Is Norwood’s Willett School Crowded Before It Opens?-June 8, 1968

Answers Depend On Definitions

Is the George F. Willett elementary school which is scheduled to open this fall already too small? This question has been raised by school committeemen with increasing frequency recently as they viewed the prospect of redistricting students into the new school. Answers from different officials, however, varied with their definitions of “overcrowding.” To school committee members aiming for the state-recommended 25-to-1 elementary school pupil-teacher ratio, a 12-room school in which eight classrooms will contain more than 30 pupils each is seen as too small.

To Dr. Philip O. Coakley, school superintendent, the school is not overcrowded and the situation does not approach the school housing problems experienced when the Cleveland and Oldham elementary schools opened. Dr. Coakley says he is satisfied with a 28-to-1 elementary school pupil-teacher ratio. The Willett school was not built on the theory that population in the area would taper off, he said in a recent interview. It was built as a neighborhood school on a 30-pupil-per classroom capacity. If the population has turned out to be higher than the projections, it is because more large families are moving into town. At the 30-pupil-per-classroom figure, the 500-pupil school was built to hold 360 children in grades 1 through 6 instead of the 386 on the books. The school was also designed to serve 100 kindergarteners in two sessions and two special education classes of 30 to 36 students. Such a ratio is achievable if half the classes have 31 students and the other half 25. However, in enrollment projections this year, the Willett school is to house 386 students excluding kindergarten and special education pupils.

If these students were to be housed in the 12 classrooms, the pupil-teacher ratio would have been 32 to 1. In initial projections, this situation was lessened by dividing the third grade into three classes instead of two. Now under consideration is a plan to divide the first grade into three classes of 21 pupils each instead of two classes. Presumably, the extra classes will be housed in one of the two kindergarten rooms or one of the two special education rooms. But even with the presently contemplated 13 classes, the school is left with six classes of 32 students, one of 33 and one of 31. On the basis of the tentative figures, the new Willett school next year will offer a pupil-teacher ratio of 29 to 1, the highest in Norwood.

The theory behind the state-recommended reduction in class size holds that in smaller classes children receive more individual attention and instruction. When asked why the enrollment at the new school should be so high Dr. Coakley indicated that in his thinking the importance of retaining the neighborhood school concept—even if it means having 500 pupils in a grade school—outweighs class-size considerations. “All elementary schools have been geared to a 500 enrollment,” says Dr. Coakley. “More rooms may give a greater capacity, but they are not good educationally for elementary pupils. In the neighborhood elementary school, 12 basic classrooms are best. I prefer to see two 500-pupil-size elementary schools than one big one. This is the desirable educational population of an elementary school. Over this point, you lose administrative flexibility.”

Although the superintendent is opposed to larger schools, both the Balch and the Cleveland have been substantially enlarged in recent years to handle populations of up to 700 pupils each. Furthermore, emphasis has been given to the fact that the Willett school was designed so it will leave Norwood with more box by the state. To comply town-wide, the school housing 112 elementary school classes which have ratios running closely behind the Willett school, the other schools have ratios low enough to bring the town-wide average down to 27 to 1. Most primary classes outside the Willett School have ratios of 25-to-1 or under, he emphasized. Even so, Norwood ranks third highest in 11 west suburban towns. Other towns building are Wellesley, Westwood, Dedham, Sharon, Foxboro, Medfield and Needham. Of these towns, Wellesley, Westwood, Dedham, Sharon, Foxboro, Medfield and Needham average elementary pupil teacher ratio is given to Kathleen M. Mills, Christine B. Kettlety and William M. Harris of John Goodwin Schirmer Health Medals. In Walpole the median is 26.5.

These school systems are aiming to reduce the pupil-teacher ratio in the light of the 25 to 1 elementary school recommendations made in the Willis Harrington Report in 1965 which may become law this year. “With the auxiliary programs,” Dr. Coakley says, “a good strong teacher can handle 30 kids.” Eight of these largest classes are at the Willett, eight at the Callahan school, and six at the Balch. On the basis of the 1968 enrollment projections Norwood would need 16 additional classrooms under the law. These projections show a need for one classroom at the Cleveland, four at the Balch, four at the Prescott, two at the Callahan and four at the Willett schools. According to William B. Black of the state’s school building assistance bureau, the traditional classroom organization of a school is not used next year if Norwood meets the state standard in every instance. He has said he feels the 25 to 1 ratio is especially desirable in the primary grades but, that a 28 to 1 ratio is completely acceptable if it is necessary to maintain the neighborhood school concept.

A spokesman for the state Department of Education explained recently that the board of education is expected to adopt a maximum size limit this year. Cities and towns are usually given a five-year transition period before the maximum becomes mandatory, he added. If the 25 to 1 ratio is adopted it will leave Norwood with more classrooms projected for next year, 68 are there for 1969 over the 25 to 1 ratio and of those 32 contain more than 30 students. Eight of these largest classes would all out the state school building here and a classroom number of the car. He warns that if the 25 to 1 recommendation “becomes law, we’ll be put into an economical box by the state. To comply class lies in the center of town. A school here was listed in the 1966 school committee five-year need projections to the capital outlay planning board. The Hennessey field school was projected for 1971 if the population increases. In that same report, the school committee projected a need for an eight-room addition to the Prescott school in 1970. While the Prescott school is maintaining a relatively low pupil teacher ratio, it is holding several classes outside of standard classrooms.

Dr. Coakley says he strongly concurs with the 25 to 1 ratio recommendation, but has also told the school board it is on further residential construction in Norwood predicted 2,993 pupils. At present, however, 3,079 plus 33 special pupils are anticipated. So, the old projections were wrong to some extent, but how far wrong remains an unanswered question. The construction of single residences has tapered off in Norwood, but apartment construction has only just begun. And, says Dr. Coakley, “if the planning board allows developers to come in here and build high-rise apartments, you can throw the figures away.” Otherwise, he expects the population to level off in 1972. The fact remains, however, that once again Norwood has built a school which will open with more pupils in grades 1 through 6 than it was designed to hold. Why? There could be several reasons, but none of the usual explanations are being cited. The school could have been built with the expectation that population in the area would taper off. But, Dr. Coakley says no, they will level off at the existing enrollment rather than decrease. Opposition from town meeting toward the school could have caused school officials to settle for half a loaf rather than the whole. But, in the past two years, the proposed size of the school was never questioned by either town meeting, the school committee or the permanent building committee. When opposition was expected, the rebuttal was “all you have to do is count noses to see the school is needed.”

Were noses counted? According to Dr. Coakley, the school was built according to the population projections established by the school department and verified by the state school building assistance commission. The projections were based on the birth rate at Norwood Hospital five years ago, he said. Was the state-recommended 25-to-1 ratio taken into account in planning the school. Here lies a possible answer. While the school appears to be built along traditional lines, it does have four classrooms that can be made into larger rooms by opening temporary partitions. And, the school does have four rooms set aside for small group instruction. Whether these rooms will be used as designed and staffed for such classes remains a question, and finding room to grow in the next few years without constructing additions remains a problem.

Archival Note: This article has been dynamically reconstructed from the original public record print archives of the Patriot Ledger