256 THE FISCAL PROBLEM IN MISSOURI
ment in Missouri. The soundest development whether in
educational or other fields is usually evolutionary in nature.
Almost any change that can be said to be revolutionary in
nature involves a large number of readjustments, and the
results of the readjustments may not always be desirable.
The adoption of the proposed plan would mean a complete
change in the entire system of public school finance in Missouri,
and the change would be made without an opportunity
to obtain a check of desirable or undesirable results until
some time after the plan went into effect. For example, the
effect on local initiative in school matters could not be immediately
observed. It is possible that the plan might do
more harm than good to the rural school districts. Once
adopted, it would be much more difficult to eliminate any
objectionable features that might develop than to follow a
definite plan providing for a gradual change, adjusting the
plan as the necessity arises.
An ApproacH To THE ProBLEM oF PusLic
ScuooL FINANCE
An approach to the problem of public school finance in
Missouri should take into consideration at least six major
factors: (1) the difference in the economic status of the
several sections of the state; (2) the shift in population from
the rural sections of the state; (3) the one-room rural district;
(4) the value of local initiative in school affairs; (5) the
difficulty of using assessed valuation as a basis for the
equalization of educational opportunities; and (6) the desirability
of approaching the problem from the standpoint of
need.
The marked difference in the economic status of the several
sections of the state is an important factor in public school
finance. There is a decided contrast between many of the
counties in northern and northwestern Missouri and counties
in the southern part of the state. The agricultural lands of
the state vary greatly in productiveness, and the existing
differences cause variations in the ability to finance public
functions satisfactorily. In some sections of the state the
public schools can hardly be financed entirely by local levies,
