The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1910-12-04
GUNNELS TALKS ON
NORTHERN JOURNEY
Says Too Many School Dis
tricts in South
CONSOLIDATION NEEDED
Describes Methods Used In Indiana and
Ohio to Solve IturaI School Prob
Iem-Its Adaptability to
Alabama
CONSOLIDATION NEEDED


"In the rural communities of the south
there are too many districts and too
many schools, too many one-teacher
schools and too few two and three
teacher schools. The solution which
offers itself to rid these communities
of such conditions and to place the
rural schools on the highest plane on
which to accomplish the best result is
to be found in the method employed In
many of the western states, where
schools are consolidated, and where ed
ucation Is being advanced at leaps anc
bounds.
while the condition in Alabama ut
the present time is such as to forbid
the kind of consolidation which is nee
essary to bring results, the situation
could be changed sufficiently to war
rant such steps, provided each require
ment is rigidy met. With the school
consolidation in vogue, needless to say,
Alabama will have taken its greatest
leap in a forward direction"
The above statement, submitted by
State Superintendent of Education
Harry C. Gunnels, contains in a nut
shell the broad principles of one of
the most pretentious and gigantic
questions which have yet come to the
attention of the SOUTH and which were
largely studied by the southern SUI
perintendents of education on their
recent tour through Indiana, Ohio, On
tario and other points Superintendent
CunnelS, who is brimful of tidingS
which he has brought with him from
the tour, is inclined to look upon the
education system in the states touched
by the superintendent as about as
nearly perfect as could be obtained at
the present day. He is of the opinion,
too, that the same system can be put
eatn in = tat q hI1t
compulsory education is the stat
utes, local taxation is auth orized, ana
after thorough supervision is assured.
Mr.. Gunnels states that, In a limited
degree, some of the minor consolida-
ton principles are now being put into
effect in Tuscaloosa and Pickens coun-
ties of this state.
His statement follows: 3
School Consolidation
"You ask me to say something of the
Study Tour recently made by the south
ern state superintendent through parts
of Indiana, Ohio, Ontario L ennsylvania
and Maryland, studying the question of
the consolidation of rural Schools In the
beginning, let me say that this study tour
for the southern superintendents was
planned and given free of cost by the
Southern Education Board for the pur-a
pose of allowing the southern superin-
tendents to study the question of the con-
sol'dation OF rural schools as II mas peen
\ practically worked out IN the states. WIS.,
tied. The trip was no Junkeung TOUR
but the time was spent IN careful STUDY
pf rural senools conoltlohs.
IL has long peen known by Ieadins
teachers in the southern states that, III
the rural communities there are TOO
many dlstricts and TOO many schoois' 100
many one-teacher schoois ana 100 lew
Two ana three-teacher sehools Inc ques-
non mas been dlscusseo at all eoucatiohai
3 gatherings Tor years tiG
~, ynitino, az two three or more small
and weak schools into one school that
shal be large enough in point of MEM
bers to be interesting, and strong enough
In the way of money to afford a COM
Portable building, two or more good teach
ers, and reasonable facilities for work. II
means that outlying territory with few
children shall be combined with a nearby
school that is strong, rather than re-
main organized into a separate but weak
district In its fullest sense it means
The uniting of all the schools of town
bhir or district into one or two so To-
ratod as to be most accessible, though
no. necessarily in the geographical CEN
Ter. Consolidation necessarily carries
with 1t transportation of a portion of the
\ pupils to the school. and this is one of
he problems. 1t is generally accom-
plirhed in covered wagons. artihcially
warmed in winter and made comfortable