The Birmingham age-herald., 1910-09-16
GUNNEL[S TALKS
 AT THE INSTITUTE Traces Progress of Education
 in Alabama STRIDES SINCE 1898 Takes Exception To Statements That State School system Is in Ordi- nary Politics and Chnl-
 lenges Them
STRIDES
NICE 1898

|
 He spoke with pride of the advance
 since 1893 when there was hardly a de-
 cent rural school house in the state
 and in closing made an appeal for fur | ther progress, urging the necessity for
 local taxation and better supervision.
 After telling of the vicissitudes through which the former state super
 intendents came and paying tributes to l them for their work he took up the
 work of recent years, saying. among | other things:
 What has been accomplished in the last four years will speak for itself.
 At any rate, let us hope that there l has been no retrogression. that the school system Is In a far better con dition and the outlook for the future brighter. Let me illustrate what~ has been accomplished since the beginning of what is called educational renais- sance by quoting a few figures taken from the records in the department or education. I do not give these fig ures year by year but take them up at various times simply to show that all along the line there has been prog
 ress. In 1898 the per capita appor- tionment on the children in the state between the ages of and 21 was "A
 cents. The apportionment that year was made on a census of 613S12 chill
 dren. The school fund was s595,132.3s. The basis of apportionment Is the gen. eral fund only certified to the depart ment by the state auditor. The amount referred to as school fund Is the
 amount available for school purposes, including poll tax, 1-mill tax and funds from all other sources. The enrolment
 in the public schools was 319,214. There was progress from 1898 to 1900 when the per capita was $1.24, the enroll
 ment 344,42 the sch ool fund s947,- 5SO.91. The apportionment was made on census of 633.446. Let me say that for every year there has been shown an increase in the school fund.- in the enrolment and in the per cap ita. In 1909 the per capita was s2.61
 made on a basis of 6S7,39S children.
 The vailable school fund for that year
 was s2,e45,141.57 against s5s5,732.3S Of 1898. The length of the term of white schools in 1898 was 6S days, of negro schools 62 days, and this at a time when the. public school fund supple mented tuition fees. The number of days taught for white children in 1909
 was 12s and sS for negroes, with no tuition fees. The enrolment in 1898 was 319.214, in 1909 5,226. It can be readily seen that along all material lines there was educational progress
 during these years. The per capital, the enrollment, the length of term, the census, the standard of our teaching force, all show a decided and a mar vicious increase in the interest for our public schools. It might be well to note that some of the dreams of Dr. Turner Major Harris, Dr. Abercrombie and Dr. Hill became facts during thu last four years. The present legisla-
 ture In it's wisdom has opened the gateway to every boy and girl in Ala bama who desires to procure edu- cation. I have given you the situation of 1898; let me give 1t to you as it stands now and may you be the judge as to whether progress has been made and as to whether the forces leading
 
 have half way done their duty.
 Tn 1898 thene was hardly a decent rural school house in the state. Even
 under the inspiring work of the edu- cational leaders only few were built. In 1907 the rular school house law was passed Since then 557 rural sch ool houses constructed after plans fur
 nished by the department of education have been built on two-acre plots and the property deeded in fee simple. to the state. Since then 311 rural school
 houses have been repaired and put in
 excellent and habitable condition. State
 aid for the building of school houses
 does not go to incorporated towns but Is purely a rural fund, and the figures
 show that since 1907 the people of Alabama have of their own accord and from their own pockets spent at least
 $450,000 for repairing and erecting S69 school houses in the state.
 "The last legislature provided for the establishment of county high schools in each county of the state where, there was Fnot already state schdoi. Thirty-three county high schools are now in opera ton. the buildings being paid for by local communities on And consisting of at least five acres The entire property is deeded to the state. The value of this property Is estimated at half million dollars. The attendance in the county high schoels this year will amount to
 something over three thousand.
 An appropriation was made by the present legislature to aid in the hold ing of teachers institutes in each con- gressonal district in the state for at least two weeks. These institutes have been held and in every case the people have of their own accord raised money to supplement the amount paid by, the state sufficiently to procure the very best institute material. In 1898 presume not more than one hundred teachers in the state did summer work in order to better prepare themselves for the duty they had in hand. Gradually, through the inter- vening years, teachers have come to real ize that they must keep up with the pro- ceedings and 1t Is safe to estimate that this year more than 2,50O white teachers have done summer work. Tn 1898, almost any teacher holding a certificate could procure a position. At present the de- mand for teachers calls, and calls loudly, for teachers holding first-grade certifi- cates The people of the. country are realizing that their children are entitled to the very best teachers that can be pro- vded and the third-grade teacher is hay ing a hard road to travel.
 Tt has been said that the reports from the department of education give no per-
 centages Allow me to quote from the
 last annual report from the department
 of education. page 3. The comparisons
 given in that report are between the year
 covered by 1t, 19OS-O9. and the year pre-
 ceding it. This report shows that the enrolment of white children increased
 four and three -ffths per cent, for negro
 children four and one-half per cent, while