The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-02-28
County Teachers Organizations

In Mir Shelton's night school every pa tron in the district has attended and it Is oper to older pupils also.
 County Teachers Organizations A county educational association and d county teachers and pupils reading cir Gle have been in. existence in Shelby county for sometime, but as in many
 other counties they have never been really effective organizations year or
 more ago Miss Shelton was elected to be
 secretary and general manager of hoth That was the beginning of the larger work sine has taken up. She determined to make both organizations of actual bene- Tit to the county in an educational way
 She began by writing to all the teachers
 in the county. visiting them when pos
 sihle, and urging them to attend the associa tion's meetings. to take the course of professional reading, and to secure liz
 hraries for their schools-in short to
 unite in an attempt to raise the educa- tiona. conditions of their county.
 The met tjrgs were held in Columbiana on the first Saturday in each school month
 when the teachers checks were paid In the morning the educational associa- ton held in it's meeting, and in the aft ernoon the teachers were again in ses- sof, for the reading circle. A previously assigned lesson of several chapters was fey4@S eos with four teachers in charge of the recitation, the books being those from the suggested professional course for teachers.
 This arrangement was an improvement over that of many. counties where one or the other of these two organizations does not exist or where the meetings are
 perfunctory. However, it was not alto gethsr successful. Some of the teachers
 had to drive 10 or 20 miles to reach Co., lumbidna, and when certain trains were taken off last fall it was even more in- convenient to attend It meant a hard, tiresomc trip, costing perhaps as much as the teacher made in a day. The result was that the service of these meetings
 WAS crrtailed and 1t seemed that the two orgu rizations could never do effective work to better the county's schools This was realized by the president, Mir. Leftwich, who has worked for several years on these lines, and by all who were interested in the schools of the county. Miss Shelton was unwilling to let the as- sociation and the reading circle be nonen- titles when they could be the means of carrying the schools up to high stand ard, and when there was so much need for them,
 She wrote to Superintendent Feagin, who already knew the circumstances and the difficulties under which they worked, and asked that the teachers be granted the Friday preceding the first Saturday Tor attendance upon the meetings, the day to be counted and paid fer day taught and the teachers attendance required; but that instead of teaching in their own schoo, rooms they assemble at Colum- bana and spend the day in study. This would advance the teachers. improve their methods of teaching. introduce new features by giving the teachers this op- portunity to prepare themselves to carry or extension work 1t would raise school standards and bring about needed unity ] in the schools of the county.
 The request was granted. and this day | each month is set aside for teachers | mee tings and study It is certainly bet 1 ter to spend one day month in study 1 and preparation and 19 in effective teach- | ing than to spend 20 days month in in definite and uninspired teaching.
 County School Improvement
 h school improvement Miss Shelton | work has been equally effective. Last l sun'mef she and Mrs. Niven, county pres ident each took 42 schools in their charge | to organize and promote school improve ment, and Miss Shelton taught her own | schoo. on Saturday, in order to visit oth- CTS on Monday. She and Mrs. Niyen | arranged with the teachers for days to | visit their schools The patrons were in- vited and school Improvement work was presented. The result of this definite l campaign for school improvement was | seen in the improved conditions and the incf eased interest in many schools where | little attention had been given.
 Will Have County Supervision
 Miss Shelton s< school will close late | in March. and she will then give her en- tire attention she has already begun and l has carried on in addition to her school | room teaching.
 She plans to spend the spring and | summer at Florence Normal, where she l will take special training for supervising | and for extension work, and will then be- gin rural school supervision in some part of the state. She is in hopes that it will | be in Shelby county, where she may con- sinue the work she has started.
 She has done practical work, in the two | schools she has taught in Shelby county, 1 in tomato, pig and corn clubs. in moon 1 light schools, in storytelling. play | grounds, reading circle, libraries donles- tic arts, in the promotion of sanitary | and comfortable school buildings, and in | enlisting community interest in schools; | and this is the work she will extend.