The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1931-01-22

education through perseverance, UNI
der very trying financial conditions.
for both themselves and their parents.
The education Of these girls is com
plimented by q thorough understand
ing Of rural conditions; they know
how to build and bank q fire; they
know how to a + for the school well,
to insure a water supply in freezing
weather, and do the other fainter
work that the teacher SIS called upon
to perform in a rural school. In
short, I believe q girl, equipped With
the above mentioned qualifications, is
capable Of rendering every service
called for In a One-rOom rural school,
and believe they are equally success
full, and quite as capable of rem
dering TN equal service. as teach
ers of a higher certification.
whose education was acquired
under comfortable coildi-
tons. and whom city life has rem
dered less familiar with conditions
that confront a rural school teacher.
Many Of the girls. eligible under DR..
Picks proposed higher normal re-
quirement, are girls from the cities
who have been blessed with parents
whose financial ability has permitted
them to acquire their higher educa-
ton practically free Of the disadvan-
tages that must be overcome by the
rural girl in her struggle for an edu-
cation.
/ contend that the great majority
of the twelve-week teachers. referred
to by the doctor. are girls who have
used every available shred If their
finances to obtain theseducation they
now have, and the teaching positions
in the rural schools offer to them
practically the only means Of re-
plenishing their depleted finances so
that they may continue with their
education.
To raise the normal requirement at
this time will relegate the great ma
jority of these rural girls to the posi-
ton Of a domestic house maid. Under
present conditions, I see no advantage
in the proposed change in require
ments that will overbalance the loss
to our present teachers of the mean
of furthering their education.
A teacher should be judged not by
the ability of her teacher but by
her own ability to teach. III my esti-
nation we are receiving as many
cents for Our educational dollar as we
are likely to receive under the pro-
posed change In normalsreQuirement.
I believe this change will be accom-
panied with increased cost to the
rural school and, in view of the pres
ent rural outlook, I do not believe we
are justified, In adding expense to
the educational system. With the
proposed change, I believe we will
find it necessary to increase the SAL
AIRY of the rural school teacher, whose
duties have been enumerated by DR..
Pick.
Who is there who thinks that the
present wages will be alluring to the
more highly educated girls from COM
Portable homes. blessed with parents
whose financial condition made pos
sible the acquisition Of the required
education a pleasure? Will from s7OO
to 5000 per year out of which they must
pay their expense be sufficient induce
ment to these girls to cause them
to walk much OF the time through
snow in weather. sometimes 40 below
zero, to a cold school room where they
must build their own fire. to warm
the building for the children. The
heating plant may be anything from
a cast iron heating stove to a modern
hot air furnace into which the teach
er, during "a month term CT
school. must shovel about twenty tors
of Ignite coal and carry out about as
many ashes. She must do the sweep
ing and scrubbing and keep the place
clean: look after the well TO insure
the water supply in freezing weather;
see that the toilet system is kept in
sanitary condition and s~uspervise the
playground.
Again 1 ask. who thinks the pres
ent wage an inducement to those Of
a higher education?
A FARMER.