The Washington times., 1914-03-07
WOMEN AROUSED BY
SCHOOL CONDITIONS
Charges Made That System
Causes 0verWork and Brings
Too Great Nervous Strain.
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pupils at an age when they need the
undivided attention Of a teacher.
These are assertions made by Mrs.
Fred T. Dubois. wife Of former Senator
Dubois. who served on the District
Committee. and reiterated by Mrs. Giles
Scott Rafter. chairman of the Parent
Teachers Association committee of the
Mothers Congress. which already has
Informally considered this matter. The
subject is to be taken up at an early
meeting.
Conditions complained Of by men,
bers of the Mothers Congress and other
friends Of Washington teachers are not
denied by Superintendent E. H. Thurs
ton. Director Of Primary Instruction
Elizabeth v. Brown. and other school
officials, though they hold forth hope
for a gradual alienation Of the strain
Fourteen teachers in a single division
Ill from overwork. another In Garfield
which threatened to unbalance her
mind, and numerous leaves OF absence,
are the terrific tolls of the recent mven-
tory ordered by DR.. w. NJ. DAVIDSON
former superintendent.
Tragic and pitiful to me is the
spectacle" said Mrs. Dubois. "of these
splendid teachers. material for the
finest school system in this country,
breaking down and wearing away under
the awful strain now imposed upon
them. 1t is unnecessary And to me,
1t is all the more pathetic because l
know so many of them from my long
acquaintance with the schools. Women
who should be as vigorous and healthy
crepit, while they are comparative
ly young"
Burden of System.
While the recent inventory Is one
thing about which the teachers COM
planned bitterly, that now Is over and
may not be repeated. But the system
it. inaugurated. friends Of the schools
point out. results in placing a heavier
burden upon the eighth grade teach
ers. For beside the general supervision
of the building. they must make requi-
sitions for all the teachers under them,
and keep track of supplies. work
formerly assigned to the individual
teachers.
Inquiry at school headquarters dis
closed that Washington is the only
city Of its size where an eighth grade
teacher must teach and supervise the
building as well. In places where there
a non-teaching principal is assigned
TO each building. II. New York and
Eoston. with their many eisht-room
buildings, a group plan Of supervision
principal charge Of two. Or perhaps
three schools in the same vicinity.
Loyalty Forbids Complaint.
No fear Of the loss Of positions, but
their intense loyalty to the schools, Mrs.
Dubois said, kept these teachers from
making any concerted complaint to their
superiors or to the Board of Education.
This statement was borne out in in
terviews with teachers themselves.
Just before leaving the city yesterday
for 4 ten-day stay at Atlantic City for
her health, Miss Carl Garrison, princi-
pal of the Force School, verified Mrs.
Dubois statements, but said she did not
want to go on record as kicker.
The pressure just now is great" said
Miss Garrison, but We have faith in
our superintendent and his assistants to
work out some relief for us soon
Il am not objecting to the inventory.
for starting a new system Of bookkeep-
ing must make more strenuous work.
and / am willing to keep UP the pace
so long as l can stand the strain. But
We look to our superiors for such help
as they can give in the situation, and
they have given their promise to do what
they could under the present arrange
nIent."
Must Go Slowly.
The same soldier-like loyalty, the spirit
teachers who talked on the subject
Many Of them felt that the present sys-
tem was bad. but realized that the Of
ficials must go slowly in making
change because of the hesitancy OF Con-
gress to make concessions to the Dis
trict schools.
Il am not taking up this cause for
the teachers purely on sympathetic
grounds" said Mrs. Dubois This Is
an age OF conservation. Aside from
humanitarian grounds, anyone inter-
ested in the Washington schools should
be interested in conserving these eighth
grade teachers. The fact that they hold
those positions stamps them as the
cream of Washington's teaching force.
Instead of piling work on them, no
teacher we'll could bear, We should be
saving them in every way possible so
that we can longer profit by their years
OF experience. They have been over
the road. and their advice would alone
be worth what we give them
How Children Suffer.
suffer even more. When n child gets
to the eighth grade he has reached the
period of adolesence-that time Of life
where he needs counsel and guidance
and personal attention
with thirty such children to look
after their teacher. under the present
arrangement, Is answering telephone
calls. attending to supplies. and at
tending to many other puerile. routine
tasks that any clerk could look out for.
The condition Of buildings Is another
thing parents hardly realize or there
would be a wide awakening and pro-
test. The incident that came to light
nf nY RI
where only one towel day is pro-
vided. is only one OF many hygfenIc
features of the schools that should be
looked into
During the recent inventory. closed
February I, In which teachers were
compelled to make copious reports on
the physical equipment OF their build
tnl,S Mrs Dubois said tea acherS