^nibergitpofigort!) Carolina ^\)iii book toas presJenteb Educational Publication No. 125. Div. of Elementaby Instruction No. 28 More Efficient Supervision o£ our Rural Schools an Economic Necessity 1928 Published by the State StrpERiNTEXDENT of Public Instruction Raleigh, N. C INTRODUCTION This argument for the improvement of classroom instruction through supervision was prepared by Mr. L. C. Brogden, Director of the Division of Elementary Instruction. The basic facts were obtained by measuring and comparing educational results over a period of years in counties which provide supervision. The conclusions are based largely on objective tests" which are the most reliable measures for school efficiency known to us at present. In the last analysis, all the machinery of the school is set up to bring the teacher and the pupil together on terms of mutual confidence and respect. Anything that tends to make this meeting more effective in ministering to the physical, intellectual and moral needs of the child is worth while. Super- vision undoixbtedly keeps the teacher on tip toe and causes her to work up to her capacity. It keeps her studying her work. It brings a spirit of self-reliance as she feels her instructional power increase. It intensifies her interest in her work and gives her a more sympathetic attitude toward children. Supervision of the proper type does not tend to make a slave out of the teacher. The supervisor is not a boss. Her work with the teacher is for the purpose of enabling the teacher to exercise to the fullest her inate power of initiative and to make out of herself a self-reliant, self-determining, and self-directing teacher. The- right kind of supervision brings the kindly touch of human sympathy and does not seek to exalt itself at the expense of the teacher. It should efface itself and exalt the pupil-teacher relationship. The teacher has a right to look to the supervisor for help and sympathy and not for direction and commands. state Superintendent Public Instruction. 11-27-28—1250 MORE EFFICIENT SUPERVISION OF OUR RURAL SCHOOLS AN ECONOMIC NECESSITY A county system of schools is not the spontaneous creation of some one brain coming forth Minerva-like in all its completeness. It comes into being as a result of the processes of growth that are oftentimes slow and torturous in their course. Birthday of Our Present Era of Public School Expansion "When the future historian shall come to write of this present era of our public school expansion, he will note that its beginnings were with the first blush of this present century, marked by the election of Charles B. Aycock as Governor, and his appointment of James Y. Joyner to the State Superintendency of Public Instruction. These two leaders though hardly in the prime of manhood saw with the vision of the prophet and wrought with the zeal of the Crusader. They were undismayed by the educational indifference and the educational pro- vincialism of the time. They were undeterred by the demagogue; they were unafraid of the marplot. In season and out of season they went up and down this fair State proclaiming the gospel of universal education and the equality of educational opportunity for all the children of all the people. It is not passing strange that under the inspiring, wise and constructive lead- ership of these two men community after community broke down the walls of educational provincialism and that the old State, like a strong man after sleep, began to rouse itself full length from its educational lethargy and rear itself into action. From this auspicious birthday the educational spirit of the State, though at times hesitant and unsteady because of the inborn conservatism of the people, though at times halting while our political leaders took counsel of their fears, though at times seemingly lost to view because our educational leaders seemed unsure of its destined way, — yet withal, its general direc- tion has been forward and its movement onward. Some Evidences of Progress In its onward course our average white rural school term has lengthened from 80 to more than 140 days; our white rural teaching staff increased from 5,390 to more than 13,000; the value of our white rural school property risen from $1,391,000 to more than 45 millions; our State Equalizing Fund mount- ing from $100,000 to $3,250,000; and our rural annual expenditures for current operating expenses expanding from approximately one million to more than 16 millions. The 5,491 little white one-teacher schools have become fewer than 1,100, and in many of our most progressive communities their existence is but a memory of a day that has gone. Back and back has moved the educa- tional sky line of the people ever widening with the processes of the suns. The one-teacher school has been followed by the three-teacher school, the three-teacher school followed by the six-teacher school, the six-teacher school 4 More Efficient Supervision of Our Rural Schools followed by more than 542 white rural consolidated schools having more than six teachers. And today the people with one full sweep of their imagination are beginning to visualize clearly the whole county itself as the only equitable, economic or adequate unit for school consolidation, for school building and for school taxation. In our imagination we are behold- ing this county-wide educational unit with all of its elementary schools become standard elementary schools, all its high schools become accredited high schools, all its standard elementary and standard high schools unified and coordinated into one efficient county school system of schools, adequately