The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1917-08-09

FAvoRs MEDICAL INSPECTION
Thinks School Pupils Should be
Properly Watched.

/ FfSPSttg WdtCHCu.
Editor of the Banner: ques-
tion of Medical Inspection is to
come up before the School District in
September, and have been asked to
say word on the subject for the in
formation of the men and women up.
on whom rests the decision to be
reached at that meeting. Every one
is today convinced OF the benefits that
have come from the application of the
laws of sanitation to school buildings
and of the laws of hygiene to school
children With the merits or defects
of our present system of education
have nothing here to say except to
| remark that it seems probable that
the contention is well founded that
efficiency has suffered from the multi
| plicity of studies that now distract
youthful energy into numerous paths
that can only be imperfectly pursued,
as IL education consisted in the ac-
QUESTION of unrelated facts instead of
in mental training, right reasoning
and the faculty Of application. School
Inspection is different matter, when
/ the state asserts its authority by
compulsory education, its tacitly as
sumes the obligation. of safeguarding
the health OF students and giving
them firm physical basis for life
| of effective usefulness
we have no reason TO believe that
| the children of bennington are differ
ent from children elsewhere. In
Pennsylvania out OF 469,199 school
children, 71.5 per cent. were found 10
have some serious defect, either Of
vision, hearing or breathing; or to
| present some diseased condition such
as adenoids, decayed teeth, enlarged
tonsils, tuberculosis, epilepsy or skin
disease. These conditions can be as
a general thing corrected If the chill
| dren are taken in hand at the school
age. These are the backward chill
dren, the truants, and from them
come a little later reinforcements for
| the criminal class. That this fact is
true every body knows. What shall
we say Of system of education that
| indirectly qualities a certain number
| of boys for penal institutions? Now,
| what is eyeryone's business is no
ones business. The teachers have
| their own work to do distinct from
| school inspection. The Health Board
is busy with its own duties. Nor is
| It any disparagement to teachers and
to Health officers to say that they are
not technically qualified TO do this
work of inspection, being unskilled in
its details.
In 1910 a hasty and incomplete ex.
animation of children was made by
| the teachers of the state whose re
| port showed that out Of 10000 chill
| dren in our schools nearly 10000 were
discovered to have defective vision
and hearing alone. The legislature
| then passed law authorizing towns,
| cities and Incorporated districts TO
appoint Medical Inspection provided
| the voters should so decide Several
towns of the state availed themselves
OF this permission, but Bennington
| was not one.
Another benefit OF Medical Inspec-
tion of schools is In the prevention OF
epidemics by the early recognition of
cases of measles. diphtheria, scarlet
fever and whooping coughIt is now
well ascertained that these diseases
spread from the carly cases and that
the infection comes from the secre
tions of the air passages and many
cases of carriers" have been discov
cred among school children and
isolated until the danger of infection
was past.
Naturally, among New England
people, the consideration of expense
Is of Importance. In some cities
Medical Inspectors receive salaries
OF $4,000 to $4,000 a year and school
nurses are employed at their usual
salaries. but in the smaller cities
and towns the pay of the inspector is
very much less. $500 to S4OO year
There Is no town that should expect
the inspector to work for nothing but
II is true also that whatever his salary
may be the value OF his services viii
exceed their cost. For consider one
aspect only OF the case. Il is esti
mated in the report of the superin
tendent of education that the averag,
cost for each pupil each year n
s3O57. This is for the whole stat,
OF Vermont. Every child then tina
fails to be promoted costs the com
munity on extra S3057 year and /
Is estimated that there are In on
schools over fifty scholars who fail /,
be promoted annually. This on
item Of expense comes to over $3.50
yearly and the loss in money is tn
least serious item of all.
The benefits that follow medical in
spootion of school children have bee
proved TO be so great In those con
munities whore inspectors have bee
, appointed that nothing could Undue
these communities to return TO th
old careless, hap.hazard disregard 9
the health of their children. Whe
, one considers that II is largely froI
the ranks Of the defective childre
=, that the so called criminal classes ar
drawn. tho moral results of adequat
4 inspection are seen to tower above a
a pecuniary consideration, even II, as
q not the case, there should he no
!, nancial offset to the money cost of II
spection.
a. S. NJ. Chisholm,
Il
y | laaaa
r nm late 70 ~, ..atEv