Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1867-11-13
Supplementary Report of the Board
Of Education.


GENTLEMEN The Board of Education
herewith submit supplement to then
: Eleventh Annual Report.
This supplement is made necessary by the
, peculiar, and, indeed, unprecedented circum-
stances in which that report and the ac-
eompanying report of the late Secretary OF
the Board have been presented to your honor
able body and to the people of the State.
The law makes it the duty of the Secretary,
by and with the advice of the Board, >
- to exert himself constantly and faithfully
to promote the highest interests of educa-
ton in the Statc,' and annually to present
to the Board report of his Official doings,
with suggestions for approving the organiza-
ton of the schools, and the mode of nstruc
ton therein. The law.makes him the execu-
tive officer Of the Board and contem plates that
he will put iii execution the plans which
they set on foot 1t does not make him
the adviser of the Board except in one
specified particular, and even in that partcu-
lar his advice has only the weight Of a
suggestion.
Until the present year, this has been the
practical construction put upon the law by
the Board and by the Secretary. In his
last report, however. the la te Secretary has
reversed this construction, and has proceeded
upon the principle that it was the duty of
the Board to act by and with the advice of
the Secretary Ii his report had been made
To the Board as required by law, the neces-
sity Of this supplementary report would
have been obyiatod, and what the Board are
now obliged to say could have been incorpo-
rated into their original report. But the re-
port of the late Secretary has never vet been
presented t. the Board, even since it was
printed, but they have been compelled to
procure it by such means as could be made
available
( Some things in that report seem to require
notice and correction by the Board.
1t is affirmed that the selection of books
by the Board was made with such haste
az utterly to preclude all possibility of the
calm and considerate attention due to the
Importance of the subject, and even TO pro-
priety," and - less than six hours :" is said
to be the time in fact given TO the decision.
So far is this from being tho truth, that for
three full months prior to the decision, the
Board had been in possession of all, or near
" all, the books from which the selection
was made, and had given them all a calm,
considerate and protracted examination. For
more than two months particular members
of the Board had given special attention to
particular classes of books especially
signed to them for examination. To show
how rigid and minute that examination was,
it may be mentioned by way of instance
that one member Of the Board performed the
wearisome drudgery of reading every article
in five series OF reading books, comparing
each book with every other book of the same
grade article by article Other members of
the Board examined other classes Of books
in an equally laborious manner. y decision
preceded by an examination so protracted
that, hardly deserves to be called hasty,
especially as it was also preceded by dis
cussion, in which, the late Secretary himself
being witness, - ample opportunity was given
for all who wished to be heard in regard 10
the merits Of their books After the books
had been thoroughly examined their merits
fully discussed, and the Board had matured
their judgments, it would seem that even
period Of less than six hours was sufficient
in which to express their judgments. While
it is true that there were difference of opin-
ion, and diversities OF judgment. it is also
true that in the final decision the Board
were unanimous in every particular except
one.
II is affirmed that the circumstances pre-
ceding, attending and following the decision
were such as to Indicate Il pre- judgment of
the case. and 50 10 detract from the weight
that might otherwise attach to the decision,
and several specifications are presented. lst,
II was currently reported and generally be-
lieyed at the time of the Waterbury meeting
that the majority Of the Board had made q
previous arrangement by which the leading
books had been determined upon before the
hearing l. is sufficient To say in regard to
this that the current report was incorrect,
and the general lvliet was nniounded. There
was no such arrangement nor any attempt TO
make such an arrangement. u, This feel
Ing was strengthened by the palpable haste
with which the formal decision was hurried
through" But that feeling was without
good grounds. and the palpable haste was re-
ally the result Of long dellberation. Sd, Mr.
Pearl and Mr.. Cilley were invited to make q
Joint report on Biographies. But they were
80 invited only upon the condition that their
judgments agreed together and with the iudg
nent Of those members Of the Board t. whom
the subject Of geography was especially com
mitted. Ith. :. The gentlemen reported TO
have agreed beforehand upon a list, voted
uniformly together throughout" Bat they
did not uniformly vote together, and when
they did il was not in pursuance Of any pre-
yious agreement to that effect. 5th and 9th,
The Board attempted subsequently to make
their action in regard to Guyot's Biographies
appear different from what it really was.
But the Board did not attempt amy such ac-
ton There were two or three motions made
in reference to the adoption of Guyots Geog
raphies, and there a slight difference of
opinion among different members of the
Board az - which motion actually prevailed
Soon after the selection was made, differ
enoe arose between the publishers Of Mitch
ellis and Guyots series. / his difference was
brought to the notice of some members OF the
Board al the extra session of the Legislature,
but no action was attempted. At Bristol,
the first time the Board were together after
making the selection, this difference of opin-
! ion was talked over in friendly manner
and the views Of all harmonized so as to ac-
cord with the facts, without any motion
attempt to change the result.
I 1t is affirmed that the method pursued in
/ the hearings was uncOurteOus and unfair
towards the teachers who were called to ad-
wise with the Beard. This complaint divides
itself into two specifications, that the delIb-
erations of the Board were held in private,
and that the books recommended by the
teachers were not adopted in every instance.
1t did not occur to the Board, till they read
| the report Of the late Secretary, that the
| opinions of eminent teachers which they
were required to obtain, We're to control the
Judgment of the Board And having re-ex-
arnined the law, they fail to see that they
were required to accept those opinions
conclusive, especially when they were quite
as diverse the opinions of the Board.
When one teacher strcnuously recommends
Eaton's Arithmetic, and another, equally
eminent, recommends Greenleaf-s, whose
opinion should the Board follow, or what
should they do, but that which in fact they
did do, and which the law required them to
do,-selcct the one which in their judgment
was - best suited for instruction and use in
the schools 20 When one teacher recon-
mends Quackenbos' History, and another
Lossings, why should the Board concur in
the opinion of the former rather than that of
the latter, Of the latter rather than of the