The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1916-09-27

TWO-SESS|ON PLAN
FOR HIGH SCHOOL
Prudential Committee Votes
to Adopt Principals
Recommendation
GOES INTO EFFECT
FRIDAY MORNING

AeGter TO Parents Gives Reasons in De-
tail Loss of Time Because of De
lay in Opening Fall Term Not to Be
Made Up.
/ In meeting of the prudential commit
tee of the incorporated school district
last evening an important change in
the schedule of the Brattleboro high
school was adopted on the rccommenda-
ton of the principal, L. B. Smith, to go
into effect Friday morning OF this week.
In brief the change is to have the morning
session open at s O'Clock and close at
Il III and to have an afternoon session be-
ginning at l20 and closing at 80 This
mot only will give an added number Of
lperiods, but also will enable the students
to have supervised study in school and
will require less study at home. 1t is like
ly that the great majority OF parents will
approve the change, for various reasons
Another important action taken by the
committee was to vote not to have the
schools make up the time lost by the post
ponement of the opening of the fall term
of school by reason of the precaution
against infantile paralysis There will be
. no Saturday sessions and no curtalment
OF vacations The committee took this ac-
, tion under a statute which provides what
may be done in such an emergency as has
arisen here.
Principal Smith has prepared letter to
be sent to parents tomorrow explaining in
detail the reasons for the new high school
schedule. 1t is as follows;
To the Parents of Pupils in the Brat
tleboro High School
4 With the opening of school Sept. IS
one of the first problems to be met
was the making of a program of stud
!. les. A temporary schedule has been
used from day to day; but each day the
conflicts have increased. A sehed
ule could be arranged if more teacher.
were added TO the high school faculty
more teachers would require moro
rooms and at the present time every
5 room in the building from cellar to at
& tie is used and many of them crowded
o to their capacity.
5 After several conferences with the
e teachers and numerous experiments il
/ schedulema king, it seems practically
d impossible to make a program Will
i only six periods for the school day
d Some of the reasons for this are
larger entering class, the addition o
IS new subjects, and free election O
z studies without close regard to rigi
Il courses. No one desires to turn bacl
o any of the entering class-they meal
:, so much to the school and to tn
"a town; or to drop out any of the com
mercial, domestic science, or manua
Il training subjects-all new within tn
2 last few years; and with the additio
e of these new subjects, required sui!
n jects have grown fewer and electiy
Il subjects more numerous.
"a A seyen-period day from SO to
clock makes the study and recitG
tion periods too short.
The only alternative seems to
seven longer periods. To arrange sue
Q O schedule it seems better to plan fo
. both a morning and afternoon session
A two session schedule was presente
to the prudential committee of III
IN district last evening and they vote
to give the new plan fair trial.
A letter of this kind can t posSibl
contain all the arguments for an
o. against the one session or two sesSio
in system, but some of the reasons fl
~ trying out the new scheme are thesI
he The periods both for study and Ieciti
as tion are increased to 45 minutes eaci
at this adds 80 minutes to the time pupi
av are in school, consequently more tin
for study at school can be provide
ma for and better work can be done
iss the teachers in recitation; therc wi
,s be greater opportunity for the pupi
or to get help from the teachers, all pa
ents win know where their boys or
girls are for the greater part of Il
afternoon; the noon recess is so q
ranged that pupils will have time
'ii' 90 home for the midday meal WI
the family; (the domestic science d
.be partment will provide cocoa, hot sou
Of etc, at cost, if there is any demal
mt for a hot luncheon for those childr
ra who come from distance).
nv Undoubtedly the one session plan q
ar peals to both teachers and pupils, b
is the only ones who may be serious
SITS. handicapped by the double session q
the those boys and girls who are work.
c /; their way through high school. 7
H., number this year working out
school hours is smaller than ever, a
ore- some Individual adjustments in tn
ter studies will take care of them.
by The new schedule calls for tn
In hours:
ing School begins at clock, but fre
,ers men are not required to come till 8.
: of There are five fortyfve minute perit
alch in the forenoon with ten-minute
ack- cess School will close for the noon
scar cess at 1910 and the afternoon sess
Ar will begin at 1.20. The second sess
will have two forty-fiye minute peric
and school will close, for those VIII
feet work for the day is satisfactorily ct
pleted. at 250, The afternoon sess