The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1902-03-29
WHAT a SUI ERlNlEND EMF Can DO.
norn,1lnee.

| is the school. That the statement mas
some truth IN it is shown by the record
made by County Superint endent S. t
lVenable. OF Buncombo county, North
carolina. When he took the office, in
March, 1899. the school term ranged from
two and a half to five months, the at
| tendance was very poor. the people fhdif-
ferent and the whole system was run In
a .,lipslod manner. Buncombe county;
lsof which Asheville is the county seat, IS
| in the mountains, where the school prob
| lem is very difficult one. Superinten--
| dent vcnabl is native Of North Caro-
Lima, but he was educated at Hampden-
Sidney and the University Of Virginia.
AS soon as he had made thorough
study Of his office and of the school law
| he concluded that the best way. to ascer-
tain the cause Of the slim attendance was
to visit the people in their homes. Al
though over seventy years old and
| crippled by a Federal bullet, he took his
walking stick and tramped through the
country for miles, visiting the schools and
going into the homes Of the people.
lie returned from his trip with Ills
| heart and brain on fire. He had found
that many of the parents would not send
their little children to school in winter
because the weather was too severe.
Others could not clothe all their children
sufficiently and so kept the little ones
at home in order that the larger ones
might attend. Consequently, many of
the children were nine or ten years old
before they were started tc school. Bun
colnbe county is a farming community and
many of the children begin steady work
on the farm by the time they are u or
10 years old; so their schooling has
amounted to almost nothing.
IF the people can't meet the conditions
meet the conditions of the people" said
Superintendent Venablc. THE schools
must be arranged so as to get the chill
dren there, not the children arranged for
the schools and expected to go there
when they cannot Calling his board
scheme, which was to inaugurate
duplicate system of schools-that
is, to have a school in the sum-
mer and fall for the little chill
dren and as soon as this closed to
open school for the larger ones. He
contended that the attendance of the
small children would be better; that the
teachers could teach them more rapidly
than under the old system, as there
would be fewer classes; that the children
would start to school earlier in life and
therefore stay in school longer; and
that better teachers could be secured. be-
cause a teacher could teach the small.
children four or FIVE months and then
take the large children in hand thus
having steady employment. He claimed,
moreover, that while the actual expendi-
ture of money would be a little more,
the net result would be a large saving
Bitter opposition arose at once, not
only from parents, but from teachers.
The former opposed because it was some-
thing new; the latter for the same rea-
san, and again because they feared the
graded system, which they foresaw, would
arise from this new movement.
But the superintendent held his ground
and despite every form of opposition
and annoyance persuaded few schools
to try the plan. The results We're even
better than lie had predicted. The en-
rollment of the small children doubled
and the attendance was first rate. Some
of the teachers reported last summer
that every child under ten years of age
in their districts was at school, and the
average was over 50 per cent. Not hav-
ing so many classes to hear, the teach
ers were able to give individual atten-
ton to these children and the progress
made was surprising alike to parents
and pupils.
It is said that every prediction made
| by the superintendent is coming true.
| The plan is spreading over the country,
the schools are gradually being CONSOLE
dated and the grading Of these schools
started, the school term has gone to over
sever. months, better teachers are apply
ing, the children are getting interested
and the patrons are waking up. Super
F
! intendent venable. in a recent letter,
says: ST have kept up my long terms
that were ridiculed as impossible, raised
| the money to pay for them and will
build equivalent to eighteen school-houses
this ycar-three-room houses. which will
have in one room the first and second
! grades, in another room the third. fourth
and fifth grades, and in the third room
the sixth, seventh and eighth Grades
The houses are so built that two outer
walls Will add a fourth room. and as
! the grades 80 up we will make differ
ent division Of grades. This in sight
| in three years! and I have the money to
| pay for them, too. They are really
handsome houses and will he built with
regard to every modern requirement for
health
How did he get the money!" will be
asked. He saw to it that every cent of