taught, bringing into actuality equality of educational opportunity for all the children of all the people. These are but a few of the educational mile posts passed, and these are but a few of the constructive dreamings of the people as the deep and abiding educational spirit of the old State has steadily but with confidence, moved on into its fuller and freer life. But let no one be lulled or soothed into dreamless slumber with the thought that our educational course is almost run. For the end of our educational achievement is not yet. Our constructive dreams of the present must first be translated into actuality. And there must be finer and nobler dreams still if the little child is to lead us on. Up to Present Emphasis Largely Upon Development of School Plant Until the present quite naturally and quite wisely, the time, effort and thought of our educational leaders have been largely expended upon length- ening the rural school term, consolidation of schools, erecting and adequately equipping modern school buildings, providing better trained teachers, and upon the budgeting and judicious expenditure of the county's public school fund; — in a word upon developing and setting to work a modern and an adequate school plant. Expansion along these lines must continue, if this State is to provide properly for the education and training of its rural pupils. But these things, indispensable though they be, can never be con- sidered ends within themselves. They constitute the means only to one ultimate and absorbing end. In the thought of old Thomas Carlyle in his Sa7-tar Resartus they are but the clothes of the school. And as "Life is more than meat and the body more than raiment," just so is the school something more than brick and mortar and beautiful architecture; more than test-tube, sand table or physical equipment of whatever sort; more than merely accurate accounting and wisely disbursing the county's public school fund. The one ultimate end of it all is that the inner life of the school symbolized by the childhood within its walls shall have life and have it more abundantly. Hence the time, thought, effort and money expended in the development of a modern rural school plant can find justification only in proportion as the operation of this plant results in promoting the unfolding and the expanding life of the pupils. Pertinent Questions Arise Therefore, in view of our large investment in the development and oper- ation of this rural school plant, intelligent inquiry is now arising as to its results in pupil growth, pupil progress and pupil achievement. Are these results justifying the time, thought and money expended? MoBE Efficient Sitpkrvision of Our Rural Schools 5 In the light of our expanding Equalizing Fund from $100,000 to $3,250,000; in the light of our expanding annual expenditures for current operating expenses from approximately one million to more than sixteen millions, with increasing frequency pertinent questions are being asked by those who help to pay the bill. Are our rural pupils better graded and classified today than before our little schools were consolidated into big schools? Are our pupils reading any better, spelling any better, or working arith- metic any better now than before we lengthened our school term, increased the salaries of our teachers and raised our school tax rate. Are our seventh grade graduates of this year any better prepared for high school or the every day duties of citizenship than the seventh grade graduates of previous years? Are our rural teachers having that constant and efficient professional guidance and direction necessary to enable our children to make the rate of progress they should, or necessary to make each tax dollar expended for their education yield the most in service to them? To these vital questions the people making this investment are entitled to an answer based not upon mere guess or upon conjecture, but upon facts, accurate and convincing. But to whom in the county shall the people turn for light other than to their county superintendent, county board of education and county board of commissioners? For those officials are the legally constituted authorities mutually responsible for carrying out the county's part in providing for the proper education of all the rural children in the county. And in many of our most progressive counties in which the county superintendents are being given adequately trained rural school supervisors, these officials are enabled to make answer to the people in terms of facts, accurate and trustworthy. But in the vast majority of the counties in which the county superintendent is without adequately trained supervisors, it may be no exaggeration to say that these officials are in a large measure having to rely for their answer upon the Christian virtues of faith and of hope. But what man of good business sense will continue to invest his money in a business if at the end of each year, the management is unable to tell whether the concern has made or lost money and just how much; is unable to tell whether the quality of the output is being kept up to standard or is falling below standard; or unable to tell whether the quantity of production is greater or less than in the previous year, and just how much? Frequently the question comes from the well intentioned but poorly in- formed — What is our county superintendent for anyhow? Why can he not visit all the schools in our county and remain long enough on his visits to tell us at the end of each year the rate of progress our pupils are making, and the rate of progress they should be making? Why can he not visit each classroom in the county often enough and remain long enough to give our teachers the professional help they need in promoting adequately the progress of the pupils? 