The Pleasantville press. (Pleasantville, N.J.) 1912-1929, 1922-02-18
The School Question.


Editors Pleasantville PRESS
Much has been said about building
a new grammar school to accommo-
date the overflow in School No. /, but
surely we want the best possible eff
cheney in our schools. All cities
which have efficient school systems
have buildings of thirty or more
rooms so that there may be three OF
more sections of each grade.
In these days of progress and eff.
cheney, il would be absurd to dispense
with Il large factories (where every
thing is SO ~systematized that articles
are manufactured for only a small per
cent. of what they would cost by old
methodist, and go back to the days
of our fathers when articles were
made by hand in work shops having
only five or ten employees. 1t Is
equally absurd to build small schools,
because education has advanced just
as rapidly as our manufacturing in
terests and school efficiency is only
obtained by the large schools. Schools
must have three or more sections of
a grade for efficiency in education.
Psychology has taught our teachers
TO divide the pupils into three Sec
tons for each grade. Each of these
sections of the same grade is taught
by methods that are known to be the
very best for that particular type of
mind. In all city schools there are A,
B and C sections of the same grade.
No section is higher In intelligence
than another, but each section has it's
particular method of learning. In
small schools where these three sec
tons must necessarily be mixed in
n room because of numbers, the
teacher is seriously handicapped in
trying to use methods that will appeal
to all three types of pupils which
causes a terrible loss of time, and.
unfortunately, results in the retarda-
ton of pupils who would have passed
had they been properly divided into
the A, B and C sections.
1t is a well-known fact that physi-
clans and health authorities agree
that our children, and ever adults, do
not walk enough. Walking is known
to be one of the very best forms of
exercise. All progressive citizens and
parents, OF course. will agree that it
.bisz better 10 have their children3sNel
two a. fthree. squares more TO s61t6o1
jik4lItzso u0luS lily dIs fhapicu- w w
q N 6ffjdIenf scn0cr. and cKat the
exercise thereby obtained is highly
beneficial and stimulating.
School No. l and the High School
are crowded. At present more than
four hundred and fifty pupils are at
tending School No. l on part time.
To relieve this condition at No. l. an
addition of at least eight rooms
should be built on the present school
grounds. The overflow in the High
School could be easily taken cart of
in the same way.
The fact that small schools are
much more expensive to operate is a
well-established fact. There are many
reasons for this. A licensed engineer
must De in charge of the heating
plant. An addition to each the High
School and School No. l would only
require larger boilers with ineXperi-
enced help TO assist the present engi-
neers in sweeping. Another small
school would require the services of
a principal at its head while this I'M
necessary expense could be done away
with if an addition is built at School
No. /. The size of classes cannot be
governed as easily in a small school
as in a large school. The small
school often requires a teacher for
every twenty or thirty pupils instead
of every forty in the large schools.
Thus the small school might require
twice as many teachers per given
number of pupils, with less efficiency,
at twice the cost. since it would re-
quire an engineer. "A principal and
more teachers.
So why not have the efficient school
at much less cost than small schools
scattered about our city? Why is it
necessary to increase taxes by build
ing and operating these small, expen-
sive and less efficient schools?
A RESIDENT.