The daily morning journal and courier., 1907-06-11

to establish schedule of salaries for tue high school. It regards such schedule as unnecessary, and in many ways impracticable. (That sounds al most as well as the tentative frame work.
 The varying degrees of ability, which will always be found among the teach CTS of a high school like ours, the diff ference in the importance of many of the departments of the school, the varying responsibilities placed upon many of the teachers, the much larger supply of teachers in some subjects than in others--all these things must be taken into account in adjusting the salaries of high school teachers. Un- der these circumstances, the committee believes that high school salaries should be determined mainly by the value of individual teachers to the school, and by the ease or difficulty with which their places can be filled should they retire. Length of service, while a factor should not be deter mining influence.
 $s+ The committee recommends a salary of $1,S00 for the heads of the departments of physics and chemistry. These two positions are positions of much responsibility, the laboratory work is of a much more exacting na- ture than ordinary class room teaching, and a large amount Of valuable ma terial and apparatus is under the per SOnal care ana supervision OI the nedQS of these departments. The committee will probably continue to recommend increases in individual cases, as here tofore.'
 I, and doubtless others, feel the need of help to understand these reasons given by the committee. The question must be very complicated indeed. if MT. Moran, with his thirteen years ex- perience on the committee, and MT. Jackson with his eight years, utterly give up the attempt to systematic the high school schedule, leaving sixty one out of the sixty-three appointees entirely in the dark as to what compen- sation they may look forward to or count upon.
 The first reason given by the com mittee is "The varying degrees of abil- ity which will always be found among the teachers of a high school like ours. . Does it mean that Is most kind of schools, e. g., grammar schools, varying degrees of ability do not exist and therefore a schedule can be made? That doesn't seem quite reasonable. It must be that the emphasis is to be placed upon the words like ours" i. e., varying degrees of ability will all ways be found when the teachers are appointed like ours at the individual appraisement of the superintendent and in varying conditions of the school pocketbook. But, come to think of it, that would seem to be reason for having schedule to avoid such un- evenness. Then, what does it mean?
 The second reason is "The difference in the importance of many of the de- partments of the school' This reason and the next one. The varying respon- abilities placed upon many of the teachers" wish, had been clarified by one of the English teachers before 1t came into print, for the English is a bit puzzlng, when-one is trying to rn- derstand an official statement. Does the first one mean that the Hillhouse scientific department and the Board man scientific department, for instance Gas they can be most readily compared) differ greatly in importance and that therefore the marked difference in sal aries which at present obtain in the same subjects between these two de- partments are justified? Or, does it mean that the chemical department with It's laboratory. work and it's valu- able apparatus differs greatly in im- portance from the biological depart ment with it's laboratory work, it's less accessible material, and It's valuable apparatus. so that, S1.9a0 is the proper figure in the former and $500 in the lat ter (provided that in "the sweet by and by" the board of finance kindly furn- ishes funds)? What kind of depart ments" are there so many of that no schedule can be made to fit them?
 Perhaps the varying responsibilities placed upon many of the teachers means that many have the care of ses- sion rooms, while some do not, As $100 has been fixed upon in recent years as extra compensation to ''class off cers," is it too much to expect that some definite amount could be figured out for the extra care involved in a session room? But, then, perhaps that reason doesn't refer to session rooms at all, Who knows?
 The last reason seems more hopeful ly definite. "The much larger supply of teachers in some subjects than in others" That must be the reason why, heretofore" the salaries of the teach CTS of English have been all the way from $45O to $1,250; those in Latin from $7O0 to $1,400; those in science, from $550 to $1, 500, etc, But there again, how hard It is to understand other people E reasons! It would seem to the lay mind as though there might be some kind of a schedule for the teachers of the same study, but If the committee on schools, with all their years of experience have arrived only at the above mentioned va rations, what can anyone else hope to accomplish or suggest2
 Now to come back to the starting point. We have model system of ed- ucational control here in New Haven with the responsibility fixed upon a very few men, namely, the board of f. nance, the mayor, the board of educa- 1 ton and their executive officer, the su- l perintendent of schools-an even dozen Something seems to be wrong about the working of the system, so much sc that several hundred of the city teach- CTS have organized and put in pro- test. Many of us have read the reason able sort of q petition that they have had printed Apparently the commit tee on schools has not seen 1t yet, but we must give them time The teachers don't seem to be entirely happy ir their work" Now the state superin- tendent of Pennsylvania in his address