cates, appoint all teachers on probation, and name the candidates from whom the prefects of departments may appoint full teachers. (3) Primary inspectors, at present about 450 in number, or one for every 150 primary schools. They inspect the work of individual schools, and report to the academic inspector. (4) Medical inspectors, whose duties include the examination of children with respect to their physical condition and of sites and buildings with respect to sanitary particulars. COMMUNAL OBLIGATIONS. As regards primary schools, however, the initiative of the people is enlisted in several ways. The law (1833) makes it obligatory upon every commune to establish a public school, which, under the law of June 16, 1881, must be a free school and, under laws of 1882 and 1886, secular and taught by a lay teacher. A commune, it must be remembered, is the simplest civil division in France. Its local affairs are controlled by a council, and a mayor chosen from the members of the same. A commune may have less than 20 inhabitants or it may be a populous city. Paris, indeed, is a commune, although differing somewhat from others in its form of local government. Large or small, the commune must establish a free primary school, provide the site and building, and a proportion of the current expenditure; not only so, but every commune of more than 500 inhabitants must have a separate school for girls (laws of March 15, 1850, and April 10, 1867). The situation of the communes in these respects as shown by the official report for 1894-95,1 was as follows: Out of 36,509 communes 35,582 had established a public school, 841 were united for the purpose with adjoining communes, 35 had only a private school, and 51 were without schools. The last class, however, are small communes of from 100 to 200 inhabitants, whose children obtain instruction in neighboring districts. The general preference for the separate education of boys and girls is indicated by the constant increase in the number of communes providing a public school for girls. The number having a population of 500 or upward not making such provision fell from 1,427 in 1891-92 to 1,360 in 1894-95. STATUS OF PRIMARY SCHOOLS AS REGARDS ENROLLMENT. The enrollment in primary schools continues to decline from year to year, as is shown by the statistics for successive years here presented: "Résumé des états de situation de l'enseignement primaire," for the school year 1894–95. The decline is slight, only three-tenths per cent from 1891 to 1895, but it presents conditions that are alarming. First, the ratio of decline is much greater for boys than for girls, five-tenths per cent against four hundredths per cent; second, it takes place in public schools only, the private schools considered as a whole showing steady gains, as will be seen from the following tabulation: From an inspection of the particulars in the foregoing table it appears further that the decline in attendance affected public schools and secular private schools, clerical private schools showing steady increase, amounting, in the four years reviewed, to 5 per cent. As regards the decline in the enrollment of boys, M. Buisson, in his comment upon the figures, expresses the belief that they contain some hidden error which the statistical commission' may yet discover. Special investigation of this point will be made and the results published in the next quinquennial report. The enrollment in the primary schools, as given above, 5,540,095, is equivalent to 14.4 per cent of the population. The enrollment, 714,734, in maternal or infant schools, that is for children 2 to 6 years of age, may properly be added to the above, as these are also under State supervision and partly supported by the State. This would give a general total of 6,254,829 pupils; 73 per cent of this total, viz, 3,452,764 pupils in the primary and 118,456 in the infant schools, were of the obligatory school ages-that is, 6 to 13 years. This total is 87.2 per cent of the entire number of children of the ages specified. If Algiers be omitted, the proportion for France alone is 96.5 per cent. The very small number of children of the legal school age, 156,000, not found within the schools bears witness to the vigilance of teachers and school officers. It should be noted also that the preparatory departments of secondary schools receive many children of legal school age-in 1891-92 their rolls showed 64,413. This commission was constituted in the ministry of public instruction and fine arts in 1876 and has issued altogether five reports. The chief of the commission is the distinguished statistician and writer upon economics, M. E. Levasseur. This ratio is absolutely less than the corresponding ratio of neighboring countries, in Germany and England, for example, where it is 17 per cent, but it must be remembered that the child popula tion of France bears a smaller ratio to the total population than in neighboring countries. The superior primary schools which correspond to high schools of this country are included in these estimates. The public schools of this grade had an enrollment of 47,397 pupils, an increase of 13 per cent in four years. The private schools of the same grade had the enrollment of 56,051. THE TEACHING SERVICE. The primary schools employed 150,913 teachers, of whom 105,162 were in public and 45,751 in private schools. In maternal schools there were 9,199 teachers, all women. The following table shows the classification of the teachers of the primary schools with respect to their qualifications as indicated by the diploma obtained: The increase in the number of public-school teachers provided with the full diploma above the number in 1891-92 is 5,753 (2,388 men, 3,365 women). The number having no diploma has diminished by 1,669 in the same