New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1871-06-03
TEACHERS, INSTITUTE.
Third Day-CIosing Session.

morning, throughout the whole day, the
rain poured necessarily with hardly a
minutes intermission.
We expected that weather so very un-
| favorable would have had the effect of
greatly diminishing the number in attend
ance at the Teachers Institute. But ii was
| gratifying to see that the interest taken by
| the mass of teachers in the exercises brought
out so large an assembly, for the hall was
as full as it had been on the previous days
| of fair weather, every seat being occupied.
| 1t may be proper to remark that the at
| tendance of the teachers at the Institute
| is matter of voluntary choice, there being
| no compulsory requirement in the case.
| The schools have been closed to give all
connected with them an opportunity to
| attend, but that was all.
| After the regular opening by Division
| Superintendent Carter, the State Superin-
tendent Mr. Conway, delivered an elab-
crate address, dwelling at consid erable
length upon the immediate object of the
Institute, the educational interests in New
Orleans. and the obstacles that circum-
stances, unavoidable, perhaps, had placed
in the way of progress.
Miss Morris then gave some graphic il
lustrations as to the best method of teach
ing botany, illustrated by diagrams on the
blackboard.
An essay was then read by Professor j.
V. Calhoun, of the Central High School, on
|
One principal idea evolved in the essay was
the necessity on the part of parents acting
in the best interests of their children, to as
sist by judicious supervisory discipline at
home the essential discipline of the school
room. The address also entered into many
minor details of teaching. particularly as
applied TO the public schools in New Or
leans.
Mr.. j. J. Meylor, principal of ST. Philip
school followed with a cogent essay on the
subject of Teachers Institutes, their I'm
portance and Necessity" Mr.. Meylor's ad-
dress developed the plan of stated meetings
of teachers for mutual improvement by in
terchange of ideas and views ON the various
| The address also touched upon the benefits
to the schools that would result IRON the
teachers feeling that their positions as such
were permanent not depending upon an
nual or periodical appointment, but upon
continued efficiency and approved depert-
| ment.
Judging from conversations and discus
siOns among the teachers after the closing
| of the session, we can hardly think that
! they subscribe to the idea of formal con-
tracts, because as more than one remarked,
the idea of contract carries with it some
| determinate time, whereas it is the wish of
the teachers land it is is a very reasonable
wish, too) to hold their appointments indie
finitely as to time, so long as they may be
proved competent.
Mr.. w. t. Houston, principal of the Live
! Oak school, now proceeded TO deliver an
address, the subject of which was not
very clearly defined. 1t embodied, how
ever, several structures and accusations
| against the State Superintendent of Educa-
! ton. Without entering into the merits of
| the questions hised by the essayist, or the
| correctness of the views expressed, we can
not help remarking that the matter was in
exceeding bad taste as well as ill-timed.
| We could not resist the impression that the
affair was gotten up in the interest of
| those who oppose the public schools in this
city, not because there is anything radically
wrong in their organization or administra-
ton, containing feature that even they
can honestly oppose, but because they are
in the hands of party abhorrent to the
debris of secession and rebellion.
Mr.. Houston followed the address written
by himself by reading paper purporting
to have been prepare by one of the teach
ers. This consisted to a considerable extent
in series of sneers at the method of object
teaching which had been propounded by
Miss Morris, accompanied with some not
too refined inuendoes. This paper was, if
possible, in worse taste than the preceding,
for the reason that the party subject TO this
unwarranted attack was a stranger and a
lady, and in either character was entitled
to at least tincture of that chivalry about
which so much has been said and sung. 1t
would be unjust to the teachers of New Or
leans not to suppose that numbers of them
are fully equal in information, professionally
or otherwise, to any corps of teachers in any
country. 1t might then be, perhaps, that a
portion of the exercises at the Institute
were work of supererogation. Upon this
we do not pretend to pronounce. But it
may be said emphatically that lady, espe-
cially an educated and refined lady, should
have been spared unworthy treatment
Nothing can justify or excuse this Even
were it proved that egregious mistakes had
been made in the arrangements which
brought the stranger among us, we owe
something to our character for hospitality
and to our own sense of self-respect.
1t was evident from the remarks made by
the Division Superintendent Mr.. Carter,
that he felt deep regret at the ill-timed pro-
duction of these two rather unhappy
scholastic efforts.
After few judicious remarks from Miss
Morris in taking farewell of the assembly,