WISCONSIN. Report for 1895 and 1896, Hon. J. Q. Emery, State superintendent. The considerable increase in the amount paid to teachers is claimed to indicate better instructors and longer terms of schools. On the whole, this superintendent insists that these have improved every way within the last ten or fifteen years in teaching force, in building, and other items in the system. Very few are withont teachers who have had advantages above district ungraded schools. Very great good has resulted from the increase of teachers' institutes. Improvement is claimed also for ungraded schools, because of the advanced sentiments in general growing out of such institutes and other associations, and more intelligent, vigilant supervision of county superintendents, leading to better-systemized instruction. The following is a summary of the superintendent's observations on this head: "To summarize, these are a few lines along which we may mark the progress which is being made, viz: The attendance of pupils, the interest of patrons and citizens in the material equipment of public schools, demand for more thoroughly trained teachers, the increase of a more intelligent use of a course of study, and the growing appreciation of the value of good books for general reading as an adjunct of the school in promoting general intelligence and good citizenship." The report port has some very interesting observations regarding urban and country schools. The former, although with well-trained and experienced teachers, are trammeled partly by the too early leaving school on the part of considerable numbers, and partly by the greater indulgences allowed to children in villages than in rural districts. Yet the superiority of these schools works injury to the rural by the frequent drafts upon their classes, and greatly diminishing the number of their pupils. The report makes several recommendations tending to better the condition of things in these country schools. One is the consolidation of small and sparsely populated school districts and the transportation of pupils to and from the schoolhouses when they live too far to walk the distance; another is to provide for better inspection; another is a different method in distributing school funds, with view of bringing about as great equalization of cost as possible. The report also opposes the district as the only or the principal unit of taxation because of its smallness, variableness, and liability to be controlled by narrow, selfish considerations. It recommends also greater encouragement of kindergartens. Other changes are commended. What now is particularly needed is that teachers make themselves familiar with the books in the library, so as to help pupils in making selections. Much praise is bestowed upon the marked advance of the free high schools, of which there are now 197, as many as 8 being added within the last two years. Most of these are in towns and villages. Towns, as such, have thus far taken little advantage of the law. The following is taken from observations under the head, "Manual-training departments:" "By chapter 358, laws of 1895, the legislature authorized any board of education in the State having charge of a high school to establish and maintain a department of manual training in connection with the schools under its control and management, and further enacted that the expense of maintaining such department be provided for in the same manner as expenses for maintaining high schools are provided for." The superintendent is to advise and assist in the organization, and the work has made substantial progress. The State has been liberal in care of the deaf, with whom both the sign and oral methods are employed. At the beginning of the year 1895 there were four of these schools. At the time when this report was made there were nine. A long space is devoted to physical training in normal schools. It includes photographs of pupils at various stages of development, and is in all respects highly interesting. The seventh of these normal schools was established in 1895. The State University continues to make great strides. Students have gone from 443 in 1885-86 to 1,598 in 1895-96. The largest number is in the College of Letters and Science, which includes also the schools of economics, political science, and history. In this (the College of Letters and Science) there has been a great increase of women students, greater, indeed, than that of men. The proportion of the former to the latter in 1886-87 was 116 to 221; in 1896-97 it was 327 to 491. The following extract shows some facts that are highly interesting and significant: "It can not be said that the problem of coeducation presents many difficulties. The old query as to whether the health of young women would bear the strain of a university course has been swept away by the energetic hand of experience; so, also, has the doubt as to whether scholarship would not suffer from the presence of women in the classes. It is settled, not only here but elsewhere, that the general health of young women is better at the time of graduation than at the time of entrance, and that the average scholarship of young women is higher than that of young men." There are some difficulties, however, the report admits, one being the "tendency to excessive recreation." It is suggested that an official be appointed to be styled "dean of the woman's department." At present the university has no control over the deportment of the large majority, who live in clubs and boarding houses. the superintendent says, "It is a pleasure to add that in general none is needed." WYOMING. Report for 1895 and 1896, Miss Estelle Reel, superintendent of public instruction. Yet Complaint is made of the lack of sufficient facilities for obtaining correct and reliable statements of school statistics, subordinate officials being slow and often inexpert in rendering accounts to county superintendents. The difficulty lies partly in objections to the provisions which district treasurers and clerks are required to observe, which to some of them seem needlessly exacting and onerous. The law requires these officials to report to the voters of the district at the annual district meeting on the first Monday in May, and afterwards on the first Monday of September to report to the county superintendent. This added burden is much complained of, and delay and laxity are the consequences. Yet increments are reported in several lines. The number of schools in 1894, 379, increased to 425 in 1896, of teachers from 407 to 465, and of pupils 1,272. Attendance of children is better than ever before. School buildings have gone from 257 to 306. But the average of wages has decreased; also the cost of tuition to some extent. Under operation of the act of 1895 for