The Twin City star. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1910-19??, 1917-07-07
IMPORTANT WORK
FOR EDUCATION
New Light on Conditions 10
Many Southern States.
Need OF BETTER EQUIPMENT

Work-Short School Terms and Poor
Attendance Constitute Big Problem.
In his recent report on educational
facilities for the colored people, which
he recently completed for the federal
bureau of education and the Phelps
Stokes fund, DR.. Thomas Jesse Jones
says:
"Since an efficient school system not
only enrolls the pupils, but also holds
them in school with some degree of
regularity until they have finished the
elementary grades, it is evident that
the low attendance in colored schools
is the first great problem to be solved.
The improvement of attendance re-
quires not only better school plant.
trained teachers and more effective
work, but also a stronger interest In
the school among the masses Of the
colored people that they may place
more emphasis on regularity and pune
tuality in attendance.
'"The multiplication Of small, one
room schools, which has led to the
movement for consolidation In the case
of white children. has not extended to
the colored schools. Colored schools
have never multiplied fast enough to
be too close together, and it is not I'M
common to find pupils who have walk
cd six or seven miles to attend school"
And when the children get to school,
the report continues, they are apt to
find it not only Overcrowded, but also
taught in building not owned by the
public authorities. In Alabama over
60 per cent Of the schools are taught in
such buildings, and in Georgia the con-
ditiOn is even worse.
$50 long as the school is housed in
such a temporary manner" says DR..
Jones, 1t is exceedingly difficult to
arouse the interest Of teachers, pupils
or patrons sufficiently to improve the
plant or add to the value Of the prop
erty." AS for overcrowding. the re-
port mentions a careful survey made
by state supervisors in three typical
counties Of Alabama, where the seat
ing capacity Of the eighty colOred
schools was 3,794, their enrolment
was 1891 and their attendance was
$685. DR.. Jones also emphasizes the
danger of the large average group Of
pupils in the schools and points out
that the average school term in the
south is less than six months, in Ala
bama, Florida, Louisiana and the Car
olinas the term being less than five
months.
AS for the teachers, DR.. Jones says
in part: 1.-The teachers Of colored pub
lie schools occupy a peculiarly impor-
tant position. They are not only the
chief agents in stimulating the inter-
est Of the colored people in the public
schools, but they are also in position
to present the needs Of the colored
schools effectively to the school off,
Gals. Their work, we'll done, will not
only produce better trained men and
women, but will also develop friendly
and helpful relations between the white
and colored people Of the south.
"Such a responsibility should be
placed only on well trained teachers.
Observation, however, shows that the
large majority Of the teachers now in
the schools are utterly incapable Of
any responsibility. The chapter on
Teacher Training in this report makes
plain the fact that the public provision
for training colored teachers is negligi-
BILE. Even the private schools supply
only a small proportion Of the number
needed. The question of teachers sal
aries, white and colored, has received
considerable attention, and some i'm
provement In the salaries Of white
teachers has been made. The wage
scale Of colored teachers is still very
low, however"
The report points out that where the
system is in force Of paying the jailer
so much per capita for boarding the
prisoners the minimum amount fixed
is generally $3.50. With this figure in
mind the comparative table for the
salaries of white and colored teachers
In eight southern states Is Illuminating.
Some of the figures are: Alabama,
white. 1855; colored, $3.50; Georgia,
white, 1919; colored, $40; Kentucky,
white, 1923; colored, $40; North Caro-
lima, white, $197; colored, $119; South
Carolina, white, 1888; colored, $110.
1.-THE inadequate compensation is am
pie explanation Of the poor teaching
found In most of the rural public
schools for cOlored people. 1t is little
wonder that 70 per cent of the teach
ers In the black belt states have less
than six grades Of elementary educa-
ton" Discussing in another part Of
his report the relative interest taken
by the south in its white and colored
public school, DR.. Jones says that
the rapid increase of the appropria-
lions for white schools during the past
few years and especially the multiple.
cation Of white high schools in the
southern states have given rise to the
belief that the appropriations for Ne
gro schools have actually decreased.
While this is probably true in some
he ~ 4.1e ,I,Ay.