Catoctin clarion. [volume] (Mechanicstown, Md.) 1871-1940, 1913-01-09
THURSDAY, JANUARY Q, 1913.
SCHOOL YEARS SHORT.
Russell Sage Foundation Places
MARYLAND seth in Efficiency.

Maryland seth in Efficiency.
New York, Jan. 6-The results of
the latest study conducted by the
Russell Sage Foundation were made
public for the first time in Bulletin
124 of the foundations division OF
education, under the title "A Com
parative Study of State School Sys-
TENS in the Forty eight States"
According to this report, the State
school system of Maryland takes Both
place in general efficiency among the
systems of the AZ States of the Union.
Some of the disclosures made in the
report are of striking significance.
Rhode Island has the longest school
year of any State-l93 days-but it
these 1913 days of scho, ling We're d.
vided equally among the children OF
school age in the State the result
would be ll6 days Of schooling each.
The report terms this the effective
school year." and compares the IS
States on that basis. The results of
this comparison show that Maryland
provides - days of schooling for
every child Of school age.
I'm nearly quarter Of tie States
the effective school year is less than
three months. As nation, the
United States has shorter school
day, a shorter school week and a
shorter school year than any other
highly civilized country in the world.
American expenditures for public
education have more than doubled in
the last 10 years. Today the people
ii the United States spend nearly
half IA billion dollars a year on their
public schools. The expenditure per
child of school age ranges all the way
from SO in South Carolina to So in
Washington.
In Mississippi the average invest
ment per child in school building and
property is 81, while in Massachu-
sets it is Sll5.
In current expenditure per child
of school age this State ranks thirty
fifth place among the As States, while
in the average value of school pro
perry the standing is thirty-ninth, 4
significant fact in connection with
this expenditure of school property
is that as nation the United States
allows public schools to burn down
mt the rate of more than one for every
school day in the year.
Many States, through lack of COM
pulsory attendance laws, or through
their non-enforctment, waste much
Of the money that they expcnd ON
their schools. Some States have long
school years and short attendance
years. The per cent. of attendance
ranges from about 60 in Maryland
and Mississippi to more than so in
Oregon and Massachusetts.
Elm North Carolina, New Mexico,
Arkansas and Alabama the attend
ance period is so short that the aver
age pupil would need about y years
to complete an elementary course of
eight years of nine full school months
each.
Ii he were compelled to live up to
this standard, he might enter school
at the age of 5 years and not get his
eighth grade certificate until he was
- years old.
In Is of the As States the average
annual wage of public school teachers
amounts to less than 81 a day. In
Just five States is it more than So a
day. The highest average salary paid
in the United States is 1913 in Cali
fornia, and the lowest is $500 in
North Carolina. The rank of this
State is eighteenth among the As,
with an average annual salary of S5l5
per teacher.
According to this study, the aver
age annual wage of carpenters in The
United States is about 1902, of coal
miners $500, of factory workers $3.50,
of common laborers S513 and of
teachers $465.
Throughout the Southern States
thousands of rural teachers earn less
than $50 n year. In one New Eng
land State hundreds of teachers earn
less than Sc a week. In one county
in Central Atlantic State the aver.
age for all teachers is 1929 year