of local government. For very many years Scotland has been organized with the parish as a unit, the parish corresponding closely as a school unit to our township. A strong movement is in progress at the present time for a change to the county unit, and school officials of Scotland are authority for the statement that the sentiment in favor of the county basis is growing rapidly.

The rural letter referred to is the following:

RURAL-SCHOOL LETTER NO. II-1.

THE COUNTY UNIT.

The United States Bureau of Education suggests the following essentials of the county-unit basis of organization for the administration of rural schools. They result from studies of the various regulations in the States now organized on that basis:

1. The county the unit of taxation and administration of schools (except that, in administration, independent city districts employing a superintendent would not be included).

2. A county-school tax levied on all taxable property in the county, covered into the county treasury, and divided between the independent city districts and the rest of the county on a basis of the school population.1

3. The county-school funds, including those raised by taxation and those received from the State, expended in such a way as would as nearly as possible insure equal educational opportunities in all parts of the county, regardless of the amount raised in any particular part. (Any subdistrict should be permitted to raise, by taxation or otherwise, additional funds to supplement the county funds, provided the subdistrict desired a better school plant, additional equipment, or a more efficient teaching force than could be provided from the county funds.)

4. A county board of education, in which is vested the administration of the public schools of the county (except those in independent city districts), composed of from five to nine persons, elected or appointed from the county at large; the board to be nonpartisan; the term of office to be at least five years, and the terms arranged so that not more than one-fifth would expire in any one year.

5. A county superintendent of schools, a professional educator, selected by the county board of education, from within or without the county or State, for a long term (at least two years), who shall serve as the secretary and executive officer of the county board and as such be the recognized head of the public schools in the county (except those in independent city districts).

6. District trustees in each subdistrict of the county, one or more persons, elected by the voters of the district or selected by the county board, to be custodians of the school property and to serve in an advisory capacity to the county board. The expenditures of local funds raised by the subdistrict would rest with the trustees subject to the approval of the county board.

7. The powers and duties of the county board of education:

(a) To select a county superintendent, who would be its secretary and executive officer in the performance of all of its other functions, and to appoint assistants as required.

(b) To have general control and management of the schools of the county. (c) To submit estimates to the regular county taxing authority of the amount of money needed to support the schools.

1 This basis is suggested for the division between the county-district and the Independent city districts. The county board of education would expend the funds of the county district according to the needs of the various schools, not according to school population. This does not mean among the subdistricts on the school population basis.

(d) To regulate the boundaries of the school subdistricts of the county, making from time to time such alterations as in its judgment would serve the best interests of the county system.

(e) To locate and erect school buildings.

(f) To supply the necessary equipment.

(g) To fix the course of study and select textbooks (using the State course and State-adopted textbooks in the States where action has been taken).

(h) To enforce the compulsory-education laws.

(i) To employ teachers, fix their salaries and the salaries of other employees.

I. UNITS OF ORGANIZATION.

A unit of organization for the administration of schools is the territory in which the schools constituting one system are under the direct management and control of a single board-a county board in the county unit, a township board in the township unit, a district board in the district unit, or a city board in the city unit. The county and township units may or may not include the city schools; in most States cities are set apart as independent units.

Three distinct rural-school units of organization are found in the United States-the district, the township (and the magisterial district), and the county. In addition, there are several instances of mixed systems, in which responsibility for management is divided between the district and the township, the district and the county, or the township and the county. There is also some variety in the details of the township systems and much variety in those of the county systems. The district system is more uniform wherever found throughout the United States. The term "district" is used here as it is most generally understood. It is a relatively small area served usually by one school. This area, except in very sparsely settled sections, is smaller than the township. The school is usually a one-room and one-teacher school, with pupils in all stages of advancement, from the first to the eighth or tenth year.

THE DISTRICT UNIT.

The district unit, or the single district, as it is sometimes called, is the most common unit of organization for the country as a whole. It is the complete basis for the rural elementary school management in 17 States and in 4 others in part. It is also the larger factor in the management in 7 others that have semicounty systems, in which the balance of power rests with the districts rather than with the counties. The district system originated in Massachusetts with the establishment of the first public schools, when each settlement was separate and distinct from all others, and necessarily became a separate school district. The territory between the school districts so established was originally unorganized; but as it became settled all of the terri

tory was finally included in school districts, and the peculiar conditions causing the establishment of the district system no longer existed. The system remained, however, long after the necessity for it had passed away; it was not finally ousted until 1882. The district system was adopted in all other States in the early days of settlement and was probably the only system possible when the population was grouped in a comparatively few settlements scattered over a large section of country. With the increase of population, it is passing away and is now found in only three States east of the Mississippi River.

