The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1918-09-17

1 WIFI IuS DeSlunlHS VI d new SCuooi
year the question as to whether
school should be closed when some
form of contagion invades commun
ity comes up again 1t would be well
il every school board in the country /
would consider the question now and
determine on policy, at least for this
school year, since if the decision is del
llayed until epidemics actually appear
not much judgement will be displayed.
| When a community is racked by
fear of smallpox, and day by day, new
cases appear, and some Of them are
school children, the boards are very
likely to act on impulse or to follow
the path of least resistance.
! Frankly, 1 think majority Of the
people of almost any community would
iapprove a decision to close the schools
when an epidemic was rife, although
the number who would so hold is ma
iterially smaller than it was five years
ago. On the other hand. any policy
carefully thought out in advance and
advertised to the public at the time
of it's adoption would have the APPROX
al OF the community.
| AT the annual meeting of the Ameri.
lean Public Health association, to be
held in Chicago in October, a commit
Itee appointed to consider a policy OF
lschool closure in the face of conta-
g1on will report. 1t is hoped that they
will adopt a standard method and that
I the federal bureau OF education will
promulgate the policy as standard
policy.
] In Chicago closure Of schools as a
means of controlling contagion has
not been the policy for perhaps as
much as twenty years. l remember
that ten years ago we closed a room
or two in one or more schools, but be-
/ fore we were through with it we found
that we had made mistake.
In this country practically nothing
can be said in favor of closing the
schools. In Great Britain there is an
economic consideration that is some
times responsible for closing The
snational government gives grant of
money for the partial support of To-
cal schools. But a school cannot re-
iceive grant unless it opens for
school purposes not fewer than 400
times year. The amount Of the grant
lis dependent upon the average num-
Eber In attendance. However, if the
school is closed on account Of conta-
ESion, the grant is allowed provided
nine openings week during a clos
lure would have brought the total num-
Der of openings up to 400. IT, on the
Iother hand, room or two rooms are
closed or groups of contacts or mem
lbers of a class are excluded, the re-
suit Is decrease OF attendance, and
a diminution of the amount of the
grant. The consequence is that school
boards close the schools on very Sigh.
Iprovocation
In this country closing the schools
means that the salaries of teachers
and most other expenses of the
schools go on. but education and
other advantages Of the schools are
stopped. Unfortunately, too, the
epidemic goes on even worse than if
the school had not been closed I'm
der our system closure is economi
Ically unwise Under the English sys.
tenn 1t is economically, wise, but I'M
wise from the health standpoint.
Therefore, we find DR.. Alfred Green
wood, health officer of Kent, saying
in the Medical officer that the fight
generally comes between the lay mem
Ibers OF the board, who want to close
the schools in order to save the grant,
and the local. health officer who
wants them kept open that he may
better control contagion.
The central board advises that clos
iure should be advised only in cir
Icumstances involving imminent risk
of an epidemic, and not then as a mat
ter of routine. or unless there is
clear prospect of preventing the
spread of infection, such as cannot be
Expected from less comprehensive act
ion. But this general rule permits of
enough Independent action by local
L. hi,
contests, in many of which the health
officer loses.
The particular controversy about
which Dr. Greenwood wrote occurred
lin an epidemic of diphtherfa In Kent.
DIR Greenwood wanted to keep the
school open so that he could culture
Threats and find carriers and cases on
THE first day of the illness. Members
Eof of the board wanted to close them
to save the grant.
The arguments against closing the
schools are these:
l. Most school children have had
the round of conta gious diseases be.
fore they come to school. By the lime
the children get to the upper grades
they are pretty generally immune. At
Is years of age 1926 per cent of the
children have had chicken pox;
at 16, 531 per cent. The percentage
having chicken pox during school per
Tod is 2O.5 For diphtheria the percen-
tages are: At 6, 81 per cent; at 16,
147; during school years, 1926. For
German measles: AT. 6, 6.3; at Is,
l1T.2; during school period, 100. For
humps: At 6, 17.3; at 16, 54.4; dur
ing school period, 81. For. scarlet
fever: At G.. So; 16, 2S.5; during
school period, 22.6. For whooping
; cough; At 6, 55.7; 16, 61.8; during
school period, G.1. For measles: At 6,
49.7; at 16. S2.2; during school period.
32.5. The sum total is: At 6,
1895: at 16, Bib; during
school period, 1923 The averages for
Ill. D -.x.r-