6 More Efficient Supervision of Our Rural Schools Why cannot our county superintendent give that professional direction and guidance to the teaching force of the county that will afford a reason- able guarantee to the people that every dollar being expended for teachers' salaries is yielding in teaching service to the children all that it can reason- ably be expected to yield? These, too, are vital questions and are oftentimes asked in sincerity and should be answered in sincerity. But to these pertinent questions the most intelligent experience of this State and Nation makes answer. No one county superintendent, unaided and alone, though he have the wisdom of a Horace Mann, or the physical endurance of a Gene Tunney, can meet adequately the imperative demands upon him for a business-like adminis- tration and for efficient direction and supervision of the classroom work in the county. And you ask, "What are the county superintendent's duties?" Administrative Duties of County Superintendent If he carries out the requirements of the public school law, he acts as secretary to the county board of education; keeps records of all deeds; reports on the condition of school buildings; makes a county-wide survey of his county necessary for intelligent consolidation of his schools, and aids the people in making this county-wide plan operative; looks after the erection of all new consolidated school buildings and notifies from 100 to 300 school committeemen of their duties; issues second and third grade certificates when necessary, keeps record of all teachers, approves their election, signs contracts with them; signs all monthly vouchers and recom- mends the classification of all the schools in his county; prepares his school budget, keeps record of all school finances, court fees, forfeitures, and penal- ties; and is responsible for a wise and business-like disbursement of all the county's public school funds. And this is what the law requires of the county superintendent on the purely administrative side of his work. With these manifold administrative duties to perform, is it passing strange that he has time enough left to spend on the average only 1.9 days per week in visiting his schools, with an average of 37 minutes per visit and a total average of less than 63 minutes in each classroom in the county during the entire school year? With hardly time enough left from these administrative duties for even pop calls upon his teachers in their daily classroom work is the county superintendent to be condemned for indolence and professional inefficiency because at the end of the year he is unable to tell the people with accurate and convincing facts whether their children are making the rate of progress they should be making, because he has been unable to give his teaching staff the professional help needed to promote adequately the progress of the pupils? And is he to be censured because of his failure to give that needed direction and supervision to an average teaching force of 156 teachers in 57 separate schools, scattered over an average territory of 518 square miles, that will afford to the tax payers of the county a reasonable guarantee that every dollar of their tax money expended for teachers' salaries is yielding in teaching service to the chil- dren all that it can reasonably be expected to yield? Moke Efficient Supervision of Our Rural School's 7 And yet, what man of sound business judgment will continue to invest his money in a business enterprise in which the foreman or superintendent is spending only 1.9 days per week in personal contact with the employed, stimulating, directing, and supervising their work? With so slight an amount of supervision the term "big business" would soon become obsolete for the big business enterprise would ere long recline in the arms of its receivers. Big Business Believes in Efficient Supervision But big business believes in efficient supervision and amply provides for it. Go into one of our largest and most efficiently organized and directed department stores and we find one supervisor for about every 26 salespeople. Go into one of our largest and most efficiently organized banking houses and we find one supervisor for every 15 or 20 employees; go into one of our largest and most successfully conducted hospitals and we find one' super- visor for every five to fourteen nurses; go into one of our largest hosiery mills and we find one supervisor for every 50 operatives. Go into one of our largest and most efficiently conducted cigarette fac- tories and observe the making of the cigarette from the beginning of the process until its completion. Notice that for about every 20 operatives there is an efficient supervisor, or checker, constantly in personal contact with the worker, closely directing and supervising the work at every stage in the process. Is it passing strange that with this constant intensive and effective super- vision the stockholders of this going concern are handsomely rewarded for their investment? Supervision in Making Cigarettes and Supervision in Making Citizens Now go into a nearby county and observe the operation of another and a different business concern. This concern is not engaged in turning out cigarettes to be blown away in smoke and ashes. It is engaged in the rather important undertaking of educating and training the more than 7,000 boys and girls into efficient citizenship for the county and the State. This big enterprise is the