A final step was taken in the direction of providing adequate moneys for general high-school purposes when certain funds were set aside for the exclusive use of the high school. In some cases these funds were collected by the county and in others by the State. Financial assistance in this form is particularly helpful to local districts, which maintain high schools, in those States where high schools are not permitted to share in the general funds of State or county. As the situation stands at the present time, funds for general high-school purposes, over and above those which are obtained from local taxation and from an even share in the common-school funds, are provided for high schools in approximately one-half of the States. It is clear, therefore, that the principle of additional financial aid from larger taxing units for general high-school purposes, and exclusively for the high school, is a widely accepted method of encouraging secondary education in the United States.

3. Wider distribution of privileges of secondary education.-The first and most promising development of secondary schools took place in the larger towns and cities. At an early date large buildings were erected in these communities, competent teachers employed, and the opportunities of advanced education were freely offered to all who cared to come. At the same time in many of the smaller towns and villages, and in the open country, there were no high schools at all. With the beginning of the rapid increase in high-school attendance, which has taken place in the last three or four decades, went a growing and more widespread appreciation of the advantages of secondary education. The people in the rural districts began to demand these advantages for their children. It became increasingly clear to the entire citizenry that these children were entitled to the same advantages of education as were enjoyed by children in the cities. They looked to the State, as the ultimate unit and final authority in matters of education, to remedy this situation. In answer to this demand laws were passed in many of the States for the benefit of pupils who lived in nonhigh-school districts. Pupils in such districts were given legal permission to attend the high schools of near-by districts. Adjoining sparsely settled districts which had only a small, weak high school among them, or none at all, were encouraged to consolidate for the purpose of forming a large high-school district. In many cases flourishing schools have been developed in this way, and secondary education thrown open to large numbers of children to whom otherwise its benefits would have been denied. In the States where pupils from nonhighschool districts were permitted to attend school in near-by districts, various provisions were made for the payment of the tuition of these pupils. In some cases the pupils themselves are required to pay the

tuition fees in whole or in part. In other cases the fees are paid by the sending district or county or by allowances from State funds. In a few of the States still more advanced steps have been taken in this direction by making provisions for payment of the transportation expenses of children from nonhigh-school districts. In certain instances account is taken of the fact that some children live too far from the nearest high school to go and come daily, and provision has been made for the payment of dormitory fees for such children. In all of these cases the point at issue is the equalization of educational opportunity. The States have plainly declared in favor of this principle. Numerous laws have been enacted to carry it out, and generous financial provisions have been made to give it practical effect.

4. Provisions for extension of plant or instructional facilities by means of financial aid for special purposes.—The program of studies which was offered by the early high schools differed in few important respects from the academic materials which were handed down from the Latin grammar schools and academies. The prevailing lesson assignment was of a certain number of pages of the textbook, and the method of recitation consisted of questions and answers on these pages. The traditional curriculum appealed to only a limited proportion of the youth of high-school age, and as fast as the principles of modern pedagogical science were accepted the old question and answer method of recitation lost favor. Educational authorities who were sponsoring the modern high school were convinced that additional types of secondary education needed to be offered for the benefit of the new social groups which were seeking higher education, and that the old program of studies must be vastly extended. In many of the larger towns and cities marked progress had already been made in these directions. It was determined to extend the results of successful experimentation in the cities to all of the high schools of the State. The method which was adopted by the States for the achievement of this object was the provision of special financial aid by county or State for special high-school purposes. In many cases the granting of aid from the larger taxing unit was made contingent upon the raising of similar funds by the local district. The courses of study which have been encouraged by this means are, for the most part, courses the introduction and maintenance of which entail comparatively heavy costs. Courses in agriculture, household arts, manual training, and teacher training have been most frequently subsidized in this fashion, and some of the States have favored commercial and industrial work, the mechanic arts, and mining. Similarly, aid has been extended for libraries and laboratory equipment.

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The beneficial effects of legislation of this kind are clearly summarized in a previous report on this subject in these words:

Wherever the experiment of providing direct State aid has been tried it has been a decided success. No State to my knowledge has retraced its steps. By this means it is possible for the school to provide better teachers, better buildings, and better equipment. Pupils are thus enabled to receive a high-school education at home and are thereby stimulated to look forward to the next stage of education; that is, to the college, normal school, or university."

5. Standardization and classification of high schools. The secondary school, as it was founded in the United States, was closely related to the college, and its primary purpose was preparation of the youth for entrance to college. Although protests have been filed against the harmful effects of a too exclusive adherence to this purpose, and from time to time new purposes have been given weight, the college preparatory aim has maintained its position as one of the most clearly recognized objectives of secondary education. In the latter part of the nineteenth century, when the system of certificating the graduates of accredited high schools had been generally accepted by the higher institutions of the Mississippi Valley and westward, the necessity arose of adopting uniform plans of accrediting. The situation demanded a detailed description of the standards which an accredited high school should meet. Voluntary associations of universities and colleges on the one hand and of high schools on the other were formed in different geographical divisions of the country for the purpose of defining standards of accrediting which would meet the new situation. The activities of the associations in these directions have been and are extraordinarily influential and helpful to the best development of the modern high school.

