REPORT.

THE Committee, appointed by the Directors of the American Institute of Instruction, to examine the several Essays which have been offered " On the Construction of School-Houses," and to award the Society's premium to the author of the best one, respectfully ask leave to

REPORT:

That they have given the subject committed to them, that deliberate consideration which its practical importance to the great cause of common education seemed to them to require. They have carefully examined five Essays, with their accompanying plans; some of them being of considerable length, and all of them containing valuable suggestions upon the several topics discussed in them. And while the Committee would not be understood to predicate absolute perfection of any of them, they have unanimously agreed that the one offered by WILLIAM A. ALCOTT, of Hartford, Ct., is decidedly the best. And they do hereby award to him the premium of TWENTY DOLLARS, appropriated by the proper authorities of the Institute for that purpose.

The Committee ask leave further to report, that pending their deliberations, they received a scientific and valuable communication from Mr. WOODBRIDGE, of Hartford, Ct., upon the "Size of School-Rooms; "-a topic intimately connected

with, or rather forming a part of, the more general subject discussed in the Prize Essay. In view of its merit, both as a distinct performance, and as an amplification of one topic of the subject proposed for the prize, the Committee herewith submit the document; and recommend that it be appended to the Prize Essay, and published with that, agreeably to the Resolve with which this Report concludes.

All which is respectfully submitted by your Committee. JAMES G. CARTER. E. BAILEY.

J. KINGSBURY.

1. Resolved, That the thanks of the Institute be presented to Mr. Woodbridge for his timely and valuable communication upon the "Size of School-Rooms."

2. Resolved, That the Prize Essay "On the best Construction of School Houses" be read before the Institute, at such time during its present session as convenience may suggest; and that, together with the document appended, it be printed under the direction of the Censors; and that each member of the Institute receive, on application, one copy gratis.

CONSTRUCTION

OF

SCHOOL-HOUSES.

THAT the general arrangement and appearance of even inanin ate things around us, have an extensive influence in forming our character, will hardly be questioned. Every object, and every individual we see, either renders us more cheerful and happy, or the contrary. The condition of those objects, therefore, which surround a collection of children, whether the number of those children be five, fifty, or one hundred, must of necessity have a very considerable influence in forming their dispositions, and giving a determination to their future character.

Nor is their present comfort a matter of indifference, any more than that of the same number of adults. Where is the parent to be found, who would select as a location for his dwelling, the junction of four roads, or a portion of the highway, or a sand-bank, marsh, or swamp? Or, who would choose, for this purpose, a bleak hill, a wilderness, or some lonely and secluded spot, rarely visited by man or beast? With a few misanthropic exceptions, mankind love to dwell in airy places, affording a pleasant prospect. They are fond of having shade and fruit trees, shrubs, flowers, fountains, and greensward around their dwellings. The number of those who prefer the disagreeable sight of barren hills, and fields, and sand-banks, or the nauseous and unwholesome exhalations of stagnant

water, the barn yard and the sty, to the fragrance and rich scenery alluded to, must certainly be small: yet what is more common than to find school-houses exposed to many of these evils, and sometimes to all of them combined? The strongest evidence is every where afforded, that in constructing and furnishing them, we too often consult our own convenience, rather than the comfort, welfare, or accommodation of our children. Location, size, structure, internal arrangement and furnitureall combine to force upon our minds the same conclusion. The many dark, crowded, ill-looking, and sometimes disorderly and filthy huts, to be found in the country, called, or rather mis-called school-houses, seem to have been provided as a kind of necessary evil, rather than as places of voluntary and cheerful resort for the offspring of the proprietors. In conformity with these views, we are told by a recent writer on this subject, that of forty school-houses with which he is acquainted in a single county, "three fourths," as he judges, are “located without regard to the comfort, health, and happiness of the children. They stand in gloomy, unhealthy places, without a feature of beauty in the scenery around them."

Few, indeed, of the numerous school-houses in this country are well lighted. Fewer still are painted, even on the outside. Play-grounds, for common schools, are scarcely known, Hence the pupils are obliged to play in the road, exposed to every attendant danger, both physical and moral.

Nor are the internal arrangements more favorable. There is much suffering from the alternation of heat and cold, and from smoke. The feet of children have even sometimes been frozen. Too many pupils are confined to a single desk or bench, where they are constantly jostling or otherwise disturbing each other. The construction of the desks and benches is often bad. Little or no provision is made for free ventilation. Hundreds of rooms are so small that the pupils have not, upon the average, more than five or six square feet of surface each; and here they are obliged to sit, breathing impure

air, on benches often not more than six or eight inches wide, and without backs. Many of these benches are so high that the children's feet cannot reach within several inches of the floor. Thus suspended, between the heavens and the earth, they are compelled to remain motionless for an hour or an hour and a half together. These things ought not so to be. Their health and comfort are believed to be far more important than their progress in science; and in providing for their accommodation during the hours of study, these are the first points to be secured. Health, as well as time, is money; and it is a most mistaken economy which confines a child to those arrangements, and to that atmospheric impurity, which render him unfit for vigorous effort, and thus slowly, though surely, impair his constitution: for we impose by these means a far greater tax on the parent, than would be necessary in erecting the most spacious buildings, and furnishing ample and liberal accommodations.

Some of the above-mentioned evils arise from the fact that the centre of population of the district has usually determined the location of school-houses. But a central situation should be regarded as a matter of only secondary importance. The house should stand on an elevated spot of firm soil, at a moderate distance from any other buildings, or any public road. A few shade trees should be near, and if convenient, fruit trees. A piece of ground, consisting of from a quarter to half an acre, should be devoted to the purposes of the school, and enclosed by a fence or wall in such a manner as to prevent, at the pleasure of the instructer, any communication from without. The main building should be near the side of the enclosure adjoining the usual point of entrance. The wood should be kept in a separate building, as the danger from fire is thereby diminished, and the house can be kept more cleanly and airy. In the rear of these should be a spacious play-ground, part of which should be paved, and covered with a kind of roof, or awning, where recreations may be conducted in unfavorable