The Bedford gazette. [volume] (Bedford, Pa.) 1805-current, 1862-04-04
DIR 6tb 90 astfr Abroao.
RETROSPECTIVE AND PROSPECTIVE.

Il
education, having at heart the prosperity Of
Pennsylvania, and wishing TO see her people ell
evated to their true position as members of a
great agricultural community, have observed
with no common interest the progress Of the
educational reform begun in 1s54-5 through
the influence of the law establishing the Coun-
ty Supcrintendency. Previous to that time the
only school for the training of Teachers in the
delphia, and its influence scarcely reached be-
yond the corporate limits of the city inewhich
it was established. There was no union among
the teachers no rallying point around which
they could collect, no head to teaching, wheth-
er considered as a trade or as a profession; and
no one viewing it from philosophical stand
point had attempted to trace it back to first
principles and investigate its. foundation in Or
der to ascertain what claims it has to rank as a
profession. The public looked upon Teaching,
particularly in our common schools, as no more
professional than laying brick, showing the plane
or welding the hammer Of the blacksmith; and
it is lamentable fact, that this opinion was not
without foundation.
Since that time two State Normal Schools, one
at Millersville, the otherat Edinboro have been
organized under the act of '55, and they are
now sending out their graduates as thoroughly
and carefully trained to Teaching as the gradu-
ate OF law school is to the law Private
Normal Schools have sprung up in many parts
| Of the state teachers associations have been
organized and professional feeling aroused a.
mong their members; livelier and more gen.
eral interest in common schools and deeper
sense Of their Importance has been awakened
tahs as d pulls a mag maa aHa ssE Spa %Sss pG
ducing Teaching to a science and dplacing it on 2
| firm scientific basis
When we reflect that all this has been ac-
complished during the past six years of finan-
cial revusion and hard times, and that the re-
suits must have been more fattering in times
of ordinary prosperity, we feel like being salts
fed with the past and hopeful of the future.
And yet, we cannot but regard the profession of
Teaching not as one that as but as one that is to
be. The dignity of any profession will depend
upon the importance OF its effects on society,
upon the moral rectitude of its members, and
upon their mental culture. With respect to
the first we may well claim equality with any
other; excluding the pulpit, we should proba-
bly, not suffer in comparison of the second; f;
but unfortunately for us we can not say the
same with respect to the last; and herein do. we
lose an indispensable auxiliary in elevating our
calling. No profession can elevate and dignity
the man, but the man must elevate and dignity
the profession. You can not builda strong ship
of rotten timber You cannot build up a
great profession whose members are mentally
disqualified to hold high position among their
fellow men. Again, who are our standard au-
thors on the science of Teaching and what are
its technical terms? True, we have plenty of
books on methods but very few on principles and
perhaps none that may be quoted as undeniable
authority Method has been the bane of our
calling long enough; we want the principles un-
deriving the methods principles on which the
human mind can be developed and strengthened
without the terrible risk of whitening AMI cramp-
ing its energies by blind method. And who, |
repeat, arc the writers upon these principles3
who have established our profession on lorinci-
pies eternal as truth itself, as has been done
with medicine and law1
Answers to these questions reveal tho bar
renness of our science and drive us to the con-
clusion that we are not yet ready to put on
professional robes. But give us works on Teach
ing which shall be to it what Blackstone and
Kent are to the law; and then, indeed, can we
claim for it the dignity of a science Such works
are the great educational want of the present
time, and those who write them will lay the
foundation of fourth learned profession.
And why not have such works, and such a
profession? Are there not principles as grand
and immutable underlying the development Of
mind as those on which the professions of medi-
cine and law are founded? And are there not
men who can develop these principles and lay
the foundation of another profession, as was
done long ago for those already in existence
Assuredly there are and the experience of each
year demonstrates more clearly the possibility
and necessity Of establishing Teaching on such
n basis, if we would place it on level with
lmedicinc and law,