The gazette-times. [volume] (Heppner, Or.) 1912-1925, 1914-10-15


0 o.
O In his first article on the @
@ country school, DR.. Schafer took q.
@ stand in favor of eonsolida- d
o tion Of several districts 80 that o
@ the old-time one-room district O
Q school might become the up-to- .
Q date four or five room grade o
@ school. In such schools as the lat o
Q ter, much greater efficiency is o
o likely to be achieved at an ex- p
Q pense not necessarily any great .
@ er, DR.. Schafer maintains. This Q
O article is continuation and 9
@ conclusion.-Editor. @
o o o o o @ 8 o o 8 9 o o o o 8 @
IN THE FIRST PAPER of this series,
/ pointed out the old type of dis
trict school of one room and one
teacher had become defective because
it could no longer do the work required
of a school furnishing the main oppor
tunity for the education of country chill
dren in this new age. / indicated, also,
some of the reasons why it has been
found difficult to get rid of the old
established district in favor of new
district capable of supporting the new
and higher type of school which the
times demand.
In the present paper / shall try to
point out some of the political and in
stitutional changes which we must have,
as it seems to me, before we can hope
to secure generally for our people the
benefits of the new type of rural school
Statewide Movements.
To begin with, we wish to promote a
statewide movement for the organiza-
tion of proper districts, call them con
soidated districts, union districts, rural
life school districts, or what not Now,
very practical, immediate obstacle in
the way of consolidation in most cases
is the question of building new school
houses to take the places Of several ex-
listing school houses which, by the con-
solidation of districts they have served,
are rendered of little or no value.
There is usually an initial expense in
building which under present conditions
means a special tax upon the property
of the district. This fact prevents many
districts, which would otherwise be fav-
orable to consolidation, from taking the
first step toward that desired end. In
Wisconsin the Legislature recently set
aside a small apportionment called the
Consolidation Fund.-" which is used
for the sole purpose of promoting con-
solidaton by aiding new consolidated
districts to build new school houses.
One-half the expense of the building is
born by the state fund, the local dis
trict paying the other half. The result
is to stimulate the movement toward
consolidation.
Organize School Interests.
Secondly, we need an organization of
school interests which shall take hold
Of this problem officially with new
zeal and new authority. Our county
superintendents are generally favorable
to the new type of rural schools; but
they have not the authority nor the op-
portunity of leadership necessary to
bring about rapid changes in the sys-
tenn. In matters like the changing of
school boundaries, the county school
superintendent is obliged to work with
the county commissioners. These men,
excellent citizens in their way, are pri-
marily interested in other county mat
ters. They have been elected usually on
the issue Of good roads, or the issue Of
lower taxes, or some other local issue