The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1914-09-07
COLOSSAL PROBLEMS
WHEN SCHOOLS OPEN
Lack Of Classroom and Weak.
ened Teaching Staff Harass
Authorities.
DEEPENS OLD TROUBLES
Complaint Already Made Of
Faults-Pupils Return
Next Monday.

When the public schools open wee.
from to-day the school authorities viii
be confronted with the task OF trying TO
1T deficient school organization 10 III.
needs of a growing school population.
The problem Is most serious one in the
opinion OF member OF the Board ot
Education and a satisfactory solution
does not appear at hand.
Tho orea nization IL deficient by reason
OF lack OF school accommodations, ne
cessltating an sbridgnent OF tho 1--WE hour
school day or more rart time classes. and
a lack OF experienced teachers. due to the
detention OF many schooma'ms within
the war zone OF Europe. The absence
OF these trained instructors will put their
classrooms In charge OF inexperienced
teachers and me progress of the pupils
will he retarded This will compllcats
problems with which tho school euthori-
tIss have been graphing. There have
been many complaints from business and
professional men that the public school
graduates employed by them are deficient
in a rudimentary education The errors
committed indicate that promotion IN thu
various grades OF the public schools 10
TO some extent automatic and not based
on a knowledge OF tho subjects taught
In the schools.
An instance Of this appears IN The com
plant OF lawyer who employed
stsnographcr n public school girl grad
uate. Her spelling from dictatlon was
very bad. Her employer had TO 81
through her typewriter letters and legal
papers and correct hcr mistakes.
This took up valuable time and doubled
the expense OF paper, for the copy had 10
be retypewriten. The lawyer was In
quandary as 20 what 20 do. II he Dis
charged her for incompetency he could
not cunscientlously give her a recomnen-
dalton and he did not like TO turn her
adrift.
The defective education obtained in tho
elementary branches Is said 20 be due 70
large classes In which one teacher is n
charge Of forty or nifty pupils and does
not have time to give Individual attention
to any backward pupil. All are pushed
along at the same rate or speed.
Tho matter Is made worse by cutting
down the school day from five hours to
three and "A half hours or TO other frac-
lions OF a school day TO overcome tho
part time evil in some shape. When tho
part time pupils reached more than So
900 a year ago because there were not
seats enough In the schools to accommo-
uate all WIN Iull sCnOOnng tne lenBtn OF
the school day was changed so that tho
schools could take in all OF the children
that applied for admission.
This makeshift ARRANGEMENT left tho
problem Of giving the children OF this city
full school day OF five hours stu un-
solved That five hours a day would give
the best results in fitting the boys and
girls TO earn n livelihood Is the conteu-
tion OF many school experts
City Superintendent Maxwell Is one Of
these. He says that In this city the full
day Is needed because OF the large number
Of children 10 whom English Is "A foreign
language. The full time is required 10
teach the children OF foreign born parents
to write English fuently and correctly.
The teachers as n rule prefer the full
time as more satisfactory results are OBJ
tained IN improving the minds OF the
pupils