Milford chronicle., 1915-04-16

THERE is now no law which gives
authority for the Teachers Institutes to
be held jointly at Dover or at any other
place in Delaware. For this reason the
County Superintendents will be COM
PEELED to hold the County Teachers
Institutes next November at some place
in each of the three counties. The new
Revised Code omitted the amendment to
the school laws which would permit this
to be done, and to hold the joint
institute as planned by the State Board
of Education at Dover, would be clearly
illegal, and we take it that that body
certainly does not desire to transgress
the laws. Then again, the institutes
reach the people in greater numbers by
holding three institutes instead of one
point, and where only the teachers
themselves can get to attend. And
again, the evening entertainments, which
are the source of profit for the Super
intendents, will help to piece out their
salaries The legislature refused to in
crease their individual salaries from
twelve to fifteen hundred dollars per
year, and at the same time did increase
the Commissioner of Education, from
eighteen hundred to three thousand
dollars per year. These institutes are
enjoyed by the people of all walks of
society, and they certainly have in
creased the general interest in the
schools, and created desire for modern
systems and that is exactly what the
State Board of Education has been striv-
ing for; so, it was a matter for surprise
when we saw last year the county in
stitutes abandoned and the state institute
held at Dover. It certainly is a step
backwards in education of the public,
and we believe that the failure to secure
more advanced legislation was the direct
result of this apparently backward move
in keeping the people interested in pub
lie school education.
The bulletins published by the State
Commissioner are interesting to those
who have lively interest, but are of no
earthly use to the very people it is de- |
sirable to reach. Re-establish the |
county teachers institutes, and get |
Strengthened out again. The people are
willing to be shown, but no one man
can accomplish the job; it requires
concert of work from educators, the
newspapers and the people themselves,
and the only way to accomplish this is
to take the people into confidence. The
recent attempt to have progressive legis-
lation enacted for public schools and the
public school system, is an object lesson
in this The only law really effective. is
the raise of salary to three thousand dol
lars for the Commissioner of Education
and the contingent fund for the expenses
of the County Superintendents; the
matter of rural consolidation was cas-
rated very effectually, and the balance
of the matters affected by the proposed
law are of no material interest to the
schools. With the above exception
school legislation during the past session
of the legislature was of no benefit.
When another opportunity to get legis-
lation for the schools comes round, we
hope to take an active part and see if
something really practical can not be
evolved and presented to the legislature
to consider. By holding the teachers
institutes in the various counties the
general interest il the schools will be
and we will welcome them as
a return to the real benefits Of public
school education.