Dodgeville chronicle. [volume] (Dodgeville, Wis.) 1862-current, 1870-12-16


al for admission into the State Normal
School at Patteville, since the opening of
hat institution and SO students from
,hat school, nearly all residents Of the
comfy. have been licensed to teach IN the |
county during the year.
while these words of commentator are
Justly due to a large majority of our teach
crs. am so ry to acknowledge there are
too many exceptions.
Our Annual Teachers Institute held at
Dodgeville. commencing Oct. llth, was
one of the largest and most interesting
ever held in the county. Eighty names
were enrolled, being nearly all active teach
ers in the county The evening sessions
were occupied with general discussions,
the reading Of essays by teachers, prepar /.
ed for the OCCASION and lectures by MessrS
Graham and Gaylord and Rev. VIM. Stur-
yes. The distinguishing feature of our
Institute was the close attention and deep.
interest manifested ty all throughout the
entire session, and the regret ut parting.
Could we have continued two weeks, am
satisfied it would have been productive OF
more good than two weeks spent III any
other manner.
The people and the teachers of Dodge
vile generously provided for our enter
ta,nnent, and did everything possible to
make our stay agreeable and pleasant
Ac. ording to our usual practice. cerril
Gates of membership and attendance were
given to those present. Could the posses
sion Of such certificate or reasonable
excuse be made legal qualification, the
UT In Ynfa IN
reach that class of teachers who most need
them, hui who seldom attend. Teachers
Institutes have, within few years through
the encouragement of the law requiring
them to be held, and partially providing
for their support, and the introduction vi
more systematic methods Of conducting
them, become powerful auxilisrles to the
cause Of education. Our best and most
| successful teachers appreciate these op oor-
| tunilies, and the attendance OF many 9TH
| ers is compelled by the iorce OF public
| opinion. The subject of teaching is here
discussed in all its bearings The opin-
ions of those best qualified to judge, and
the experience of those who have devoted
their lives to the profession, are here sub
mitted TOR consideration, and the best and
most approved methods of instruction and
discipline introduced and explained. But
there is still a la. ge class WHO fail to derive
any benefit from this means Some who
are timid and fear their Ignorance may in
some way be exposed and others, not a
very numerous class, however, who are
wholly Indifferent to anything hey ond the
lowest kind Of license or permit that will
enable them to spend their time IN school
room and receive a teachers pay ; and this
not upon their own merits, unless cheap
ness be considered one, but through the
influence and urgent petition OF district
board because their school Is very back.
ward and anybody will answer " forget
ting that this is one Of the strongest pos
sible reasons for not employing such q
teacher.
The time is rapidly approaching when
public opinion and self interest will wisely
discriminate between those who have every
means within their reach to qualify them
selves for the intelligent discharge Of their
duties and those who do not.
Much has been said within the past few
years upon the subject Of a compulsory
law; aud it will probably be urged upon
the attention of our legislature at the com
ing session. Believing that the life and
prosperity of our nation rests upon the IN
telligence of its people and fearing the
consequences of so large proportion OF
children Of the State, reglectlng school and
growing up in ignorance and vice. many
of our best and most intelligent citizens
have come to the conclusion that we shall
be compelled to resort to compulsory leg
islation in order to secure proper attend
ance in our common schools Others de-
sire by some means to secure the results
expected from the operation OF sucn law,
without the law itself, which 1t is feared
would prove unpopular and offensive to
many.
am Of the opinion that much of the
| fear expressed by the advocates OF such
law arises from Misrepresentation OF facts
| derived from the reports OF school ON ;crs
| The names OF only about two-thirds OF the
! children of the State b,iween the ages OF
four and twenty are found in any one year
upon the teachers records and it is there
fore taken for granted that the remaining
one third are growing up in ignorance CIT
tirely destitute of common school educa-
| ton. m
Ont Of every one hundred children OF
| school age in this c,unty, seventy three
| have attended school some part of thr
! time during the past year, and the records
show an average Of sixty days. | we "x-
anime into the condition Of the remaining
twenty seven We shall find that some OF
them are under six Yeas of age and are
very properly kept at home. Some have
already finished their common school
course, and are married or teaching. or
otherwise actively engaged in the various
pursuits of life. Some are attending pri-
vate schools or schnols of higher grade /;
others are sick or temporarily prevented,
OF for various reasons have not attended
school during the particular year, And
in my opinion, only . very few can be
/ found who have not been taught ir our
schools or whose education is entirely neg
lected Taking this county as the general
average of attendance, Wisconsin has a
! larger percentage Of school attendance
than can be shown bv their statistics in
any European country, Prussia, with her
perfected system and compulsory law not
excepted An unpopular compulsory law,
there is good reason to believe. would not
result in so large an attendance as can be
secured by directing our energies toward
qualifying our teachers and perfecting our
schools.
From an examination of teachers re-
ports. i Sud that the number OF cases OF
corporal punishment is continually di'nin-
ishing. So unpopn,,ar has it become that
teachers seldom inflict corporal punish
ment until absolutely necessary - iast