The daily star-mirror. (Moscow, Idaho) 1911-1939, 1915-09-18


an issue of $4,000 due in 10 years
and further issue of $4,000 due in
10 years. To retire these bonds wher
they become due it will be necessary
to raise over and above the necessary
interest to be paid thereon, approx
mately $500 per year.
From the above it is quite appar-
ent that the time is not far distant
when this district, as now CONSTITUTE
ed, will be unable to finance itself
New sources of income will have to be
found or it will be necessary for the
district to stop trying to meet the
requirements of what educators term
years past they have been gradually
adding to and increasing the educa-
| ton necessary for graduation from
our schools. The Moscow school dis
| trict has reached the limit of it's re-
sources in following the path set by
the educators. Of the courses requis-
tie for graduation and our attendance
increases in the Same proportion that
it has in the past few years, l pre-
dict that this school district will be
unable to meet its obligations.
While this unfavorable condition is
two or three years ahead, and will
be the worry of the members of the
school board at that time, neverthe-
less, | believe it is our duty to take
cognizance of these facts, and do what
we can to help solve this serious
problem which we can anticipate for
the district.
We should start at once to consider
whether or not this district will con-
tinue to follow the educators, and let
them say what we shall provide in
the way of education, or whether or
not We will break away from the
standards set by them and general
practice in other communities, and
make an endeavor to eliminate from
our school system some of the sub
iects which are now considered to be
of little practical value to the large
majority of the students attending
our schools; whether or not we shall
make an endeavor to provide more
practical training which will come
nearer fitting our students for the
practical problem of life than the
course that we now offer, and dimin-
ish the time that it requires us to
turn out our finished products in the
way of graduates, by eliminating
some of the courses now offered, and
permitting our students to enter the
biggest of all colleges-practical life
at an earlier age.
Our university and our other
schools, under the jurisdiction of the
state board OF education, are very
largely responsible for the standards
of measurements set, for measuring
the quality of our high school. Their
entrance requirements determine very
largely what is necessary for us to
offer to our students. In the past we
have been governed to a very cons1d-
cradle extent by the requirements that
they have made; thus we provide
course of study and compel all of our
students to take the course provided,
irrespective of the fact or whether or
not they propose to enter the universe
ty. Of all the students that enter our
high school, probably not to exceed
40 per cent thereof ever enter the
university. Thus we are training the
larger percentage Of our children to
no end, and forcing them to acquire
large amount Of knowledge which
can and will be of no service to them,
while there are unlimited amounts of
knowledge which could and would be
of great service to them, provided it
was offered. If a census was taken
of the graduates from our high school
last June, I believe it would show that
80 per cent thereof were in no way
using any of the knowledge which
they have acquired from their high
school courses, and that practically
the same percentage of them were
handling picks, shovels, pitch forks,
and implements of like character,
Ind doing it in much poorer way
han some of their associates who had |
never entered a high school. Thus |
he question very prominently before |
is is, can We not cut down the eX
,ense of our school system, give our
tudents knowledge of a character
which will be of service to them and
nore nearly fit them to meet the prob
ems of life, decrease the time and ex-
ense on the part of the students and
he expense to the parent in the main
enance of the children in school by
taking some very radical changes in
ur curriculum and our requirements
Dr. graduation.
FIJI e,1br iffnd l.