time. In view of the number of teachers in charge of a school (viz, 67,380 in public schools), it is interesting to note the number of pupils to a school. In this respect the classification of the 102,506 schools was as follows: It appears also that there were 7,271 schools enrolling less than 20 pupils. The number of pupils seeking the certificate of elementary primary studies steadily increases. In 1895 there were 233,806 candidates ED 96-20* (128,181 boys, 105,625 girls), as against a total of 228,170 in 1892. Of the number presented for examination, 185,467 obtained the certificate in 1895 (175,675 in 1892). Pupils may offer themselves for the examination at 11 years of age. The certificate procures exemption from further attendance at the elementary schools and also admits the holder to the superior primary school. The certificate for superior primary schools is also sought by an increasing number of pupils, 3,359 in 1895 against 3,049 in 1892. The number of certificates of this grade delivered in 1895 was 2,035; in 1892 only 1,850. The normal schools for elementary teachers belong also to the department of primary instruction; these in 1895-96 enrolled 7,856 students, 3,930 men, 3,926 women. Evidences of the good results of the instruction obtained in the schools are afforded by the decline of illiteracy among conscripts. The proportion able to read and write, which was 92.2 per cent in 1892, had risen to 94.2 in 1895. SCHOOL SAVINGS BANKS AND FUNDS IN AID OF POOR CHILDREN. The use of school savings banks (caisses d'épargne scolaires) as a means for teaching thrift is apparently not increasing, the number of banks having fallen from 19,826 in 1893 to 17,793 in 1895, and the number of depositors from 419,896 to 410,188. The amount deposited, however, increased in the same time from $2,589,050 to $2,597,068. There is also apparently a slight diminution in the number of communes maintaining funds in aid of poor children (caisses des écoles). The number of such funds was 15,893 in 1895 against 16,121 in 1893. The receipts and disbursements, however, show increase in the same time, the former from $1,032,612 to $1,061,334; the latter from $804,255 to $871,390. FINANCES. The current expenditure for public primary schools (including the elementary and superior primaries) reached the following totals for the years specified: 1892 1893 1891 $34, 254, 839 35, 002, 400 37, 048, 012 This expenditure is divided between the State and the communes, the ratio borne by each having been the same for the three years, viz, 64 per cent for the State, 36 per cent for the communes. The expenditure for primary normal schools not included in the above amounted in 1894 to $1,780,900 borne by the State. The State not only bears the largest part of the expense of primary instruction, but, excepting in the large cities, is the animating impulse and controlling authority in respect to courses of study, qualification of teachers, and standards of exmination. This comes about very naturally among a people long accustomed to take their educational direction from an ecclesiastical hierarchy. Evidences of the growing interest of communes, however, seems to be afforded by the increased funds which they contribute for optional expenses. Omitting Algiers, which is included in the statistics heretofore given, the contributions of the communes under the head specified have been 1892 1893 1894 $3,940, 915 3, 980, 133 4, 418, 620 DEPARTMENT OF SECONDARY INSTRUCTION. To the department of secondary instruction belong the lycées (State) classical colleges), 107 in number, established and maintained by the State with the cooperation generally of the cities in which they are located, and the communal colleges, numbering 235, an inferior grade of classical school established by communal authorities with the aid of the State. No recent statistics of this department have been published. The latest will be found in the general table on page 612. THE LYCÉE IDEAL AND ATTEMPTED MODIFICATIONS. The lycée course embodies the French ideal of liberal culture. "It is in the lycée," says M. Bréal, "that the élite of our youth, magistrates, administrators, officers, diplomats, authors, receive all the general instruction that they will carry into life. In them is accomplished the apprenticeship of mind, and it may be said in advance that whatever gaps and deficiencies exist in secondary instruction will show themselves in the intellectual life of the nation." Because of this relation peculiar importance attaches to all efforts for the modification of the general conduct, the course of study, and the official recognition of these typical institutions. No problem before the superior council of public instruction has occupied more time or given rise to more serious efforts than that of the scope and adjustment of the lycée course. Some important changes were effected in the method of classical instruction by the new programmes of 1890, but the composition of the course and the predominance given to Latin show the tenacity of the old conception of liberal education. The modern course introduced as "enseignement secondaire spécial" in 1865 by M. Duruy was changed in name, "moderne" being substituted for "spécial," and also rendered more scholarly or less utilitarian by a decree of 1891. As to the effect of these changes no official report has yet been made. The plan of a trifurcated course and a triple baccalaureate introduced also by M. Duruy in 1865 was abandoned under the decree of 1890 and a single bachelor's degree adopted. The course was made uniform for all students of the full or classical division up to the last year, i. e., philosophy, when options are allowed. According to the choice made "Quelques mots sur l'instruction publique en France," page 157. |