubtless know. these have
been largely the result of the intell-
gent campaign for school improvement
by the Woman's Educational and In
dustrial union. of that city. We can
not touch in one day ON all the varied
Ines of work the union has carried on
for the schools of that city. but Il
few Of them are indicated in Two or
three paragraphs from one of the re-
portS presented at its seventh annual
meeting one day last week. The serrc-
,ary of the educational committee
Spok. first Of the changes which have
taken place since they had commenced
the school work. Tho Democrat and
Chronicle quotes thus from the re-
port:
Some of the changes that have
taken place seem miraculous. Those
dreadful anneXes. notorious through
out the state. wher" are they All
gone in a year. The experiment in
halliday sessions. tried by Dr Dow
So successfully at No. -, have be-
come universal The bette moir of II
hch school ,how We have anuthema-
tZed III seems tn be conquered with
ont an earthquake, Those Sehs"i"Ss
examinations ana thai endless writing
have been eliminated, and now We are
told. and we hail it With sladneSs, that
one whole year Is 10 be reclaimed to
the child from the vast" between the
kindergarten Hliu ine hISi S'l''''
"'rhe work of our new school board
Is above praise, Their educational
grasp, their financial ability, their
executive power and their wonderful
skill in dealing with difficult problems,
have aroused the enthusiasm of the
entire city. And the value Of the right
Woman on the school board has been
proved for ali time. That this woman
who has done so much Is our beloved
president. is "A matter NJ great pride
and glory to the Woman's Union, The
work has been arduous and wearing.
but We trust that II will not be NJ hard
in the future, and il behooNes every
membei Of the union, and all public
spirited citizens, 10 see that the present
board is ra-rlected in the fall, to con-
tinuc the work so splendidly inaugur-
ated."
Rochester is to he congratulated on
having such a new school board and
ON it's having been put lnto office
largely by the wisely directed efforts
of women-whose recognized duty it
ought to be everywhere TO work. d.
rectly ana steadfastly. for school I'M
pruvemenr. The indication in the Sec
retury's report that in one city at least
they have been able TO c0unteract 10
some extent The political pull is an
exceedingly pleasant thing To hear Of.
But The special bit of Improvement
syoken of that we desire 10 cali atten-
tlon to To-day is that referred to in the
sentence: Those senseless eXamina-
tiuns and that endless writing have
been eliminated"
Our readers know that Philadelphia's
Board of Education has decided here