county's rural school plant. It is composed of 68 separate units or white schools and fifteen colored schools, a total of 83 separate units. The 68 white schools are taught by 188 teachers whose average scholarship is only about seven months above high school graduation. This teaching staff is not housed in one big building but located over a territory of 520 square miles. In 1926-1927 the entire teaching staff, white and colored, received in salaries a total of |120,576.00 while the total rural school budget was $344,- 540.00. The county superintendent, responsible for operating this plant has no rural supervisor to assist him. His administrative duties are so many that he is finding the time to spend on the average only 25 minutes in each classroom in the county during the entire year. With this small time allot- ment for each classroom, can the people of the county reasonably expect their superintendent to tell them accurately at the end of the year the rate of progress made by their children in mastering the common school branches, or the rate of progress they should have made? 8 MoEE Efficient Supervision of Our Rural Schools With this small time allotment, can the people reasonably expect their superintendent to tell them at the close of the year with accurate and con- vincing facts just how much more progress their pupils are now making in reading, in spelling, and in arithmetic than before their schools were consolidated, modern school buildings erected, school term lengthened and teachers' salaries increased? With the small amount of time for school visitation, direction, and super- vision of the work, can the people reasonably expect their county superin- tendent to tell them accurately just how much better prepared for high school or the ordinary duties of life the seventh grade graduates of this present session are than the seventh grade graduates of two, four or even five years ago? With only time enough for a 25-minute pop call upon each teacher in her classroom is the county superintendent to be condemned for professional inefficiency because he has been unable to give his teaching staff that direc- tion and supervision needed to promote adequately the progress of the pupils? With their county superintendent having only time enough to make this 25-minute pop call on each teacher in her classroom, can the management of this plant, the county board of education and county board of commis- sioners, afford the taxpayers of the county convincing assurance that each one of the $344,540 in the rural school budget is yielding in teaching service to their children all it should yield? The management of the business concern engaged in making cigarettes believes in supervision- — constant, intensive, and efficient; recognizes it as an economic necessity and amply provides for it in its budget. The slogan of this business concern is "We check the checkers." It supervises the supervisor. But what value does the management of this school plant attach to efficient supervision? Its answer may be somewhat reflected in the 25- minute pop call made by the county superintendent upon each teacher during the entire year. The Executive Budget and Expert Supervision Conducting the fiscal affairs of our State government constitutes big bus- iness in the true meaning of that term. And here we have the executive budget with the Governor of the State as Director and one Assistant. (1) In this act the General Assembly clearly recognizes the economic neces- sity of constant direction and efficient supervision of the auditing and expenditures of the State revenues. In section 2 of the Act, we read: "It is the purpose of this act to vest in the Governor of the State a more direct and effective supervision of all agencies and institutions of the State, for the efficient and economical administration of all such agencies." (2) The Director of the State's finances does not have to rely upon moral suasion alone but is clothed with ample power to make his vigilant supervision effective. In section 5 we read: "The Director shall have power to examine under oath any officer, head of department or em- More Efficient Supervision of Oub Rural Schools 9 ployee thereof ... to furnish information, to compel the production of papers, books and accounts or other documents under the control of such ofiBcer." (3) Not only is this Director empowered to examine into the methods of accounting and auditing that may be in force but is also empowered to change those methods. In paragraph 2 of section 3, we read: "The Director shall also have power, if in his judgment it appears necessary, to have the books and accounts of any of the departments .... audited; to supervise generally the accounting and auditing system now in force and to inaugurate such changes in respect thereto as may be necessary . . . ." (4) Not only is the Director empowered to supervise the accounting and auditing system he finds in force and inaugurate any changes he may deem necessary, but he is also empowered to require of any spending agency in advance the details of its proposed expenditures for the quarter. In section 18 we read: "Before an appropriation to any spending agency shall become available, such agency shall submit to the Director, not less than twenty (20) days before the beginning of each quarter ... a requisition for an allotment of the amount estimated to be required to carry on the work of the agency during the ensuing quarter, and such requisition to contain such details of proposed expenditures as may be required by the Director." This may be char- acterized as supervision, intensive and