The Middlebury register. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1850-1882, 1857-08-05
Republican County Nominations.
Common Schools.

oChOOAbs
The notices Of Teachers Institutes
held 10 different places in the State have
suggested to US few thoughts on the
subject of schools, which may not now
be entirely out of place. Not that we
can suggest anything new and striking,
but the subject is one in regard to which
a repetition and enforcement of we'll ad'
mitted truths will be the most useful
contribution to the cause Of education.
Teaching, not only in common schools
but in ell institutions Of learning, yield
to no other employment in the difficult
ties that environ it. A good teacher,
q. one qualified for his work in all Its
phases, is about as rare thing as an
honest man And this is so for various
reasons. Some Of these We will give,
combining ourselves to common schools,
and those disadvantages which belongs
peculiarly to them. In the first place
she scholars in common schools suffer
various disadvantages. /. They have
generally large number of studies, and
consequently little time for each, to say
nothing of the difficulty Of interesting
themselves in several things at once
2. They have often, (perhaps generality
iucouvenieut places in which to study.
The benches are hard, and arc SO built
as to be a constant source of fatigue, If
not disease. To copfine their minds to
their books in such place requires
more selfcommand than we have right
to expect in children. :, A constant
change Of teachers is worry serious evil.
Besides the loss of time which it involves
in obliging a new acquaintance of teacher
and scholar to be formed twice year,
this change to some extent causes an un-
doing of what has been done before. No
two teachers have the same way OF
teaching. And this difference is always
q source Of evil. In reference to the
scholar, il has much the same effect as
it would have upon house 10 employ in
succession several architects, each of
whom Should pull down what the other
had built. This is, of course, not abso-
lutsly SO, but so far asteachers disagree,
this is the inevitable result 4. Anoth-
sr evil is the bad influences which sur
round children in many schools. lncli:
nation not to study is apt to be more
contagious than the opposite, and many
who commence with good intentions
soon lose their zeal because they are not
helped along by outside pressure. This
evil is increased by the disposition of
mauy to keep their children from our
district schools, educating them at home,
or IN high schools. The reason for this
in most cases, is doubtless the very thing
We have just mentioned, viz. the bad
influence to which they would in school
be subjected. This is practiced all the
more on account Of the increasing pro.
portion Of children of foreign parents in
our schools, by means Of which the in
huence Of the school becomes morally
poisonous S. Again, bringing so many
children of different ages and DISPOSE
tions together in one room, and subject
ing them all to the same rules and m odes
Of treatment, cannot be otherwise than
injurious to the sch Olar, in mauy respects.
The government of the school must be
necessarily strict. Things must be for
hidden which are in themselves harm
less, and even beneficial because all will
not know how to make right use o.
them. There are those who must be
held down by main force. Every liber
~ will be abused, and therefore they
must not have any liberties, and as Their,
must be no Partially in the school. al
must suffer for the few
These are some Of the evils which
scholars have to endure. Some Of then
are perhaps necessary; others are not
All may be modified, and We have mere
ly indicated them that attention may b
, drawn to them and remedies proposed
and adopted by those who are, or shoul'
be, interested.
We may at some other time speak o
the Disadvantages under which teacher
in common schools labor, and of th
evils generally prevalent which diminis
their usefulness.