Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1858-02-05
Educational.
VERMONT EDUCATION.


fuhtshcd under the sanction IT the State Teacher
Committee.
There is a story in one Of the old schoo
books, which was somewhat in this way A
lark had her nest in the wheat field. While
she was gone one day. the young larks heard
the farmer telling his sons to go and invite
his friends to come and help cut the wheat
AT night the young larks began with all hast,
to tell their mother what had happened, bu
she badc them be quiet, and so on from day
to day, till. at last, the farmer was heard tC
say, 1--WE will reap the wheat ourselves,
when the old lark too, thought it was time
to be going. Much to the same purpose is
this old proverb, "lf you wish thing done
go, if not, send
Scarce anything is oftener said in Vermont,
than that our schools are in dcplorable con-
dition scarce any wish is oftcnor expressed,
than that they should be elevated. But how
| is this 10 be brought about Who will in
itiate the measures by which they shall be
raised so as TO meet our wants Are VIC to
wait for some grand development Of the age,
OF some splendid scheme to be operated by
law to improve thoms SO we have waited
for the last ten ycaas. and with Just this re-
suit, that some hundred thousand young per-
sons have been sent out into the wide world,
nut uhAl 81 Wtll uAltu lbT us Responsiveness
as they ought to be- and might have been
and so it will be for the next ton years, if we
stay waiting
The common school is for the people, and
is what the people make it to be. If the peo-
pie so WILL the common schools Of Vermont
can be made one hundred per cent better this
winter than ever before Let us see how
1t is too late to build new school houses,
1...t . a Al
We can examine the house that we have, and
if it is filthy We can cleanse it if the win
dows are broken, we can repair them if there
are cracks in the WALL we can stop them if
the stove is broken and the pipe rustcd out
we can get new stove and new pipe if
there is no wood or out green wood, we can
get dry wood and enough of it.
Is there not many school in Vermont
which needs these very things done, and can
we not do them; Are we too poor to wash
a school house. too poor TO mend a window
or stop crack, too poor even to get stove
and few loads of dry wood And shall we
be too careless to do it? If children were
compelled to sit shivering in a kitchen all
day, except that once in half an hour they
might just scorch themselves at the fire. and
then 60 back and SILVER again, would you not
think it shere cruelty, And is it worse in a
kitchen than in a school house,
Can you read your newspaper or even a
letter from your friend, when your teeth al
most chatter with cold And can your child
get lesson under the same circumstances
Much of your happiness depends upon the
temper of your children. Will it tend to
make them cheerful and obliging, to be made
uncomfortable at school all day, or will it
make them fretful and cross;
Probably your teacher is hired and exam
ined before this, but you can do much, even
now, to secure good teacher Just consider
that your teacher is to have many difficult
problems come before him this winter. some
difficult in Themselves, many more difficult
because they are to be presented to unframed
minds, and ask yourself if the memories of
last fall or last winter will be a sufficient
guide for him with them all Consider that
in your school will be classes in which some
individuals are more advanced. and of quick
or parts than others, and that il is the teach
or duty to study so to present the subjects
they may be studying, that none shall be left
idle and none be too pressed that he should
determine from the daily Rotations what
bent the minds of his pupils are taking, and
If IT is wrong, that he should provide a rem
edy consider, also, that in the discipline Of
a score, or of two scores of youth, there will
arise many questions demanding reflection,
and then ask yourself what opportunity the
teacher has for reflection and study? Has he
time for reflection or for sober thought in the
school-room. or has he it in the strange fam
lily to which he goes at night Can the teach
or prepare himself for all the duties of his
school if no evening of studious quiet comes
to him.
But what is the remedy; 1t may not be
too late to provide that the teacher board at
one place but if it is, still something may
be done. For the week YOU board the teach
er, can you not provide him room and fire
and light, that he may have his books and
his quiet and his preparation for the morrow's
labor: Cannot you say to him, "If you are
mortal, and if you partake of the frailties
common to other mortals, you must need rest
from the labors of the day, and opportunities
to prepare for the duties of tomorrow and
have accordingly provided for you room and
fire and light. Will not, then, those oppor-
tunities be improved? II you are a social
man, and wish the teachers company, YOU
need not fear, for after a little rest and study,
he will be in better condition for your society.
so that one hour shall be worth more than
the whole evening otherwise. Add to this
that you will respect him more and be your
self more respected and that your children
will respect him moro and be more influenced
by him, and you can hardly fail of this small
effort to make your school good one
Now that the teacher is provided for at
home, let us see if he is supplied with all
neediul aids at the school-oom? Has the
school house a good blackboard of sufficient
size If not there is time to provide one
for this very winter, and fifty square feet of
blackboard your school-house should have.
No good teacher Of experience will feel that
he can do without it,
II you have the board, have you a set of
outline maps Many of your scholars study
Geography, and it is well established fact
that class will learn full twice as much of
Geography in a term with outline maps, well
used, as without them. This would make it
an object to get the maps for this winter but
when procured you will have them for many
succeeding terms, for each of which you have
secured double the acquisition of Geography,
on which you can reckon without them. Nor
is this all. There will be new interest
awakened in school, which will extend to all
the studies. The best set of outline maps
for the common school can be obtained for six
dollars. If you have the maps have you
globe? This again will be new power in