The weekly north Iowa times. [volume] (McGregor, Iowa) 1857-1867, 1859-04-06
MISCELLANEOUS.

schools. ..-.. ..-
The following admir- able Report is from the
pen Of our valued New Hampshire correspon.
dent. Granite" It fills the measure of satire
on the modern system Of selecting teachers,
and We think its general publication will be at
tended with great good. 1t was sent Us as a
curiosity and not for the press, but it is too
valuable to be1 pwn aside:
To the Z'eacN Of Andoper I'm compliance
with my legal duty, herewith submith my re-
port upon the schools of said town during my
official term. No marked Improvement has
been made on any of our school houses during
that period. We have some good ones, others
are nuisances which ought to be speedily abated
The piggeries Of some of our farmers are bet
ter than some Of these peoples colleges
These penalties enforced on intelligence
should be swept away by the strong hand Of
popular feeling and common interest. If oul
of nursery of giant men. her school houses
must be such as to be part and parcel of the
grand artistic temple Of popular enlightenment,
and not tophet- like, back linters to some cess.
pool of iniquity. The Office Of Prudential
COMMITTEES is most important one. 1t should
be filled by men of common sense, and who will
use it. Teachers should not be selected be-
cause they act With some political Organization.
mas Of some religious sect, have some relation
chip to the prudential committee or his aunt,
have soft-soaped themselves into the good
graces Of sucklings and superanuated spinsters.
nor yet because they can be hired for song -
"Dog cheap" teachers are the most costly OH
earth.
They should not be endowed with a capacity
to make school room an asylum of tongues
and sounds, bat furnace glowing with practi-
cal thoughts and living ideas Nor to galloE
school over frame woak of mere mechanical
memory-tuning scholars into wingless parrots
but with systsmatizcd facts, with an analysis
of principles and by causation to open wide the
door Of the understanding. knowledge of hui.
man nature and capacity TO deal with it, gov
ernment, ready faculty to instil, fountain
to instil from, are the requisites Of good teach.
crs.
To these the eyes Of the Committee should
be directed. 1t has been my aim by rigid ex.
aminations 10 raise the booked standard oi
teachers qualifications. In this respect all oul
teachers stand well, some can hardly be excel
ed. The hyper-phrcnological organ of tumble.
abOutativeHees is enormously developed in
many of our schools. Our teachers fail most
in good government. One of our summer and
two of our winter village schools have thus
been rendered nearly useless. The others rank
in this respect from mediocrity up to excel
lsnco. BY law no teacher can draw pay 70,
services rendered. prior to an examination by
the Experimenting School Committee, md the
exhibition Of certificate from him to the Pru.
dontial Committee. The teacher of the sum.
mer term in No. I, did not apply to me until
some three weeks after her school began she
successfully passed rigid examination. Pru-
dental Committees should be selected who have
leisure to attend to their sworn duties. Some
committees have failed TO notify me, season
ably. Of the closing of schools. No teacher
can legally draw pay until he or she has furnish
cd an accurate report TO the Superintending
School Committee. Our teachers have mainly
performed this duty, others but partially. The
only open outbreak was in No. Is. was com.
PEELED to dismiss two of the larger boys from
that school. Had the teacher Possessed less
amiability. moro muscle. steam power, and con.
fdsnee in his own powers, might have been
spared this disagrseatle duty. The practice Of
children in pinafores, of entering upon the
atudies,o Of Algebra. Greek, Latin. &C.. before
they understand the rudiments of their native
tongue, is great and growing evil fostersd by
the morLid ambition Of parents and the love OIL
plumes in teacher and scholar.
Practical utilities should be learned first
Mere accomplishments, peacocks' feathers
comet tails, can be glued on when there is moth.
ing else to do. Scholars in book. keeping have
made good progress That and Arithmetic
should be twin sisters. 70 hand in hand. Both
have the merit Of utility. For further particu.
lars reference is made to tho tabular statemen,
hereto annexed. On the whole our schools
compare favorably with those in adjoining towns
All which ID respectfully submistsd by
90 JOHN N. SHIRLEY,
Superintending School Com. Of Andover.
Andover, Feb. 2lst, 1859.