Newark post., 1911-08-16
PRELIMINARY REPORT OF COMMITTEE
ON THE COURSES OF STUDY
PART RURAL SCHOOLS.

The COMMITTEE is depely impressed by
the necessity of carefully graded course
of study for our rural and graded scnUo.s.
A great many fohe young people who
are teaching in our schols, especially in
the rural schools, are entirely unprepat-
ed for their work. They go into the
school with no definite or adequate iaea
of their duty to the pupils or their re-
sponsibiity to the community-much
less with any conception as to the rela-
tive values of subjects and the ultimate
aims of the school training. The result
is that this work is hapha gard, indirect
ed, and chaotic in character.
The inexperienced teacher will with
out doubt be able to do better work if
he is told definitely what to do in every
subject in every grade and if he is giy"n
specific suggestions as to how he may
accomplish this work In accord with
this idea the Departments of Education
in most OF the States have issued very
comprehensive courses of study which
are either mandatory or suggestive. The
State Board of Education in this State
has from time to time issued or author
lied courses of study but in no caJs
have they been enforced, or much effort
made to enforce them. These courses
too were too vague in form, and not COM
plete enough in detail, and further made
no distinction between the rural and the
town schools. In view of these facts it
is the opinion of this committee that 4
course of study should be prepared at
once for our rural and graded schools
and presents the following preliminary
report:
DISTINCTION BETWEEN RURAL AND
GRADED SCHOOLS.
The policy of the schools in Delawa.e
as in other States has been to prescribe
practically the same work for the rul al
schools as for the town schools. The
result has been that the pupils in the
rural districts leave scholo much earlier
than they do in the towns. While there
are other factors which enter into TINS
problem, the main cause is the fact that
the courses have been shaped so as to
meet the needs Of the town pupil and
have disregarded the peculiar needs of
the rural boy and girl. The latter na.-
urally do not have the same incentive to
remain in school and leave for the ac-
tual work of the farm.
1t is the opinion of this comma L. .e
therefore:
That there should be separate
courses of study for rural and urban
districts, Identical in fundamentals,
but dtverging in what may be desig-
mated as vocational subjects.
LIMITING THE GRADES OF THE RJ-
RAL SCHOOL.
There is widely spread and not unjust
criticism Of our schools on the ground
that the work in fundamental subjects
is not we'll done. Business men COM
plain that the schools do not even teach
the boys to read, write and cipher well.
The overerowding of the curri uMm the
great number of classes, the lack of CO.
operation of the home, the absence OF
Intelligent and adequate supervision, and
other reasons, have been advanced as
the cause for the lack of thorough work.
1t IS the sense of this committee that
In our State the unsatisfactory work af
the rural schools has been due to these
three causes:
ta) The lack of the graded course of
study
(b) The absence of close sup arvision.
lc) The large number of classes in the
hands of an inexperienced or an incom-
petent teacher.
In various States the work of the
rural school has been limited to num-
her of grades usually eight but in some
States the number is smaller. With us
there has been no limit prescribed by
law or by the STATE Board of Education
tho there is tacit understanding the
work shall not be carried beyond the
eighth grade. Notwithst sta nding this there
are schools in which the teacher is
spending valuable time giving a few
pupils smattering of algebra. latin, or
other academic sub ,ect. There are many
schools in which the lower grades re-
-ceive the minimum of the time and the
upper classes the maximum. When we
reali that the lower grades contain on
Ihe average tWo-thirds or three -fourths
of the school enrolment, the Injustice
OF this division of the time becomes
more apparent.
While the conditions at present Qarge-
ly the lack of convenient graded scho
accommodations under the law do not
make 1t possible for the State Board of
Education to compel the rural schools
to limit their work to any number of
grades less than eight, it is the opinion
OF this committee that:
The schools of the rural districts
snail devote at least twoGhirds of
.thelr time to the first six grades of
the course to be prescribed, and shall
encourage pupils in the grades above
the sixth to go to the nearest grad
ed school where they may receive
more time and more detailed instruc-
lion, No teacher in an ungraded
school should be allowed to teach
any subject not in the prescribed
course, unless at times other than
the school sessions.
SUBJECTS IN COURSE OF STUDY FOR
RURAL SCHOOLS.
ta) A great deal of time is wasted on
certain of the subjects commonly taught
IN the rural school. The cause of the
waste is not hard to find for it lies in
variably in the lack of definitely plan
ned scheme of the work in the subject
TO be covered and in the careless me-