The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1909-05-01
A Model Country School.

LaHarpe, (Ill.) La Harper: You
have seen the country school house
with it's dilapidated old coal house in
front; Its open shells of out houses, Its
broken windows. its waterless pump
and broken fence, a good, share OF
which has gone to kindle fires in the
jacketless stove inside where the dingy /
walls, falling plastering, cracked black
boards, defaced desks, with possible
cracks in the floor where the wind
blows up in chill drafts, making
desolate, comfortless prison for the
children, and they too showing In
equal carelessness, because of their
environments and largely inno-
cent of the business school is suppos-
ed to do, and this picture you know Is
not overdrawn, but is too familiar to
cause comment and too frequently
found in direct contrast to the magnih-
cent barns, where the blooded stock
has better shelter and more direct care
from the lord of the manor than has
the children in the country school. But
the consolidation idea will bring better
things for the children of the country
schools. There is lady, Miss Mabel
Carney, who believes 1t worth while
/ to bring about better condition for
the rural schools and she has under
taken and is going to succeed in estab-
Fishing a rural school that shall be
social center of the community and
deal largely with the plain, everyday
matters of life in the country, and
lhelpfully reach everybody and every
interest in the community. The lady is
in charge of school located one and
one-half miles west of Macomb, and
lis showing the Western Normal people
how it is done.s She has bad help OF
course from directors and patrons. In
the process of making the school hit
and homelike, two new. outhouses were
built, the school house placed upon a
concrete foundation, furnace placed
in the basement, and bay window and
COSY corner. rugs, cushions, pictures
and piano installed, the room nicely
papered and window shades and cur
tains, with bright linoleum on the hal
floor, low tables and chairs, mostly
; made by the boys in the manual train
ing class, now greatly interested and
quite proficient and her pupils hat
much to do in the improvements in
augurated, and finding their work o
construction delightful and helpful
there is no desire to destroy anything
} While the boys are securing practica
training in the useful, helpful thing
t in their work the girls are organized
( into a culture club, which is bringing
I in the young women of the communit
: and interesting the mothers Tn
t ladys work is giving country teachin
: a new meaning, giving the teacher
greater interest in their work. Sue
: work cannot be done in districts wher
the attendance Casually six to ten
h would not justify the expense, but i
a consolidation. where four or five dis
I tricts go together Miss Carney's idea
G could be copied to advantage. RAJ
9 itan had Miss Carney to address ther
;, and the consolidation was effected !
:, which five districts united. There
!. no question but what the pupils can b
. conveyed to and from school daily {
: less expense than to maintain four {
five districts separately, and as ha
been suggested, better conditions, ed
A cational and temporal needs, with
higher grade for advanced pupil
There is the greatest need for improv
II ment in our country schools and "
. believe the consolidation plan II
solution.