Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1914-11-14
MONEY FOR THE RURAL
SCHOOLS.

One farmer with a cheap automo-
bile has more invested in that one
piece of mechanism than the average
rural community as a whole has in its
school plant; and the owner of the
auto frequently spends as much en- the
upkeep of his one car as the commu.
nifty spends for the total maintenance
OF the school, including the teachers
salary. This is one of a number of
significant comparisons brought out
by w. F. FeaSin, state superintendent
of education for Alabama, in a survey
reported to the United States bureau
OF education.
To illustrate further the plight of
the schools, superintendent Feagin
shows a dilapidated rural school in
contrast with the handsomely con-
structed jail in the same county, cost
ing several thousand dollars This
jail" he says, has sanitary drinking
fountains, shower baths, clean floors.
plenty of light, good ventilation, and
is otherwise attractive. Could "a per-
son from the district in which this
school is located be blamed for pre-
ferring the jail?"
Naturally country schools make lit
tie appeal either to pupils or teachers,
under existing conditions. Pupils
drop out and teachers move. Out of
5.423 pupils entering the first grade
in the schools inspected in the Ala
bama survey only so completed the
work of the fourth year of the high
school. OF the teachers, 40 per cent
are holding their present positions for
the first time. OF the remainder IS
per cent are teaching their second
session in their first school, and only
10 per cent have stayed more than
two years in the same place.
The Alabama survey was an at
tempt TO provide a definite background
on facts on which TO base a campaign
for improvement The controlling
purpose Of the investigation was not
to establish an opinion or theory. but
to find out the truth The survey was
not made by outside specialists i'm
ported for the occasion, but by regu-
lar officials of the state education de-
partment, who selected three typical
and personally visited the
schools. The results will be used for
definite improvement in the schools of
the state
THE conditions found are by no
means peculiar to Alabama" declares |
DR.. Claxton, United States commits |
sioner OF education. They can be du- !
0licated anywhere. In Tennessee Q 1
lew yS4rs ago, for Instance, inquiry I
revealed that in several counties the /
,ost of the county jail was greater 1
han the total cost of all the school /
houses in the county, and In more than
ialf the counties of the state the cost
II courthouse and Jail together was
greater than that of all the school
Houses, while in a majority of the
Counties the average annual salary of
he teacher was less than the cost OF
eeding a prisoner in Jail.
This Alabama survey is conspicu-
us because IL is a carefully drawn
icture of the traditional public indif-
erence to the problem OF adequate
Import for schools in rural communi-
les. We still spend much more for
1xuries-even harmful luxuries-than
,e do for education. Until a commn-
ity spends at least as much for edu-
alton as IL does for any one OF the
Material necessities OF life-food cloth
ng and shelter-it is not doing its full
uty." |!