Within recent years the work of the associations has been supplemented, and a considerable share of the responsibility for determining standards has been assumed by the legislatures of the various States. At the present time it is generally conceded that the determination of the objectives and materials of secondary education is to a large extent a legitimate function of the States. The items which are most frequently considered by legislatures are: Various features of the curriculum, the length of the school year, number of years' work to be offered, the qualifications of teachers, and admission and graduation requirements. Specifications as to buildings, libraries, and laboratory equipment are also laid down. In many of the States high schools are legally classified into first, second, or third class groups according to the number of years' work offered or the extent to which the prescribed standards are attained.

Bolton, F. E., State aid to high schools: Educ. Rev., vol. 31, p. 163.

The prevailing practice is to describe standards and requirements in general terms, so that ample scope may remain for local initiative and adjustment to local needs.

The benefits of the States' participation in the determination of standards for high schools have been experienced in large part by smaller communities. Many communities, which were either not informed or were indifferent to the requirements of the voluntary associations, have responded in admirable fashion to the requirements of the legal authorities of their respective States. In the opinion of many public-school officers the State legislatures, by virtue of their nearness to the people, have been able to give a substantial and much-needed emphasis to the popular conception of the high school as "the people's college." The ability and willingness of the States to accompany the prescription of standards with the offer of financial rewards for their achievement are factors which have encouraged many high schools that otherwise might not have been affected at all. The existence of high standards, which have been sanctioned by law, undoubtedly has contributed in large measure to the prestige which is now enjoyed by the secondary school.

6. Provisions for administration of State laws.-The enforcement of the laws which have been described necessitated the establishment of a considerable amount of State administrative machinery. In the States in which special State aid is rendered to high schools and in which the laws providing for the State aid do not describe in detail the terms upon which it is offered the State board of education or the State superintendent of public instruction is usually directed to define the minimum conditions. In many States the State board of education is given the duty of classifying schools and fixing standards for the courses of study either by approval or prescription. "The trend in present-day legislation is toward more definitely centralizing administrative authority and fixing responsibility in the State board of education or like body." The tendency to centralize responsibility for high-school standards in the State boards has resulted in the widespread practice of inspection of high schools by State authorities. At the present time practically all of the States have made provision for the inspection of high schools by representatives either of the State department of education or of the State university.5

For summary of powers and duties of State boards of education, see: Monahan, A. C., Organization of State departments of education; U. S. Bu. of Educ. Bul. No. 5, pp. 7-26, 1915.

4 IIood, W. R., Some important school legislation, 1921 and 1922: U. S. Bu. of Educ. Bul. No. 43, p. 6, 1922.

For description of the status of high-school inspection in the 48 States, see: Henderson, J. L., State systems of high-school inspection; Educational Administration and Supervision, vol. 1, pp. 493-510, October, 1915.

Chapter II

ANALYSIS OF JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL LEGISLATION

In the previous chapter an analysis was made of legislation on the high school as it is found in the United States as a whole. A brief description was given of the purposes and effects of this legislation. In the present chapter it is proposed to describe such legislation as relates explicitly to the junior high school. The same six categories under which high-school legislation was classified in Chapter I are used in this chapter. Reference will be made to the States in which the several types of legislation are to be found.

The latest editions of the school laws of the 48 States which were available in February, 1923, were examined for references to the junior high school. In the codes of 18 of the States legislation which relates explicitly to the junior high school was found. This conclusion was confirmed by the returns from letters of inquiry which subsequently were sent to the superintendents of public instruction in all of the States. It is immediately obvious that up to the present time State legislatures have been very much less concerned with the new intermediate school than with the high school. In decidedly more than one-half of the States no legislation at all has been enacted in behalf of the new school as such, and the total volume of legislation is very small indeed as compared with that on the high school. It should be pointed out, however, that the 18 States in which legal recognition of the junior high school is found are located in different sections of the country. In the North Atlantic division such recognition has been given in Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Vermont; in the South Atlantic division, in Georgia, Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia; in the North Central division, in Indiana, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin; in the South Central division, in Alabama and Arkansas; and in the Western division, in California and Nevada. The full text of the laws of each of the 18 States appears in the appendix.

1. Permitting the establishment of junior high schools.-In Table 1 there appears a list of the six categories under which the several types of legislation on the junior high school are classified. The checks in the columns of the table indicate the States in which the several types are found. An examination of the bottom row shows that in 10 of the States laws have been passed which are classified as permitting the establishment of reorganized schools, or prescribing the conditions or procedure by which the establishment may be