Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1916-01-05
Letters From the People
The Intent and Working of the New Ed.
ucationai Law.

! he Intent and Working OF the New Ed
ucationai Law.
Mr. Editor:
There seems to be considerable mis-
understanding in some sections rela-
tive to the intent and working Of the
new educational bill. passed by the
last assembly. so would offer the
following explanation, in the hope that
misunderstanding may be cleared away
upon the part of some, who may be
readers of the Monitor. The intent of
the new law is to equalize opportunity
AS regards education. throughout the
state Heretofore, the rural schools
have been Neglected and the country
boys and girls have hardly had a
SOU re deal. City school systems have
been built no to a remarkable degree of
efficiency, but in most cases, the rural
schools Jagged behind, and were the
most inefficient of all. The idea of II e
new law is to extend aid in eve Y
vsv possible tn the rural towns, and
Lnu5 neln Them TO u'iJ lp the
schools to high standard of efficiency.
That the law is sound and deserves
'pport is clearly shown by the follow
ing ways in which the law is helping
the rural communities along education
al lines. For one thing. the law pro-
vides facilities for training teachers
and makes it possible for every rural
school to have te acber with at least
some training 1t aids the towns in
paying trained teachers Many teach
ers are now receiving as high as four
teen dollars per week for teaching a
rural school where the actual cost to
the town is but ten d,llars per week.
The town pays the teacher and the
state rebate to the town, according to
the training and experience of the
teacher. The rebate is all the way from
two to four dollars per week for
trained OR expe rienced teachers
| Therefore, each and every rural school
can have trained teacher at a reason
! able cost to the taxpayers of the town
as the state pays part Of the bill
/ For this reason competent teachers can
| be retained in the country districts,
where before, they were drawn to the
cities and larger villages because of
the greater pay offered No single
greater help could be extended to- the
country schools. for the teacher is the
school, and a trained and competent
teacher in every country school is a
good educational sllgan.
The law now aids in the matter of
transportation Of pupils Every pupil
residing more Than one and one half
miles from school is entitled TO convey
ance to school, and the states will pay
at least part of the bill. Where such
transportation can be had at reason
able cost, the state paws practically all
the charges This insures attendance
at school for even the most remote.
pupils and this provision OF the law
reaches far back into the rural settle
ments and helps.
The law brings all the state under
expert supervision of its schools,
wholly at state pay. The present plan
of supervision in vogue in this state
can be shown to be superior to that in
use in any other section of the country
1t certainly is superior to the old
town system and it is better than the
Western county system, for it insures
/ close supervision. where the former
dos not This svs. EN- gives even the
most remote rural school the aid of a
trained and competent supervisor and
thus brings to each school. in large
measure. one of the greatest aids to
modern school work
Where towns do not maintain high
school of their own the state pays 4
liberal share of the tuition of the
pupils Of such towns, when the pupils
are sent to other towns for their high
school work. This makes it possible
) for many hnys and giils to get high
school education. where otherwise it
would be impossible for them to do so
The state ai3s literally in the raan-
tenance OF vocational work in Junior
and senior high schools. The thorough
Decentralization f educational work is
tie watch word of the times in matters
educational, and aids materially along
this line.
The state aids literally in the main
tenance of state school of agriculture
and helps TO provide an opportunitv 70,
everv boy who has tn ambition to d.
so, to obtain a thoroughly PRACTICAL ano
helpful agricultural education.
The new Jaw retains an excellent
feature Of the old law whereby rura
towns with small grand lists are aidec
? in repairing schoo! BUILDINGS anC
} hr ngirg them up TO modern standard:
in comfort and efficiency. There is ne
longer any excuse or justification fol
uncomfortable or unSanitary rura
S hoOl buildings These buildings car
v b. remodeled and made sanitary an(
ire state will pay liberal share Of
the bill Every dollar spent by 8;
add above sc enty per cent of the CRANE
list of the town is but tti,ty-cen
dollar. for the state pays the othe1
seventy Gems. The only exp! anatior
r as to why soma towns do not take
a vantage of this help must lie in the
f ct that they Go not wish to contrib
4 ute even thirty cents on the doJls
towards ringing the buildings up t.
modern requirements Possibly some
may not know of Ire liberal provision
J of the law on this score.
: The new educational law is helpful t.
E rural towns in every way, as it wa
I designed to he. 1t is worthy of sup
| port and should be continued. /
arouses hostility in some quarters TO-
: it is not always IN }erstood, and since
I it requires closer attention to duty
; ar d more business like attitude upor
r the part Of some officials, IT may me-