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Show OVER EIGHTEEN" THOUSAND SCHOOLS IN U. S. CLOSE FOR LACK OF T E A V H E K S. According to reports to the United I States Bureau of Education, the : country is faced with a serious short- 1 age of school teachers, chiefly through failure to provide adequate ; salaries. Based on returns from State school officials, the reports ! show that on Feb. 13 last 18,279 schools were closed because of lack of teachers and 41,900 were being taught by teachers characterized as "below standard, but taken on temporarily tem-porarily in an emergency." Greater shortages of teachers are shown in the Southern than in the Northern States. Here is another alarming phase of the situation: In 190 State, county, city and private normal schools, representing 60 per cent, of the total normal schools in the country, there were 11,593 fewer students enrolled Nov. 1, 1919, than during the pre-war period. A similar falling off is shown in teacher-training departments depart-ments in colleges, while other departments de-partments show great increases in enrollment. |