reduction in the number of school districts, they have been brought down to 182. Notwithstanding reduction in the salaries of county superintendents, high praise is bestowed upon their diligence and efficiency. The report argues str strongly for the adoption of a uniform course of study for the whole State. It has already been adopted in several of the counties with signal benefit. Much praise is bestowed upon the county institutes. The good results from regular reading of educational magazines and like publications lead the superintendent to urge every teacher in the State to subscribe for them. The superintendent is earnest, like her predecessor, in the matter of free text-books, and commends the following arguments made by the latter in one of his reports. After carefully studying the question, noting the experiences in other States where the system prevails, the following summary of benefits is given: "First. A gain of from 25 to 40 per cent on first cost. "Second. A gain of at least 33 per cent in the time the book will be in proper condition to use. "Third. Considering first cost and time of use, there is a gain of about 50 per eent in cost to the community. "Fourth. The classes are uniformly supplied at the proper time and with the proper text-books. "Fifth. The very unpleasant distinction between rich and poor is avoided. "Sixth. Increased attendance. "Seventh. Schools are more successfully graded. "Eighth. A State or county system is more easily carried out. "Ninth. A very great and unnecessary expense to teachers is avoided " Inasmuch as adoption of the system in general will be, in all probability, delayed by consideration of the great expense which the first outlay must necessarily incur, the report recommends for the present that the matter be left to the voluntary action of the several districts. Attention is called to the extremely onerous duties of the State superintendent's department. This official, in addition to being school superintendent, is ex officio a member of the board of trustees of the State University, secretary of the State board of charities and reform, and secretary and register of the State board of land commissioners. Without seriously complaining, the superintendent uses the following sufficiently pertinent language: "The law authorizes a contingent which allows the heads of other departments to appoint such clerks for their office as they deem advisable, and it is not easy to discern the wisdom of the restrictions placed upon the clerical assistance afforded to this department." The university is reported to be advancing. The trustees this year did away with what was styled the "subpreparatory class." The standard has been considerably raised, and some valuable accessions have been made to the faculty. Much benefit is claimed to have come already from the State Teachers' Association, which was formed in the year 1891. Quite a liberal grant of land was lately made to the State Agricultural College. To guard against the hindrances probably attaching to judicious disposal of land in large quantities, it was provided that selections be made of tracts not less than 160 acres, nor more than 640. CHAPTER XXVIII. FOREIGN UNIVERSITIES. I. Arranged according to date of founding. II. Arranged according to number of students. III. Arranged alphabetically. IV. Arranged according to countries. V. List of polytechnica. VI. List of agricultural, forestry, and mining schools. INTRODUCTION. The authors of "Minerva, Jahrbuch der Universitäten der Welt," which is the chief source of information offered in the following six lists, say that they have submitted their work at various stages of completion comple to different professors of the countries mentioned, so that they are assured that their decision as to which of the learned institutions of the world should be regarded as universities is upheld by the most trustworthy authority. They call their Jahrbuch a collection of names of teaching bodies, of universities, or similar institutions of the world. In the first edition the authors admitted that, despite the most rigorous search, a few of the smaller institutions of the Western Hemisphere escaped their notice. In subsequent editions these omissions have been corrected, and libraries, societies, and museums added, so that the fifth edition, that of 1895-96, is a remarkably valuable source of information. Since this Report of the Bureau of Education contains direct information concerning the higher institutions of learning in the United States, they have been omitted from the following lists, which are devoted exclusively to foreign institutions. 1501 Valencia, Spain. 1502 Halle-Wittenberg, Prussia, Germany. 1502 Sevilla, Spain. 1504 Santiago, Spain. 1506 Breslau, Prussia, Germany. 1508 Madrid, Spain. 1527 Marburg, Prussia, Germany. 1531 Granada, Spain. 1531 Sarospatak, Hungary. 1537 Lausanne, Switzerland. 1540 Macerata, Italy. 1544 Königsberg, Prussia, Germany. 1548 Messina, Sicily, Italy. 1556 Sassari, Italy. 1558 Jena, Thuringia, Germany. 1559Geneva, Switzerland. 1566 Olmütz, Moravia, Austria. 1567 Strasburg, Alsace, Germany. 1568 Braunsberg, Prussia, Germany. 1572 Nancy, France. 1575 Leiden, Holland. 1580 Oviedo, Spain. 1583 Edinburgh, Scotland. 1556 Graz, Styria, Austria. 1588 Kiew (Kieff), Russia. 1591 Dublin, Ireland. 1596 Cagliari, Italy. 1808 Rennes, France. 1809 Berlin, Prussia, Germany. 1811 Christiana, Norway. 1812 Genoa, Italy. 1816 Ghent, Belgium. 1816 Warsaw, Poland, Russia. 1817 Liege (Lüttich), Belgium. 1818 Bonn, Prussia, Germany. 1819 Petersburg, Russia. 1821 Montreal, Canada. 1826 London (University College), Eng land. 1827 Toronto, Canada. 1827 Sheffield (Medical College), England. 1828 Lampeter (St. David's College), Wales. 1832 Zürich, Switzerlaud. 1834 Brussels, Belgium. 1834 Berne, Switzerland. 1836 London (University), England. 1837 Athens, Greece. 1838 Messina, Italy. 1845 Cork, Ireland. 1845 Belfast, Ireland. 1845 Galway, Ireland. 1849 Algiers, Algeria. 1850 Sydney, Australia. 1851 Manchester (Victoria University), England. 1851 Newcastle, England. 1853 Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. 1857 Calcutta, India. 1857 Madras. India. 1857 Bombay, India. 1860 Jassy, Roumania. 1862 Kecskemet, Hungary. 1864 Bucharest, Roumania. 1865 Odessa, Russia. 1866 Neuchatel, Switzerland. 1868 Tokyo, Japan. 1870 New Zealand, New Zealand. 1872 Aberystwith, Wales. 1872 Adelaide, Australia. 1873 Cape City, South Africa. 1874 Agram, Croatia, Hungary. 1875 Angers, France. 1875 Lille (Faculté Libre), France. 1875 Lyons (Faculté Libre), France. 1875 Czernowitz, Bukowina, Austria. 1875 Birmingham, England. 1876 Bristol, England. 1877 Leeds, England. 1877 Liverpool, England. 1878 Stockholm, Sweden. 1879 Sheffield (Firth College) England. |