The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1922-06-16
VERMONT RURAL
SCHOOLS ALL FALL
BELOW STANDARD
All Lacking in Some Respects,
Mrs. Fisher Declares
PROGRESS ALREADY MADE
Member of Safe Board Says Ills
Have Been Diagnosed
and Cure Has Begun
PROGRESS ALREADY MADE

Mrs. Dorothy Garfield Fisher OF
Arlington, at present member OF the
Vermont board Of education, and VINO
for q number Of years previous TO
cler appointment had been urging the
adoption of improvements in the ru'
raj schools OF the state, delivered the
following address before the recent
annual convention of the Vermont
Federation of Women's clubs.
Last year, about this same date, in
speaking to this same gathering OF
Vermont club-women, | announced the
new movement, just conceived and in
augurated by the State Board of Edu-
cation, for improving our rural schools.
Now, after a years activities feel
that ! ought to make a report to you,
on what has been found out about the
rural schools and how much OF a start
has been made towards improving
them.
In the nature Of things. the beginn-
ing OF any activity is to find where
you sLanu, accurately and IN detail.
Before you can improve things you
must know what they are like now.
Before doctor tries to prescribe for
a sick person. no matter how sick he is
and how great the need for haste Is, he
must find out what the trouble is.
Now, because an adequate organiza-
ton for the State Department OF Ed
ucatlon Is comparatively recent in
Vermont, there has been little detail
ed information about rural schools on
file whore anybody could get at 1t to
use II.
There was nowhere in Vermont any
orderly arrangement of, information
which would enable anyone to form
sound judgment based on fairly
complete information. Each Vermont
er knew only too well that, whatever
the condition might be IN other towns
in his town there were rural schools
far below a decent standard of efilc,
ency. And the Department of Educa
tion knew only too well that all over
the state there were such schoo
houses. But how many. or how baC
the conditions were, or which were
the aspects most needing immediate
help nobody knew.
The first work, therefore. of the new
Supervisor of Rural Schools has beef
to take account of stock, to make al
inventory of the educational resour
ces of the state in rural districts
1t is on that inventory that | wish Il
report to you today.
Now to make an inventory you nee
to grade the schools, some as good
some as medium, some a. pool
some as wretched just as an examine
ton paper is graded The rura
schools of Vermont were to underg
an examination, and it was necessar
to find some way to mark them. Luc
lily such way has been long know
to education. such method of mari
ing or grading schools has long bee
worked out in other states.
The method is this. A plan, decen
efficient rural school Is imagine,
such school as every American chill
ought to attend, a school with a fai
ly good teacher, with enough ligh
enough blackboard space, enoug
textbooks, enough comfortable chair!
with ordinary cleanliness sucn as an
fairly decent home has. with decor
and hygienic toilet facilities; with d
American flag to look at, and fe
good books mot text.books) to reat
with good place to play, out of door
and ordinary facilities for comfortab
living indoors. Such plain, eff.cie
country school, II it were ever encour
erod. would be graded 100, or perfet
II school were all of that exec
one item. such as a good play groun
1t would be graded less than 100. II
had only one half OF those condition
It would be graded so. II three qua
ers 20.
You see how simply informant
could be arranged in this way. The n,
Supervisor of Rural Schools went h
self to examine innumerable schoo