Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1948-04-01
Our Montgomery County School System
By John SUMNER WOOD

was delighted with the brilliant letter written by
Mrs. Craig Bowman and recently published in The Sen
tnel She knows the relative quality of public and pri
vate school education and that year in private
school can be equal to two at Rockville. Mrs Bowman
writes that in class of thrty-odd high school
pupils Tin KentuckyO =: over half entered
institutions of high learning -" This lady then
adds-'Therefore, Mr.. Woods proposal that survey
be made seems both timely and wise" for which ap
proval thank Mrs Bowman.
Some children transferring from Rockville to
public school in Montgomery County suburban are
put back one grade and many transferring from Rock
vile and up-county high schools to any of the better
system going backwards?
The scholastic standing of our upcounty schools is
inferior to that of the public schools in suburban
area. Edgar M. Douglass, Assistant Superintendent,
knows this is true group of irate parents March II
told him so in facts and figures heard them object to
little second and third grade children using pressure
cookers, making preserves and candles, playing with
fire, skipping rope in the classroom, reports and
neglect of reading writing, arithmetic and spelling.
Recently Silver Spring boy had to transfer from
District school to one of schools and he wrote
. s out here-Montgomery County-we don't have
bit of homework, but mother says she thinks should
have homework. / think I'd rather have homework,
too, because have to wash the dishes every night
realize that our schools are overcrowded; that we
need for our children and the 5000 newcomers many
temporary, portable frame schools and that good
teachers are overwored but what the parents object
to cannot be called postwar condition; it extends back
over the twenty year period that we have been
experimental guinea pig for Columbia University.
Columbia has moderated both the intelligence and the
SCHOLASTIC
the three Rs, discipline in the classroom, and home
work at nght-it the only guaranty of Democracy.
We told that there are 18, 500 children in our
schools less than 1000 in high schools and of these
about 612 graduated 1.-THE 1913 school reports pontedy
omits certain totals. Judge that in 1947 less than
fifty or twenty went to colleges north of the
Mason and Dixon line Let the Board of Education,
whom did not eject select defend that record for
quality of education in this county
sA At public school meeting on March 10 our Board
Of Education stated that $5,000,000 plus $780,
900 is needed now 900 plus $4,000 900 plus in
terest 100000 of schools bonds would then be
needed next year. and this non-elected School Board
beamed with approval when the ten year total cost of
The professor, whom our School Board had imported
that night from Columbia to help put this money pro-
gram over, said-And quote his exact words-"What
does 1t matter what it costs? !. like to third
grade child playing with microscope" How do you
like that Columbia dream? A t4a
Mr. McNayr asked the School Board to come down
to earth. Brooke Johns blew up begged for lottery
and track Perhaps Columbia will send us their
beetles and starngs into dollar bills At that meeting
the School Board Democrats mixed high pressure educa
t0ip with politics. They had the Republican Com
missoners and Legislative Delegates there in the front
row, and on the spot
Someone climax pointed out that if Charter
wins then there can be no more bonds issued for two
years, thus the School Board was hoist by its own
petard-they unwittngy had given us a clear cut
political issue for November elections; namely
Charter VS.. Bankruptcy. If Charter will make room
the ballot for the Board of Education there may be no
reason for Independent survey of that part of
school system
Since my article Our County School System"
or rhetorical questions, appeared in The Sentinel the
School Board has had many meetings prepared and dis
trlbuted unknown numbers. of their 194S reports in
defense OF the school system and convinced people
that when there is smoke there is fire."