CHAPTER XIV.—THE LETTERS OF RABBI AKIBAH, OR THE JEWISH PRIMER AS IT WAS USED Address on Horaca Mann before the National Educational Association at Buffalo, N. Y., July REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONER OF EDUCATION. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR, BUREAU OF EDUCATION, Washington, D. C., October 1, 1896. SIR: I have the honor to submit herewith the annual report of this office for the year ending June 30, 1896. TOTAL ENROLLMENT IN SCHOOLS AND COLLEGES. There were enrolled in the schools and colleges, both public and private, during the school year 1895-96, 15,997,197 pupils, being an increase of 308,575 over the preceding year. On pages XII and XIII the detailed classification is given, showing the numbers in elementary, secondary, and higher education, the number in public institutions being 14,465,371 and in private institutions 1,531,826. Various special schools and institutions, including business colleges, trade schools, conservatories of music, schools of art, of oratory and elocution, schools for defective classes, reform schools, Indian schools, evening schools, and other schools of a miscellaneous character, enrolling in the aggregate 418,000 pupils, should be added to obtain the complete enrollment in schools of all kinds. This gives 16,415,197 as the grand total. THE COMMON SCHOOLS. The term "common schools" is used in this office to include public schools of elementary (first eight years of course of study) and secondary (ninth to twelfth years of course of study) grades, no institutions of higher education being included even though supported by public taxes. The following table gives a condensed summary of the common-school statistics compiled from the data furnished this office by the State superintendents. The details of this table are given on pages LV to LXXV. The increase in pupils over last year is seen to be 177,326. The enrollment in some of these classes of institutions is quite large, as for exampleEvening schools Business colleges. Indian schools. Defective classes. 202, 773 80,852 23, 572 21, 930 [Foot note continued on page x.] In the succeeding table (pp. XII-XIII) the number in private schools and the totals of higher education have been added to the number in the common schools to show the instruction by grades for the whole country and for each of the five census divisions. Common-school statistics of the United States. Benevolent institutions, chiefly orphan asylums, that do not send to outside schools. Total 19,327 13,309 361,763 These items are in part estimated. The item "taught in benevolent institutions" is given in detail as follows: Children under 16 years of age in benevolent institutions in 1890. |