Downloads & Free Reading Options - Results

A survey sought public opinion on the functions and responsibilities of the schools from the residents of Philadelphia, suburban Philadelphia, New Jersey, and Delaware. The questionnaire provided an opportunity for expression on: (1) what should be the educational priorities of the schools; (2) educational changes for which individuals would be willing to pay higher taxes; and (3) ideas to improve education by changing school policy. Individuals with no children in the public schools were included in the survey. Priority ratings for all questions are presented on tables. An overview of the results indicated that teaching basic skills and values to all students, regardless of their handicaps, should be a higher priority for Delaware Valley schools than teaching computers or the arts. High priority was also assigned to teaching job skills to students not going on to college, and to providing programs for exceptionally bright students. Other high priority items were stricter promotion standards and more stringent discipline. Two-thirds of the respondents indicated they would pay higher taxes to reduce class size in the early grades. A copy of the questionnaire and a brief summary of results are included. (JD)

1Boy Crusoe

By Allan Eric

Also published as" A Yankee Crusoe" . A 15 year old hard working and studious farm boy finds the lure of adventure on the seas as a merchant seaman more than he can resist. This is his story. " I was born in a little town in the State of Maine, near the close of the Civil War. My boyhood life did not differ materially from that of the average farmer's son in the remote country districts of New England--except, perhaps, that I read more and thought more. Hard work on the rugged soil, two terms each year in the little yellow country schoolhouse, a day's fishing now and then filled the early years of my life full to over-flowing. " What he gets is enough excitement and adventure to overflow his wildest dreams. How he experiences disaster and uses his wits and knowledge to overcome every problem makes for a great read. - Summary by Phil Chenevert