The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1903-09-22
DISTRICT CITY SCHOOLS.

Districting the schools of Honolulu Is
an idea that the Board of Education
will likely soon consider. It is not a
new conception, but was publicly ad-
vocated some years ago. There are
many reasons in favor of mapping out
the city plot into school districts with
fixed bounds. one of the most obvious
is that it would bring individual
schools near the homes OF the pup'iS
attending them As 1t Is now, hundreds
/ of children travel distances measufihe
miles to attend school Many DO so
who live within close reach OF anotner
school than the one they attend. Inc
more convenient school may beat pres
ent undoubtedly Is in every instance
crowded. 1t Is perhaps gone past pc
cause the child's family had hoNeu
| from another part of town, but prefer
red to keep the child in the schooi ne
originally entered. Then the nearest
/ school may have its attendance larsely
of pupils born to a different tongue ana
I bred to diverse manners from the chliu'
/ which, leaving all questions OF Color
and race out of the account, make cor
ditions amounting to a serious hAtlui
can for the child in his educat!ohai
progress. This condition incident 10
TIonolulu's poIyglot population Is work.
ing another way at present III rs
bringing a crush of various natloilhi
ties to the grades of the High school
group. The result is crowdihs out Oh
children to whom that group of schools
would be most congenial and most con-
venient. not least in some instances pe-
cause elder children of the same famliy
had worked their way UP from the
primary of the same group.
No doubt it would be an adVanta~e
TO children of alien tongues TO De
grouped in schools apart from those
born to English, as they need soeclai
methods of tuition for which time can
not be afforded in greatly mixed schoois
without injustice to the English-speak-
ing pupils. Where such grouping can
be done without Fictitious herding or
drawing children from distance .or
the purpose it would be of benehcial
effect all round in the city system OF
prblic schools The object can be ef-
fected without making invidious dis
tinctions between races or tongues IN
no better way probably, than by dlVid-
ing Tie city into districts ana p!oN'H-
ing any one district with just as good /
a school house and teaching staff rs |
anv other district. There has been the |
beginning of such a system as that here |
advocated in existence since the estab-
lishment of Kaiulani school at Palama |
and Eaahumanu school at kuaokahua.
BY a iudicious location of the new
Royal school and the substitution ot
,ho ANAL old schools Kawaahao way |
With one respectable edifice convenient |
to the Kawalahaa and Kakaako dis
tricts very substantial progress would /
he made in the right direction.
AS the English speaking residents
have for a considerable time past |
shown tendency to cluster in certain
sections, the institution of district |
schools would go far to solve the dill
cult problems of popular educatioh
which have hitherto prevailed. AS pu-
pills of alien race and tongue advanced
in knowledge and general western
habits in the district schools, thev
would be entitled as fast as they could
pass reasonable tests to enter the HEN
school. At this stage they would not
be either an uncongenial or retardlhs
element there. AS a matter OF course
High school accommodation would un-
der such a system have to be increased.
High schools in mainland cities are
common which have an attendance OF
thousand and upward. 1t would be
more economical here. as well as nav
ing other advantages, to have sin>
gle High school large enough to receive
promotions from all the district schools
than to establish small institutions OF
that class.
With the absolute necessity of very
greatly increasing the school accom-
mediation of Honolulu now confronting
the Board of Education, there Is an op-
portunity of devising a system of dis
trict schools which, it is hoped, will not
be left unlmproved.