Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1963-03-25
School Economy


The Montgomery County
School Board cut of $732.900
will mean q loss Of $79,330
In State-support for our
schools (the States share Of
the administrative and super
visory salaries that have
been dropped. Thus the
county will have q reduction
of only $653,570 in its school
budget and the taxpayer will
save four cents on his tax
rates.
For this four-cent tax cut
the number of children who
will be able to have a foreign
language in the elementary
schools will be reduced by
one-third. and the elemen-
tary foreign language pro-
gram will be totally elimi-
mated in three years.
Hundreds Of classrooms will
have more than 81 students.
There will be an insufficient
number Of encyclopedias.
Driver education land this
means the safety Of others as
well as of our children) will
be eliminated for the new
schools and no further ex-
pansion Of the program al
lowed for the old schools,
although the present pro-
gram has failed to meet the
needs Of a thousand students.
Meaningful physical educa-
ton will be seriously cur
tailed. There will be 20
teachers (down IL from last
year, and IL teachers for
l02 schools, In spite of the
fact that we expect 5000
more elementary students
next year.
Prince Georges County has
"A physical education teach
ers for its elementary stu
dents, and Baltimore County
has almost one teacher per
one and one-half schools as
opposed to our IL teachers
for 102 schools.
Although my child gradu-
ated from elementary school
long before the inception Of
the Invaluable foreign Ian
guage program. and so was
deprived of those most essen
tial early years of study in
a foreign language, we were
thankful for the advantages
OF the physical education,
music. art and driver-educa-
cation courses.
Ida ID. Sharkey.
AS one who fell last fall
for all the talk about sound
er education in Montgomery
County. / add my voice to the
general CONSERVATION con-
corning the recent School
Board decision to cut French
out OF the elementary school
curriculum.
The difference between ed
ucation and non education
resides In the teacher, not in
the school board. Even the
school administration can do
no more than provide the
kind Of scheduling and moral
support that viii allow the
good teacher TO function to
capacity. But the expressed
intent Of doing away with
expensive "frills" (smoking
rooms. parking space2)
seemed TO augur good. II for
no other reason than to save
the students time and re-
duce the number OF his dis
fractions. The tone Of cam
paign literature indicated a
move toward sitter stand
ards for teachers. more Ian
guage and mathematics and
classical reading content. But
no.
Instead. we learn that one
OF the few recent academic
gains In American education
is 10 be slashed from the
Montgomery County curric-
ulum. This Is appalling. The
merits OF foreign language
instruction In the elementary
school are too familiar gem
orally for me 10 belabor them
here. The quality OF the
French program - at least
In the Bradley School. the
only one I know we'll - Is
completely unassailable, by
any standards. II Is truly ex-
cellent. efficient. and effec-
tive.
And where Is the economy
In eliminating it7 Students
must eventually qualify for
high school French. They
will never learn certain as
poets OF the language at high
school age so well as they will
In elementary school. For
those who have Just begun
but will not finish the ele-
mentary program, the invest
ment which was made. both