The conditions making the district system the only feasible one no longer exist in the greater part of the United States. Although with it progress is considerable in a few districts, it is slow and unsatisfactory in many. Except in those States where the schools are controlled largely by the State department of education, it means little State-wide advancement. It means that a very good school and a very poor school may and do often exist in adjoining districts. Under it the character of the school depends upon the educational ideals and the sentiment for education on the part of the trustees and the community. These are often low. The ability of the district to raise the funds necessary for the support of a good school is also an important factor. Many districts with the proper ideals do not contain enough taxable property to support a good school. On account of this, all States on the district basis have found it necessary to provide State educational funds to equalize in part the burden of education among the districts. In many States county funds, in addition, are raised by taxation for the same purpose. In pioneer times, where the entire population was a farming one, and the farm was self-sufficing supplying practically all the needs of the farmer's family the wealth of the various districts was nearly proportional to the number of farms and approximately to the number of children. These conditions have passed away. Farming is now a highly specialized commercial business. Cities and towns have developed and railroads have been built, so that school districts along the railroad and about the industrial centers have a much larger valuation without a proportional increase in school population. Such sections have therefore more money available for school purposes, while, through no fault of their own, those located away from the railroad have little money available.

The form of the district organization is nearly identical in all parts of the United States. The exceptions are in those States where the State superintendent of public instruction or county superintendent of schools is charged by legislative enactment with certain powers and duties that subordinate the district authorities, principally in the administration of the course of study, the selection of textbooks,

and the selection of teachers. The principal characteristics of the district organization may be described as follows: The school district is commonly a body corporate, and possesses the usual powers of a corporation for public purposes. It can sue and be sued, contract and be contracted with, and may hold real and personal estate. Annual school meetings are held, in which all qualified voters of the district may participate. The meeting chooses its own officers, elects a board of school trustees, determines the length of the school term, determines whether or not new school buildings shall be erected, and designates the site for the buildings. In most cases the voters fix the local tax levy for the support of the school. The board of trustees elected are the lawful agents of the district and carry out the instructions of the voters in the annual or special meetings. The board usually consists of three members elected one each year for a three-year term. It has general charge of the school property, repairs buildings, furnishes equipment and supplies, appoints teachers, fixes their salaries, and makes whatever rules and regulations may be necessary to govern the schools. Unless a State course of study is provided, it determines what subjects shall be taught in the schools. In most States it is now limited in its selection of teachers to those holding certificates issued by the State or county authorities. The trustees expend the district school funds, and in Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Utah, and Washington they are authorized to levy special school taxes for the support of the schools. This power is granted also to district boards in certain States, notably Delaware and South Carolina, where the county is the unit of organization.

The States organized with the district system are the following: Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Idaho, Illinois, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, and Wyoming-17 in all. Iowa, Michigan, and Utah have more than one system, with the district system predominating. North Dakota has both the township and the district unit, the larger portion of the State being on the township basis. California, Delaware, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, and Washington have semicounty systems with subdistricts in each county corresponding to those in the district system; in these subdistricts much of the control of school affairs rests.

It will be noted that the States on the district basis are all west of the Mississippi River, with the exception of New York, Illinois, and Michigan. In New York and Illinois the system is not so unsatisfactory as in other places because, by legislative enactment and by general consent, practically all of the administration of the instructional work of the school is in the hands of the State and county (or district) superintendents. Illinois also has a township school board

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whose functions are almost wholly financial. Michigan has a law permitting the township unit basis. All townships of the upper peninsula and several in the lower peninsula have adopted the township system.

The district organization for present-day conditions proves for most parts of the country unsatisfactory in many ways, which may be summarized as follows: (1) It fails to recognize that education is not only a matter of local interest, but a matter of county and State interest. People no longer remain as much as they formerly did in the district in which they were educated or failed to be educated. (2) Under it no rapid and uniform State-wide advancement is possible. (3) It has created too many school districts, some of which are well able to support schools, others are not; in much of the country one-half as many schools would be sufficient to meet the requirement of "a school within walking distance of every home." Great difficulty, however, is experienced in persuading districts to unite into larger consolidated districts, each supporting one school instead of several. This difficulty is due often to jealousy existing between the neighboring districts and to jealousy between school trustees. The movement for consolidation has made little progress in any States except those with county or township systems. (4) With the district system it is often difficult to secure competent trustees. Many trustees are necessary, and they must be residents of the district they represent. Certain districts will contain many men thoroughly competent to serve as school trustees, others will contain none. The district system means that there are in the rural schools practically three times as many trustees as school teachers. To attempt to manage any other business but education on such a basis would seem ridiculous. (5) The cost of maintaining district schools is high in proportion to the cost of other schools and in proportion to the results obtained. (6) With this system, opportunities for high-school education are presented only with great difficulty; therefore country boys and girls are required to go to city schools after completing the work given in the rural schools near their homes, if they are to receive any further education. Only those whose parents can afford to pay tuition, traveling expenses, and usually board are given this opportunity; and few of those educated in the city school ever return to rural occupations. (7) Any adequate supervision of the instructional work in the district school is almost impossible. In practically all States with the district systems county superintendents are employed. The county superintendents must work with as many boards of education as there are separate districts; with the district system the large number of trustees makes his work difficult. (8) In very few States with the district system are assistants to the county superintendents employed; there are no county