Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1914-11-28
RURAL TEACHERS
ARE R: NOT I.| TRAINED ! [
At Least 100000 Boys and Girls
in One. and Two-Room
Schoolhouses.
ILLITERAcY AVERAGE HIGH
Strong Resolutions Adopted by
Educators in Closing Great
Annual c Conference.

u.
At least 100000 BOYS and girls are
being educated--lf the word can be
used-in one ana tYo-room school
houses in Virginia. DECLARED j. II" Bin
ford, ,executiv secretary -ofith Co
Operative ) Education. Association ;or
Conference, last might, inntktttese schools
or g. not as ffiGi eii aas < the one-rnoin
school lof SthirtY. years ago, He said
that PIE sent Of, the; rural ties hsrs
are without tpfb bf essional 5trainjng, that
90 per cent of them are in communities
them are teaching oE..theI first time;
Though he was hopeful Of the. outlook,
Professor Bjnfords practically brought
mn indictment against. the method of
teaching children, In the rural com
nunities, and considered It aiprime
matter, OF Importance that the State
should better. prepare Its young ipeo-
pie against the days that they are TO
become citizens and voters. o. THE Com
monwenlth. - ,a.Ttt, IN 10.
MRS. MUNFORD DISCUSSES
PRESSING PROBLEMS
Mrs. B, B. Munford, president of the
association. delivered Epher{ annual re-
port ON the Pressing educational
Problems In Virginia" and a stirring
address on THE CitiEens' Part-in Pub
lie Educatfonn was delivered, by Attor-
ney-General John Garland Pollard.
Professor Binfordi spoke on CLOSER
Supervision. Of Country scho9ls,n and
suggested that the way of Improve
ment lay, in building better; schools, In
having longer school terms and In hav-
Ing teachers who have been trained for
one Of the greatest and s4most sacred
OF all the professions. Further I'm
provement would be gained:&by having
the schools properly supervised by
highly trained men and woman
In making her rSrepoTt. Mrs. Munford
said that the, object OF, the association
was to have better primary schools
better high schools, better trained
teachers. more and Improved equipment
and the organizatlo OF citizens educa-
tional associations.
MANY NEW BlIII.DINGs
HAVE BEEN ERECTED
She said that 253 new buildings had
been erected 1S3 had been furnished
with improved equipment. that fifteen
last year, three agricultural clubs had
been formed. forty-one libraries had
heen established. and that s65, 900 shnd
been raised for the work. we have
tried she said. TO Interest the peo-
pie In schools. roads and farms" The
and has rnised q total OF S4s,563. .66.
Mrs. Munford spoke OF the work OF
The association with mucn vigor and
enthusiasm. and was repea tedly ap-
plnudcd as she referred Ito the great
Improvement which +the association
has effected
Superintendent f. G.. Glass, OF
Lynchburg. had been called home. and
did not appear to talk on compulsory
education. 1t was referred Ito and
strongly rccommended.s however, by
Attorney Pollard, who spoke
on The Citizens Part In Education"
That cooperation. is. greatly needed,
Mr.. Pollard said, is shown by the fact
thar there are $1,000 illiterate white
children in the state, and moro than
100 OO0' illitcrate, colored people. The
state Is spending about Si.000,00O In
school work every year, he said, hut
that is Insufficient. as Is shown by tile
the report of the Russell Sage Foun-
dation. which places Virginia in the
forty -lirst position in educational work
TWENTIEIIt IN WEsLTH,
FORTY-FIHS'f IN SDUCATION
whether you believe that not
said Mr.. Pollard, "the- fact remains
tha; we are far down In rle list THE
state is twentieth In wealth and pop
nlation. twenty SECOND in mnnufactur-
ins, and twenty-siXth In agriculture,
hut VIC are far behind In educatfon
We cannot plead poverty ms we have
done In tile past. We ca mot Splead that
the loss of WAS, Is now preventing us
from doing our fun l3duty towards the
generations now growing up we
stand high In our material resources,
but Virginia rsbelieye., spends only 81
n year upon each Of her children,
Which, Is fnr behind what some other
States spend for theirs. ~ Z ;sfa
y do not believe In tho aristocracy
OF blood. 4 do. not belieye In the
nrlatocracy Of wealth. I. do not helieye
In the atistocracy 5of$ position. J. I.ibe-!
Continued on THIRD l'agc!) 4 : !: