Los Angeles daily herald., 1873-11-07
COUNTY TEACHERS INSTITUTE.
Fourth Day.

! Thirty-fOur teachers were present
The minutes of the previous day wer'
read, recommended and approved.
Professor Warren and Miss Casa(
were appointed critics for Thursday.
The committee appointed to propose
q plan for raising prize fund, for the
purpose of offering premiums at com
petitive examinations to be held dur
ing the Institute meetings, report as
follows:
Mr.. PRESIDENT, LADIES AND GEN
TLEMEN Your committee to whom
was referred the subject of compete
ton for prizes in spelling by the pupils
of the Public Schools of Los Angeles
County, to be awarded at the next
Teachers Institute, have the honor tC
report the following:
/. Each school shall be entitled tC
one contestant from each of the sew.
eral reading classes in the Third
Fourth and Fifth Readers authorized
by law.
2. The whole number of pupils un-
der the supervision of one teacher
shall constitute a school.
3. The teacher of each school whose
pupils contend for prize, shall pay
the sum of two dollars, to be used as a
prize fund.
4. The spelling shall be written
exercise, to consist of one hundred
words for each spelling-class, selected
from it's reader by committee OF
three chosen by the Institute.
| 5. There shall be three prizes of
equal value, one to be given to the
| best speller of each class.
If more than one pupil in each class
shall spell all the selected wcrds cor
rectly, then the spelling shall be con-
tinued orally, until hut one pupil re-
Your committee would also beg
leave to suggest that the public be in
vited to contribute to general prize
fund, to be distributed to the most
proficient in the various branches
taught in the Public Schools.
On motion the discussion of the
method proposed was deferred till Fri
day.
Mr.. Dubois essay on the methods
of teaching language was next deliv-
cred.
Mr.. Dubois delivered discourse on
the study of language. The great OBJ
ject of schools is that the pupil may
learn how to learn; not To learn SIM
ply. AS a boy is apprenticed to a
wagon maker to learn to make wagons
and not to make wagons, SO boy is
sent to school to learn how to study.
A graduate is not being filled with
knowledge,-a Socrates of ftweIty-but
one who has just began to know how
to study.
The great difficulty with which a
teacher meets is superficial reading. A
pupil reads mechanically, without
taking into his brain the ideas ex-
pressed. He reads there are two
terms in a ratio, but being asked
knows not whether there are two or
ten terms in ratio.
Language is the only medium Of
thought. If we would know the
thoughts Of our neighbOrs-his
feelings-we must learn language.
One word mastered in day gives
800 words in year, and in six years
1900, more than is used in ordinary
conversation.
Geography and history should be
taught together. The mind needs to
dwell on a thing under consideration
to make study useful. Therefore the
pupil should not be allowed to skip
about from one study to another, or
take too many studies.
In teaching, pupils should be taught
to read, then understand and finally
remember. Inquiries should be made
Immediately, to find whether what is
read is understood, and, after time, to
see if it is remembered. The pupil
should be required to give synonyms
and reproduce the thought. The skele-
ton of essays should be given to i'm
prove descriptive thought, and the
pupil required to fill them out; for
children often know that which they
cannot tell.
The teacher must not expect too
much from education. The Great
Trees of Calaveras do not grow in
gardens. The greatest works are those
Of nature.
Mr.. Furlong thought there were not
too many studies in the schools. The
more sciences in the schools the bet
ter. How can pupil know how to
learn any particular science unless he
is first taught its rudiments. Unless
they are first taught in the schools,
the sciences will not be pursued in
after life.
Mr.. Morgan believed that what was
too many branches were required. To
attempt to teach all would be unjust
to the pupils. He would teach pupils
how to learn, and if their minds are
we'll developed they will master the
necessary sciences in after life. All
can not be taught in country school,
whatever may be possible in high
school.
Mr.. Henderson thought with Mr..
Morgan and Mr.. Dubois, that main
attention should be devoted to the
three R's-reading, 'riting and 'rith-
metic. When the occasion seemed
propituous he would give the outside
sciences.
Mr.. Furlong favored an enlarged
public school course, and thought that
all, whether they favored it or not,
would be obliged to teach it.
Mr.. Sake thought nature should be
followed. A child asks questions con-
cerning all the branches, and his stu
dies should be in response to his ques-
tionings. In the Kindergarten almost
everything is taught.
Mr.. Tonner could not follow the law
to the letter in his school. The needs
of the pupils prevented it. But in the
course of the little ones he was very
successful in his attempts. He
thought that reading, writing and
arithmetic should not be the exclusive
studies.
A recess then took place. After
wards representative of the HERALD
proposed that column, devoted to
oohOn1 intorootc ba fil1od hy tho Ton oh.