Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume VI.djvu/427

EDUCATIOX 419 system of France has recently undergone some changes, and is now in a transitional state. In 1871 Jules Simon, minister of public instruc- tion, brought before the assembly a new school law which had been approved by the council of ministers. It made attendance upon the schools obligatory, and provided for the disfranchisement after 1880 of those electors who have not attended school, or cannot read or write. Rules were laid down for the in- spection of schools and the employment of teachers. The expenses for elementary educa- tion were, in the first place, to be met by the municipalities and the departments, and aid to be granted by the general government only in extraordinary cases. In every department a teachers' seminary for males and females was to be established, supported by the government. Jules Simon having been succeeded by M. Bat- bie, these reforms have not been realized. The English system of public instruction has un- til recently, as before mentioned, been remark- able for its complete independence of the gov- ernment and want of national organization. While in Germany the organization and entire control of all schools for general instruction is assumed by the government, and in the United States all the common schools are supported and controlled by the people under the supervision of the state, and open to all classes without charge for tuition, in England these important inter- ests have been left to individuals and corpora- tions. Except the pauper schools and those belonging to naval, military, and penal estab- lishments, no schools have been organized by the government, nor has their management been vested in the government. It has, how- ever, made conditional grants in aid of popular education. These grants were of two kinds : 1, to aid in establishing schools ; 2, annual grants conditional upon the attendance and proficiency of the scholars, the qualifications of the teachers, and the state of the schools. All schools receiving grants were subject to yearly examination by government inspectors. In 1870 a new school system was established by the government, which, though far from be- ing complete, was an important improvement upon the existing one, and may lead to a com- prehensive system of national instruction. This measure provides for the annual grant by par- liament of a sum of money to secure the estab- lishment and maintenance, in every school dis- trict, of public schools sufficient for the ele- mentary instruction of all the children resident therein whose education is not otherwise pro- vided for. This fund is administered by the de- partment of education, at the head of which is the lord president of the council on education. Two classes of schools come within the pro- visions of the act : 1, elementary schools, which comprise those where the principal part of the instruction is elementary, and not including any school or department where the tuition exceeds ninepence a week ; 2, training schools to qualify teachers for the elementary schools. The grant is given annually to managers of schools, and is intended to aid voluntary local action in the es- tablishment of new schools and the maintenance of existing ones. It is made only on certain conditions, the chief of which are that no child shall be refused admission except on reasonable grounds ; sectarian religious exercises shall not be required of any pupil ; certificated teachers must be employed except in the evening schools ; and the schools must be open to the govern- ment inspectors. School boards, composed of not less than 5 nor more than 15 members, intrusted with seeing that the provisions of the law are complied with, are elected in boroughs by the burgesses, and in parishes not within the metropolis by the rate payers. They are permitted to enforce the attendance of children between the ages of 5 and 13 years. Special provision is made for the election of school boards in London. All school expenses are paid out of the school fund, which consists of fees, parliamentary grants, loans, &c. All children whose parents are unable to pay for their education shall be admitted free to these elementary schools. Under the new law, schools which have met not less than 400 times in the morning and afternoon during the year may claim 6*. per student, according to the average number in attendance throughout the year ; for every scholar present on the day of examination who has attended not less than 150 morning and afternoon meetings, if above 4 and under 7 years of age, 8*. ; or 10*., if the infants are taught in a separate department; if more than 7 years of age, 12s., subject to pass- ing an examination in reading, writing, and arithmetic. The managers of evening schools which have met not less than 80 times during the year may claim 4s. per student, according to the average number in attendance through- out the year, and 7s. 6d. for each one who has attended not less than 50 evening sessions, sub- ject to a successful examination in reading, writing, and arithmetic. Provision is made for the individual examination of students upon certain standards clearly defined for each grade of schools. The parliamentary grant to popular education in Great Britain was 1,093,624 in 1871, and 1,551,560 in 1872. The importance of training schools for teachers is recognized in the new school law, and government aid is ex- tended to this class of institutions on the same conditions as to the public elementary schools. Provision is also made for training and em- ploying " pupil teachers." A training school includes a college for boarding, lodging, and in- structing candidates for teachers in the ele- mentary schools, and a practising department to afford training in the art of teaching. Ad- mission is by competitive examination open to all who intend to adopt teaching as a profes- sion, and have either served the apprenticeship of pupil-teachers or are over 18 years of age. The course of study is two years. To obtain cer- tificates teachers must be examined and must undergo probation by actual service. It will