Report Of The Superintendent Of Schools

To ths School Board of Aun Arbor. GiiN'TLEMBN. - I ljerewitb submit the "ollowing roport of the schools of the ; citv, for the term endiugDo'c. 2nd, 1864. The Schools opened August 29th, and their organization was substantiully the same hb last year. Tbe inoreasing minibars however, iu soine of tho ward schools, rnadu it uocessarj to employ some additional tcaehera. In tho lirst ward, the two rwoms occupied by the lowest grado, had becotne ao urowdcd, tliiit aoother room in thu busemeot was finisliud and i fumfthed with se at?, and a lady pliced in charge of it. Iu the seeoud ward also, the upper room, whioli wasjfouod to b; larger thau ueeesoary, was divided into tvvo rooms oí erjnal size, one of which was occupiüd1 by Üie acholara of the iñtcrniediate grado, and the other bv thoso of the highest grade ; thus leaving the two ruoms beiow to the acholara erf the lowest or primary grade. These rooms were iiumediately fiüed with soholar, and tho teaohor, who, the previous term, had ocoupied a gmali anteroom in the second story, was placed in charge of the room wtiieh hadbeon vacatnd by the transfer of tha intermediato grade tn the Hecond story. A similar pressure in tho fourth ward school wasrelieved by the transfer of half the soholars in the lowost grade, to a líirge and oonvenient room in tha basement of the High School Building, and placing them 'm charge of the teacher who last year was employed merely as an assistant. These several arrangementa, I am happy to report, have proved as beneflcial as was anüci.pated at timo thoy wero made. They have relioyed the crowdad oouditioa ofniany of the roorr.8, and have enabted the teachers to do better justice to their classes. Nothing ie moro prejudicial to any school, but more espocially to a priniary soho.ol, thao for it to be io crowded that cornfortable seats cannot be farnished to all, and that the teacher is unable to give them indrvidually that attentiou which thoy need. Ia suoh a school it is diffieult to maintain a proper drgree of order, and still more diffieult to fix the attention of the scholars upon their lossons. Th rest less minde booome oareless, the teacher discouraged, and, although parents who are unaquaintod with the real condition of things, may fancy that all i wel!, the school is'rcally of little benefit. That soroe of tho departmentg of our ward schools have been to some extent, in times pitst, in thia oondition for wunt of adequate room, i not to be deuied. But with arrangement adopted at the beginmng of this year, we feel that they are no longer open to any such charge, and as we have & prospect of a new school house ere long in the third ward, we may hope that our accommodatioDS for primary scholarg will for many yearg bo sufficient for the increasing numbers. The courae of study adopted ior the ward schools has been ïtrictly adherec to, and has been louud to bo the course bost üdaiitod to schools of their grade Thu standard of soholargnip howevor, is advaneing, and some uuceRsary modifioa tion may be deeaiüd at ome future timo Au order of duily exercises has beeu establishod for all the separate rooms in the several schools, so that all the elaeses of ihe same grade in all the schools re eito ut the same hour in the day, and anv persön cailing, at any time, at the office of the Supenntendeut, can luarn what rueitation is beiug heard in any schoul raotu in the city. This systernatio arrangement has been found to be very benefioial. It economizen the labor of teachers, secares to the Bcholars better advantages, and makes our echools much more easy of management. The teachers engaged in these school, mo3t of thera, are those whose officieuuy and worth are well known to the Bord, whilu the rest are all gradúate of our High School and have met with that succesg which their scholarship, imlustry, and traiuiug gave ua roason to expeot. I regret to report that Mis9 Amelia Onnsby, the priucipal teachor iu the ijrst ward school, and one of the mout siwcesffu! in our corps óf teachers, was obligad to resigu at tbe end of the füurth week of the turm, on account of ill halth. We eau but ogpres the hope tliat the journej wbioh she has tukon may prove beneficiid, and that she ruay ioon be ablo to return to a pooit ion in out' sehools. Mies Auna Mowry, p.riucipal teacher is lle fiíth ward, was also compelled to reaign at tho olose üf the term, for thesauie reason. Miss Mowry was an excellent teacher, and it it much to bo regretted, that her health would uot peruiit her to rem in longer m tbe school. The foHowing table present the sta tisties af the terra : 1 . ui t First w&rd school ÍI4 82, 6 Secund " " "250 8i! Fimilli vrard school 250 82 Kifth " " ... 