effective. (5) And not only is the Director empowered to examine into, supervise, and change the methods of auditing and accounting he finds in force, but his supervision is still further reinforced by being empowered to examine into the duties and activities of the various departments of government and make such change in these activities as his judgment may dictate. In section 26, we read: "That the Director is hereby given full power and authority to make such surveys . . . examinations of departments ... as well as its problems so as to determine whether there may be an overlapping in the performance of the duties of the several departments . . . and for the purposes of determining whether the proper system of modern accounting is to be had in such departments and to require and direct the installation of same when- ever in his opinion it is necessary and proper . . . etc." From the foregoing brief analysis of a few of the sections of this Execu- tive Budget Act, it is unmistakable that the State believes wholeheartedly in the economic necessity of constant, intensive, and efficient supervision when the activities involved have to do with auditing, accounting and ex- penditures of the State's revenues. And notwithstanding the fact that in most cases the heads of these various departments and divisions, whose auditing, accounting and expendi- tures of the State revenues are supervised, are men and women of recog- nized ability, mature judgment, successful business experience, and graduates from our leading colleges and universities in this State and Nation, yet even under these conditions the economic necessity for this intensive and expert supervision on the part of this State Director has eminently justified itself. 10 More Efficient Supervision of Our Rural Schools Here again we see the application of the slogan of big business, "We check the checker, we supervise the supervisor," for in reality the Director of the Executive Budget is the State's expert business supervisor' of the activities carried on by the heads of the various departments of our State government who in turn supervise the activities carried on by the heads of the various divisions within their respective departments. With this close and expert supervision is it strange that the fiscal policy of this State commands the respect and confidence of the financiers of this State and Nation or that the bonds of the State are eagerly bought by the banking houses of America? But to the reflective mind, it must appear unfortunate indeed that this recognition made by the State of economic necessity for constant and expert supervision of the auditing and expenditures of the State's revenues, is not also made with equal clearness by the county boards of commissioners, and county boards of education in the 100 counties of the State for the super- vision of the work today going on in the thousands of rural school class- rooms, and for which millions of dollars annually are being expended for teachers' salaries. A County School System and Supervision Go down to one of our largest counties in the southeastern part of the State. It is conservative to say that the one biggest and most important public enterprise of this county is the proper education and training into efficient citizenship the 16,088 children now enrolled in its public schools. This county school plant is composed of 129 separate units or schools — 43 white, 52 colored, and 34 Indian. The 43 white schools are taught by 211 teachers whose average scholarship is only one year and eiglit-tenths above high school graduation. The total teaching staff of 430 teachers is not housed in one building but in 430 separate rooms located over a territory of approx- imately 1,000 square miles. In 1926-27 this entire teaching force received in salaries a total of $278,092 while the total rural school budget for the county in 1927-28 was $552,778. From the Equalizing Fund the county received in 1927-28, $82,859. The county superintendent or Director of this large and important enterprise, in addition to his duties and responsibilities as Director of the auditing and expenditures of this rural school budget of $552,778 is also the responsible Director and supervisor of the classroom work of 430 teachers, teaching in 430 classrooms, located over this broad expanse of territory of nearly 1,000 square miles. In his direction and supervision of the classroom work of the 211 white teachers located over this territory, engaged in preparing for citizenship more than 7,000 white children, and to whom annual salaries amounting to more than $196,000 are being paid, the county board of education and county board of commissioners provide no white rural supervisor. The administrative duties of this Director are so many, the number of separate schools and the number of teachers to visit and direct is so large, the territory over which they are located is so great, that he is finding the time to make approximately only one visit to each teacher a year, and to spend with her in classroom work on the average only 40 minutes during the entire year. More Efficient Supekvision of Our Rural Schools 11 With this small time allotment for each classroom, can this Director be reasonably expected to keep the people intelligently and accurately informed as to the rate of progress these 16,000 children are making in their studies, or the rate of progress they should be making? With this pop call of only 40 minutes can this county superintendent be reasonably expected to tell the people with convincing facts just how much more progress these 16,000 future citizens are now making