The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1922-11-07
NEW VIEW OF VERMONT.
vermont's Schools Not So Poor as
First Painted.

About year ago there appeared in
the Ladies' Home Journal, pubilca-
ton that is probably read in more
homes than any other in the world, an
article by Carries A. Sheldon treating
the shortcomings Of education. This
writer cited Vermont in what was on
the whole q very deprecatory way. He
gave instance Of deplorable conditions
in our rural schools, particularly, such
as schoolhouses unfit for occupancy
from a health and sanitary standpoint
which he had visited in Essex county
and elsewhere; OF immature and un-
trained teachers having no aptitude for
or interest in their work; OF unrespon-
sive local sentiment and niggardly out
laws for teachers salaries and other
school expenditures. 1t was stated that
Vermont has ceased to provide ade-
uuate instruction for teachers. While the
writer did not assume to treat Of the
educational situation as a whole, he
failed to make this clear, and the gen
eral effect Of his article could not fail
TO be very detrimental. The outside
reader would absorb the impression
thaa Vermont was rapidly retrograding
and that conditions were about as bad
as could be in this most important
phase of modern civilization.
In the current tNoyemberl issue oil
the same publication appears another
article BY the same writer, the tone
of which is so contrary TO the former
one in its references 10 Vermont that
readers must be quite at a loss 70 make
them harmonic. This time Mr.. Seiden
holds Vermont up as almost standard
Of excellence educationaliy. He says
the state sis once more educationaliy
awake and doing remarkable things 70
the Improvement of rural school build
ings. the training of teachers and the
establishment of high schools. She now
has something over sixteen hundred
teachers Of normal school or training
class qualifications. as against less
than seven hundred In 1900. The nun
Der OF college graduates in her teaching
force has doubled. In the same period
the legislature has increased the ap-
preparation for training classes from
$4,000 to 100000. There were but
thirteen per cent Of the schools and
twenty lone per cent of the children OF
Vermont under competent supervision
in 1900. There are now competent
supervisors for all the schools OF the
state" He continues:-
Most important Of all in this rural
state is the work OF Miss Rose Lucia as
the supervisor Of all the rural schools
She is not only an expert in education
but an expert on boys and girls as hu.
man beings as we'll as pupils. The aver
age pay Of Vermont teachers has in.
creased 70 twenty-threee dollars 9
week. Appropriations for textbooks
have doubled. The amount provided BY
the public for free transportation 81
children TO remote schools has in.
creased ten times. There have been en-
lcouraring increases in the amounts ex
pended on new buildings an dthe ren
ovation Of old ones High school en-.
rollment has doubled 10 eleven thou
sand pupils. over three per cent Of d,
population. in twenty years
Nr. Selden then gives specific descrip
I lions Of rural school improvements and
Of the general forward movement il
the public schools Of Vermont Il i .
very different picture and withai 9
very much truer one-than this sans
writer presented q year ago.
Nov = bit Of sideiiFht IN this mat
I ter. A year ago last summer Mr.. 81
den cone into Vermont. probably fo'
The frst time. commissioned 81 ~ thss
stated 70 write a series a ARTICLES -