EDUCATION OF RURAL PEOPLE 109 



ter trained teachers, longer periods of employment and 

 the securing of teachers who will become community 

 leaders. 



The effort to establish the consolidated or central- 

 ized school has been going on quite strongly for fifteen 

 or twenty years. The plan itself is making rather slow 

 headway. But wherever it has been tried, it has 

 proved a success. It is amazing that in many parts 

 of our country the farmers have been so slow to meet 

 the educators half way on this subject. Of course, 

 there are difficulties, bad roads are among them; be- 

 cause there must be transportation of pupils if there is 

 to be a consolidated school. The consolidated school 

 is more costly in money than the old district school 

 system, but it is far more efficient as an educational mill. 

 It permits better supervision and gives a chance for the 

 employment of better trained teachers at a better wage. 

 It allows them to specialize in certain subjects or with 

 certain grades of students. It secures a better course 

 of study and it more easily provides " teacherages " 

 or dwellings for the teachers, and consequently makes 

 the school faculty a part of the community leadership. 

 It makes possible a high school in many communities 

 that otherwise would be deprived of it. Agriculture 

 has been prescribed in some states as a required subject 

 in the grades of the rural schools. It is a useless law 

 and an unfortunate requirement unless it can be taught 

 by teachers trained in agriculture. The reason for 

 introducing agriculture and country life subjects into 

 the average country school is not primarily to educate 

 for agriculture, but to educate by means of agriculture. 

 There comes a time, it is true, when a boy must make 

 his choice and if he is to be a farmer, he ought to be 

 definitely and thoroughly educated for agriculture. 