than be- fore the schools were consolidated, modern school buildings erected, teachers' salaries raised, and the rural school budget increased? And with this pop call of only 40 minutes for directing and supervising the work of each of these 211 white teachers, teaching more than 7,000 white children, drawing a salary of more than $196,000 annually, can the county board of education and the county board of commissioners give the people who pay the bill reasonable assurance that the budget for teachers' salaries and the budget of the teaching service rendered are even in the neighborhood of balancing at the end of each year? That constant and expert supervision of the classroom work of these 211 white teachers, drawing annual salaries of more than $196,000, is an economic necessity if each dollar in teachers' salaries is to accomplish the most for the children is so self-evident that it would seem to be beyond the realm of serious debate. State Equalizing Fund and Supervision Let us visualize the State-wide situations. In 1927-1928 county boards of education and county boards of commissioners in 68 counties drawing from the State Equalizing Fund did not provide the county superintendent with a white rural supervisor. In these counties in 1926-1927 was a total teaching force of 10,646 teachers — white 8,031 and colored 2,611, actual average per county of 156 (118 white, 38 colored); a total of 3,867 rural schools (white 2,452, colored 1,415) ; a total average of 57 schools per county (36 white and 21 colored), located over an average of 512 square miles, and a total expendi- ture for teachers' salaries alone of $6,805,652 (white $5,843,213, colored $965,438) an average of $100,121 per county. In 1927-1928 the State appropriated to these 68 counties from the Equal- izing Fund something more than $2,700,000. In these counties the adminis- trative duties of the county superintendent are so manifold that he is finding the time to spend in visiting, directing, and supervising the classroom work of his teachers an average of only 1.9 days per week, with an average of only 37 minutes per visit and a total average of less than 63 minutes in each classroom in his county during the year. With this small time allotment left for visiting, directing, and supervising the work of this teaching force of more than ten thousand teachers, can the county superintendents, county boards of education and county boards of commissioners in these counties tell the people with accurate and con- vincing facts just how much more progress the thousands of rural children enrolled in these schools are now making than before their schools were consolidated, modern school buildings erected, teachers' salaries raised and rural school budget increased? 12 More Efficient Supervision of Our Rural Schools Can these officials give the taxpayers at the end of each year a reasonable assurance based upon accurate and convincing facts that each dollar in the annual salary budget of more than six millions of dollars is yielding in service to the children all that it should? Again, to ask this question is but to answer it. Efficient Supervision a Proven Paying Investment The educational value to the pupil of efficient supervision of classroom instruction has been clearly proven in a scientific experiment carried out by the Division of Elementary Instruction of the State Department of Public Instruction. In this experiment it was found that the pupils in a closely supervised group of rural schools made two and one-fourth (2 14) times as much progress as did the pupils in the unsupervised group. Its educational value to the pupil has been still further proven by the fact that scientific test results from seven supervised counties covering a period of three years for which well trained rural supervisors had been employed in these counties show the average reading ability of the pupils was over a grade nearer standard and their work in arithmetic was nearly one grade higher than it was when these supervisors began their work. This means, for example, that at the end of this three-year period of efficient supervision of classroom instruction the fourth grade pupils in these coun- ties were reading and working arithmetic better than were the fifth grade pupils at the beginning of this period of close supervision. In a word, it means that within this three-year period of constant and expert supervision the pupils in these counties gained approximately one whole year in their mastery of the subjects of reading and arithmetic. The monetary value to the taxpayer of this efficient supervision has also been clearly proven in the scientific experiment referred to above in which it was found that for every dollar expended for rural elementary supervision $7.92 worth of additional instruction was purchased for the pupils. Its monetary value to the taxpayer has been still further proven by the fact that the seven counties referred to above for the total expenditure of $43,160 for supervision over a period of three years, purchased the equiva- lent of an extra year of instruction for the pupils which, at the current cost of instruction in these schools, would have necessitated the expenditure of $351,239.56. In other words, for every dollar that was expended for super- vision in those seven counties for those three years $8.14 worth of additional instruction was purchased for the pupils. Growing Public Sentiment for Efficient Supervision The policy of providing for more efficient supervision of the classroom instruction in our rural schools was begun in 1911 when $1,500 was secured from the George Peabody