161 '6 Total 9S7 84 THE 0KAMM4R 8CIIÖOL has been taught &y the sam& teachers who wero ia chargo o( it last year. Their long experieuoo and uniform sucoesp, ronder it unne(;essary to coinmtMit upon thoir labors. Suffice it to say that ; tle school is woll mannged, and justly uaerits the goud repiAution vvhiob. it enJOV'8. I wish, however, to cali the attcution of tho Board, to the increasing numbers in this dopartment, and to suggest that it will bo necessury very soon to provide in soine way ktrger aooouimodatious. It ' 3 too much crowded at pruseut with our own 8üolav3, aod many froui abroud who have dewred to enter it, havo been cecos8arily rejeoted. If its capaeity oould in syinu inaunor bo enlarged, and another tusebor employed, thero is liltle doubt that the ox'.ru expense vvould b ):iid by the foreign scholara who aie ow refused adunttance, while our own ou'd bc uiuuh bettor aocommodated. ïtterè ib .also much neeJ in thia apuitment of a good bot of outlino íiiijui for tlití oblases ii goography. The ot iiuw in uso ís too small aud impertíct to bd of much service, and I would ake tho liberty to recornmend the purhase of a completo set of Pelton's Outine Mapa. HIGH SCHOOL. At the oIobö of last yaar, Mr. Martin j. D'Oogu, wLo for two yeara had been ha ohief assisiant in litis dapurtmeot, nd had spproved himself a most hceanful teacher, resigned. Mrs. DuBois, he perceptresH, had been compelled to esign ou account of ill-httalth, even boforo ; so that the two most important iüiations in our High School were left acant. Mr Arthur Everstt, a grádate of our Unis'ersity, was employed in he plaon of Mr. D'Oogo, and Miss Auna Osborne, a gradúate of or Stato Normal School, was appointed preoepress, aod it ia graüfying to report that 'our oommittee Lave been singularly ortunato in the cho-ice of tbese teachers, ioth have been snceessfal in the management of ibeir department, and have uiaiutained that high standard of scholarship for which tho tsohool has ever leen dintiuguished. The attendanoe in this department ïas been large, as will be een by the able hülow. Buth the Euglish and ?lassical courses have had their full hare of studente- ai rnany indeed, ae couki well be aceommodated. We aro noüued to doubt if Ihere is so large a classioal school any where in the "Wpstern States. These Btudeutfrconsist net merely of those who reside in th-e diatrict, or indeed, in the Statu, but they come froni all the neighboricg States. The uumber, too, is iuoroasing, and ere long may bu larger tliíin cun ba aceommodated in the rooiiia whioh they novv oocupy. The following are tlio stutistiee ot the Grammar and High öchoo! : i r ! í t-f.-ib N ! -r c o r ï E = i s s 3 I ttj ? L Í f 5 5 i g High Fch'l Male Peji't. 1QI l-2 j 50 'iü44 1 ', I " ■ 1 93 -ÍC 8 lllI;l? Suli'l Malo Dep't iluü ü.u. Ffmale ■ ll; !ti '; I desiro in conelusio!) to expresa my gratitude to the teachers of tí)e city, for íheir heartyco operatious in curryingout all ïnewsures which liavo leen reoom mended for the welfare of the soliocls, as well as tny appreciation of tbeir earnest efforts at a!l times, to discharge the duties assigned thom. I desire also to thank the eeveral cotnmittcoB of the Board, for tho proniptneae with which tliey have altended to all matter which have been brought to their notioe, and and to the entire School Board, for the cordial support which they have givea lo the teachers and the Superintcudent in the mnnagement oi the schoot. U. W. Lawi'on, Sup't. cf Sühool. High School, Ann Arbor, Jan. 12th, 1865. jL2L Ex-Senator Foote, late of the Confcdurato CongreHS, has been given penniesion to go to Europe, ou parol uot to roturn daring the war. Ho pronouuces the rebellion a failure, says he ehall nevor return to the Coufcderacy, but declines to t:ike the oath of allotriauoe. t" The New York Tribune has ar[ rived at the conclusión that a nationadebi is not a national blejsing.- Ex Well, oor nution is likely to bu bles&ed with ouu of goodly proportion. iy Gen. üillmokï, who w8 reliuvcd from ooiumand by Guneral üutlkk, for ncgleotiiig to storm the works of Petersburg, has been restored to actire service. KF3T Ex Gov. Hicks, U. S. Renator from Maryland, died in Washington on the 13th inst., at 7 o'olock, A. M.