Perth Amboy evening news., 1906-06-28
PUBLIC SCHOOL
OF THE COUNTY
County Superintendent Willis
Says the System Is in
Excellent Condition.

Inc lOWuSHlp anu DOfOuSn ScnOO
; districts have all held their public
school day promotion exercises and
commandments, being twenty-three
4 closing occasions. Nowhere have the
] largest buildings of the district been
large enough TO seat the people who
have attended these occasions. Prom
inent public men have delivered adj
dresses, and the programs generally
have been excellent.
Some 1,200 pupils have been pro-
NOTED on these occasions before
large and appreciative audiences, all
of which were highly commended
for completing successfully the tests.
Eight hundred pupils from the pri-
mary, 800 from the grammar and
100 from the high school years APP
peared and received certificates of
promotion or high school diplomas
for a f%our-year course of work.
The names of 2,52S pupils who
had not missed more than ten school
days were read from the platform
and the total number or certificates
prepared in the Office of the county
superintendent, including the pro-
motion certificates with the averages
of the respective subjects at 3,712.
The county superintendent stated
that while he was very much pleased
with the progress and betterment of
the school facilities for the year, still
he regretted that many conditions ok
listed which handicapped the pupils
in certain localities. The condition
most to be regretted was the place
ment of four or five distinct years of
work, each year averaging about sew
en- subjects, under one teacher, caus-
ing the pupils to go so slow that they
are compelled to lose a year or more
of valuable work before completing
the grammar department. Some
boards of education are requiring one
teacher to hear twenty recitations
each school day, covering as many as
six years of work, and others require
three, four and five years of work of
one teacher in graded schools. Such
conditions are contrary to the law
and a waste of public school money.
He stated that the rules of the
state board of education regarding
high schools and partial high schools,
which had berry recently been passed,
would prevent to a considerable ex-
tent the placing of so many years of
work under one teacher as the rules
required an average period of forty
minutes in high school subjects.
Mr.. Willis stated that high school
subjects required on IN average a
forty-minute recitation period, and
not more than two years Of work
placed under on teacher; grammar
school subjects require on an average
a thirty-minute period, including
change of classes, and not more than
two years of work placed in charge
of one teacher in graded schools, and
that the higher primary subjects re-
CURED on an average a twenty-min-
ute recitation period including change
of classes and the lower primary
classes fifteen minutes, and If posi-
BILE first year pupils should be placed
in care of one teacher in graded
schools.
Y The most important proposition
confronting the boards of the county
is that of making provision for the
high school years. 1t is quite evident
that unless a district has over five
hundred children enrolled and can
maintain a central high school, the
best interest of the pupil and the
taxpayer will be conserved in view of
the provision made by the state by
sending the said pupils to a recog-
nized approved high school. 1t can
hardly be expected that any district
can succeed with justice to pupils in
maintaining two or three high school
departments, doing nine and ten
years of work. Such a condition
would require the addition of a high
school teacher for each department
of two years of work, the expense of
which would give the same pupils
much better facilities and the trans
portation and tuition would be less
expensive.
Most of the districts have met this
proposition wisely and before
in this county were there so many
boys and girls entertaining reasona-
BILE hope of a high school education.
The best that districts without a cen
trail high school can hope to do is to
maintain an up to date grammar
course.
Mr.. Willis declared that it was not
too much to say that New Jersey pub
lie system is promising as wise and
liberal provision for it's pupils as any
state in the union.
The county superintendent has pre-
pared a high school course of study
which has been approved by the state
department. Said course will go in
to effect at the opening of the schools
in September, and will call the at
t6ntion of the board of education
teachers and pupils to the same, II
compliance with the new rules OF the
state board.
"You will learn to limp Il you live al
/ ~or -. NTH 1or1o Yaopla - and YOU VIII De