School consolidation was a major policy issue in Ontario the early twentieth century. This film is an extended argument for why the one room schoolhouse results in a poor education. The trip to and from school in rural Ontario is portrayed as long, cold and potentially perilous. Young children must evade potentially dangerous ‘tramps’ as they travel to school. Larger, centralized schools provide a much better educational experience, according to the film. One over-burdened teacher is responsible for a wide range of learners, crammed into a small, cold classroom. A meeting of the local ratepayers is portrayed dramatically as consolidation is debated. “You want to save your money, but I want save my children,” says one. The film closes with a large, consolidated school on display, offering a superior education and improved facilities. 

The Rugged Road to Learning, film, 1921, 28 minutes, 21 seconds, Graphic Consultants Collection, Accession number 1972-0105, Item number ISN 120360, Library and Archives Canada

Film editing and musical direction: Mariana Hutten

Songs:  The Mosquito's Parade -Broadway Saxophone Sextet: Whitney, 1918

            Kiss Me Again - Fred H. Brown, saxophone, 1916

            Leave Me with a Smile – Rudy Wiedoeft's Californians, 1921

            Juzbo Jazz - Earl Fuller's Famous Jazz Band; Earl Fuller, 1918

            Big Chief Blues – Master Saxophone Sextet; Bernard, 1919

            Charming Waltz - Jaudas' Society Orchestra; Archibald Joyce, 1918

            Skeleton Jangle - Original Dixieland Jazz Band; Nick LaRocca, 1918

            The Prettiest Little Song of All - John F. Burckhardt; Belasco, 1918

Say It with Music - Selvin's Dance Orchestra; Berlin, 1921

Further Discussion

Marta Danylewycz and Alison Prentice, 'Teachers' Work: Changing Patterns and Perceptions in the Emerging School Systems of Nineteenth and Early Twentieth Century Central Canada," Labour/ Travail, 17 (Spring 1986), 59-80.

Transfiguration of the Little Red School House, Star Weekly, March 24, 1923, p.19