Fund with which to encourage county boards of education in the employment of rural supervisors to assist the county superintendents. In 1915 this fund was exhausted and the work became ineffective and desultory. In 1919 the General Assembly, for the first time, made appropriations for it, thereby enabling the State to pay one-half the annual net salary of the supervisor. More Efficient Supervision of Our Rural Schools 13 Since the State began appropriating money for this work in 1919, the number of county boards of commissioners providing the county's part for a supervisor's salary has increased from six to thirty-one, an increase of approximately 400 per cent. Not only is the conviction growing among our most progressive county boards of education, and most progressive county boards of commissioners that the employment of adequately trained supervisors to aid the county superintendent is an economic necessity but the conviction is growing with increasing force among our progressive county superintendents, rural school principals and teachers that the employment of well trained supervisors to assist them in their work is an educational necessity as well, if they are to render the rural children the teaching service they need. The following resolution unanimously passed October 26th by the teachers of the Western District is concrete evidence of the growing sentiment among the teaching profession of the State for more eflBcient supervision of the classroom instruction in our rural schools: "The Western District of the North Carolina Education Associa- tion is of the opinion that adequate supervision is essential to an efficient system of schools and that both economy and the welfare of the children of North Carolina demand unmistakably that rural supervision be provided at the earliest possible moment for all coun- ties. This association also wishes to go on record as favoring the requirement of the employment of an adequately trained supervisor for reaching every county that participates in the Equalizing Fund." A similar resolution has since been unanimously passed by five other Divisions of the North Carolina Education Association, altogether repre- senting a membership of approximately 12,000 teachers. Two Vital Questions In view of the constantly increasing rural school enrollment, the con- stantly increasing number of teachers, and the constantly increasing ex- penditures for teachers' salaries resulting therefrom; in view of the present $3,250,000 the State is now pouring into the counties from the Equalizing Fund, in view of the scholarship range of the rural teachers from approxi- mately high school graduation only to about three years of college training; in view of the small amount of time it is practicable for the county superin- tendent to give to directing and supervising classroom instruction in his county; and in view of the clearly proven educational value to the child and the clearly proven monetary value to the taxpayer of constant, intensive, and efficient supervision, quite naturally two vital questions now arise: (1) Is constant and efficient supervision of classroom instruction an economic necessity, if each of the millions of dollars now being expended annually for teachers' salaries is to yield in service to the rural children all that it should? (2) Shall State and county continue this policy of expending annually this relatively large amount of money for the education of the rural children with so negligible amount of direction and supervision of the work for which it is being expended? Were the same importance attached by State and county to close and expert supervision and direction of the classroom work now going on in 14 More Efficient Supervision of Our Rural Schools our rural schools that is now attached by the State to the direction and supervision of the accounting, auditing and expenditures of the State's revenues, then it would be reasonable to conclude that the rural taxpayers of the State would have but little cause to complain that their school tax is not accomplishing all that it should. "There is that scattereth, and yet increaseth, and there is that with- holdeth more than is meet, but it tendeth to poverty." Conclusion I have an abiding faith that given the light the people will find the way out; that given convincing facts at the end of each year showing just how much more progress their children are making than before their schools were consolidated, modern school buildings erected, school term lengthened, teachers' salaries raised, and rural school budget increased; that given con- vincing 'evidence that the increase in the progress of their children is rather definitely in proportion to the increase in expenditures for their education; that given trustworthy evidence that each dollar of their tax money for schools is accomplishing all that it should; — given this light the intelligent rural citizenship of our State will have no cause to feel that it is but groping blindly along the pathway of educational progress, but will step with quick- ened pace because marching with undimmed vision. But this light will delay its coming till State and county shall have taken a more constructive attitude toward, and made a rational solution of, this problem by providing adequately trained rural supervisors to assist our county superintendents in constant, efficient direction and supervision of this rural school work for which millions of dollars are now being ex- pended annually for teachers' salaries. UNIVERSITY OF N.C. AT CHAPEL HILL 00034036132 FOR USE ONLY IN THE NORTH CAROLINA COLLECTIC Form No. A-368, Rev. 8/95