Morris tribune., 1908-02-15
.SUPT. SMYSER'S
ANNUAL REPORT
POLICY OF THE rlORRIS SCHOOL S
OUTLINED.
Attention is Called to the Crowded
Condition of the Schools and
the Great Need for Additional
Accommodations and Equipment.

Supt. S. F. Smyser has submitted
the following excellent report, which
is worthy of the careful perusal of the
| friends of the schools and the tax
payers of Morris:-
| Members of the Board of Education:
! Morris, MINI.
| Gentlemen:
would respectfully submit the
| following report. The report for this
year deals with:
1st.-The condition of the schools.
2d.-The policy of the Morris
Schools.
3d.-School accommodations and
equipment.
The average number of pupils be-
longing for the first four months Of
this year is 455 against 46S for the
same period last year, which is a de-
crease of Ii or per cent. While
there has been this decrease in the
school in general, the high school
again shows small increase in both
total enrolment and average num-
ber belonging for the first four
months. The total enrolment is 1923
at present. The average number be-
longing for the first four months was
| 100 or an increase of a little over
4 per cent.
Pupils are working we'll. Difficult
| cases that continually make 5problems
| for their teachers are very few in
number. Altho there are of course
parents, who fail to actively cooper
ate with the schools when their in
fluence is needed, yet those who are
antagonistic to individual teachers or
the schools in a way to make pupils
troublesome are almost unknown. The
use of tobacco and cigarettes by
school boys has been the least this
year of any year since / have known
the schools. I now know of no ciga-
rette "fiends" in the schools. AlthO,
Of course, there are some teachers
who are not good in all lines. can
say with confidence we have no poor
teachers. They are, as body, women
of high character.
In the high school the general spirit
il good. Altho all the boys who grad
uated from the 9Th grade but three
come to high school and some who
did not graduate, have also come to
high school this year. Not one boy,
who regularly entered the high school
as a freshman and not one upper
class boy has dropped out of high
school SO far this year. This is GER
tainly an excellent record-A credit
to the boys, their teachers and the
policy of the board. It is in line al
so with argument of Mr.. Siverts in
his presidents address at commence
ment last spring.
What is the educational policy of
the Morris schools? Those who have
known what has been taking place
in our schools for a few years know
that changes that have been made
have had three objects especially in
view:
1st-To make the schools supply
more fully the needs of the ordinary
boy and girl, /. e. to make the schools
more practical.
2d-To fit the schools more close
" to the needs of this particular
community.
3d.-To see that each child, espe-
cially if little slow, or timid, or
weak receives the special attention
needed by that child
In order to fit the course more full
ly to the ordinary boy manual train
ing, book keeping and agriculture
have been introduced; text books
have been changed for those that
ire more practical, the amount of
technical grammar required has been
'educed. Elementary manual work
IL lnc 1tdS UCSH |
ho not required.
To carry out fully this policy of
making the schools more practical
or the ordinary boy and girl we need
eyeral things yet. Hand work in the
over grades needs to be systemized
Lrawing work needs to include more
Industrial drawing, emphasis in teach
ng various things needs to be plac-
q more on the useful habits of do t
ng things in the right way and less /
Il information. AS rapidly as we can 1
btain them we should displace scho- c
lstical theoretical text books with /
ooks that show the relations of \
1ings to daily life AS soon as we f
IN, we should introduce domestic
IT and science for the girls. The g