Tennessee Schools in 1915

East Tennessee Schools, my thanks to Pam Mulinix for the use of her photos

Lots of improvements were underway in Tennessee schools:  

 

Standardizing  textbooks:

Haliburtion's Primer and Haliburton's First reader were recommended for the first grade.

Cover of Haliburton's First Reader, digitized by Google

Read Haliburton's First Reader Here
 

Improving school buildings:

More school buildings were being built and some of these schools were consolidated schools (combining two or more smaller schools). Consolidated schools were made possible by the use of school wagons. Local farmers were hired to drive the children to school. More of the school systems were starting to build brick schools too.
Boys' Corn Clubs were very popular. Read more about Corn Clubs

Moses School, Knoxville (photo shows later addition)

Modern desks

One room school circa 1910, showing wooden plank desks

Photo Credit: Derek Bruff, Some rights reserved

Increasing school year:

Carter was able to run some consolidated schools for 8 months.

Hamblen County 6 months

Henry County 6 months

Roane County 8 or 9 months

Hancock County 5 months

Hardin 4 months

Grainger 5 months and one week

Greene increased from 4 ½ to 6 months

Maury 8 months

Meigs County needs better resources to be able to run their schools for 6 months

Adding district school libraries:

Claiborne County had the most ambitious plan:

The Items of Standardization as printed below have helped our schools more than anything. The teachers unanimously adopted the following items of standardization for every school in Claiborne County at the County Institute:

1 School graded

2 Library and bookcase

3 House painted repair roof doors windows and locks

4 A flag for every school

5 Cooler and individual drinking cups

6 Time piece clock preferred

7 Globe maps blackboard erasers and waste baskets

8 Broom cluster sprinkler or oil floors

9 Cloak room or racks for hats and wraps

10 Daily schedule posted including study and recitation periods

11 Two pictures well framed and an additional picture each year

12 Call bell for class use

13 Proper seating

14 Proper ventilation

15 Proper heating stove jacketed 16 School improvement club

17 School pig – Who doesn't love a school pig?

18 Activity in Church and Sunday School

19 Attendance at Teachers Meetings

20 Taking and reading at least one educational journal

21 Minimum of three public gatherings

22 Visiting every home or reason for failure

23 No tobacco or alcoholics used by teachers or pupils

24 Personal supervision at play time

25 Neat personal appearance of teacher

26 Flowers on yard table or in window

27 Neat school grounds

28 Sanitary out houses

29 Orderly assembling and dismissing of pupils

30 Reading of the Bible at opening exercises

31 Teachers report to member of Board and Superintendent when absence is necessary

32 Neatly kept register with daily roll call

33 Domestic arts at home or school two exhibits of work from at least one half of the girls

34 Manual training at home or school an exhibit at close of school from at least one half of the boys

35 Inventory showing everything received or added during the year

36 An exhibit to the County Fair

The opening day of the County Fair was given over entirely to the school children of the county. Public school pupils took part in the following contests: Reciter's Declaimer's, Bird House Contest for the boys manual training, Apron Contest for the girls domestic arts. , Prizes were also given for the best General School Exhibit of the first three grades, also for the best General School Exhibit of the grades beyond the third.

 Our slogan for this year has been, “ A Library and School Improvement Association for Every School.”