Wilmington daily gazette., 1874-01-31
EDUCATfON Az.

|
| PRKsBYrRRIAN CHuEcH.
! List night at Hanover Presbyterian Chnfch
! Hon. L. +. White, of Columbus. Ohio, ex State
Superintendent of Ohio Pub.ic Schools, delivered
| an Interesting lecture, according 10 announce
ment, on "1he Elements of Governing Power.
| The audience asstmh.cd was quite large, nearly
! filing The body OF the church, and III regard Ia
inter st and appreciation it was as Sood m audi
| ence rs lecturer ever addressed.
Prof. White, few minutes after eight o'clock
was introduced by Stansbury j. wiley, Principal
of Boys Grammar School, No. |.
After referring 10 the family atlctuu which
prevented him from fulfilling previous engage
ment, Prof White announced thHt hp would, IN
the course ot his irmHk~. lilu tr1'" and rAilaii
the
SI\ EllNkNls Of noNgE:;Iao POWER.
't way of Illustration he referred to an occa-
sion III which he had in the same hour, visited
two schools situated III the same building and on
ly separated by an entrance. The schools were
es taught were concerned but they were vastly
different in regard to the governing power cXer-
cised by the teachers. In ono All was peace
iul, orderly and qsiet. In the other .here was a
constant struggle commoiion and turmoil be-
tween pupils and teacher. Why this contrast =
Simply beccuse one teacher possessed not the clc-
ments OF control, and the other dlu.
In nine cases out OF ten, failures OH the part OF
teachers are due to lack OF The governing power.
They sometimes think that another SET ol pupils,
or a change IN the policy OF the Board would as
sist them materially, but success lays'alone with
themselves. There various desirable methods
OF teaching, but they all depend upon the life and
vitality with which the teachers miuse them.
In speaking of the six clements of successful
teacher it Is necessary 10 throw aside the quality
known AS "personal magnetism" and also sim
iiar delnson known as 1.-The power OF presence"
The best teachers are those who conquer and
command respect in spite oi all opposition. The
hrSt quality necessary 10 successful teacher Is
COOP SCuoLARsur
From imperfect scholarship more failures arise
than from any other cause. Each teacher should
possess a thorough and complete knowledge OF
what he teaches. This Is necessary 10 secure the
confidence OF the scholars, without which the
teacher must resort to force. He should possess
that knowledge winch would enable him to teach
If text books were burned but this lack of thor
ongh preparation Is great fault IN American
teachers. The best teachers in The land have been
the hardest students. On one occasion, when the
great Dr. Arnold, of Rugby, was asked why he
studied so hard when he so thoroughly con-
versant with everything he taught, replied that he
"would rather his boys would drink from a clear
running stream than from stagnant pool"
Failing health is urged by some teachers as an
excuse tor not studying, but this is generally a
mistake, as more teachers fail III health for the
irant OF hard study. Pale faces and attenuated
forms are occasioned by a constant burden of diff
hculties in teaching, which thorough knowledge,
induced by hard study, would remove. Tie SEC
ond element is
SKILL IL TEACHGNG AND MANAGEMENT
Besides having the confidence of those he
teaches, the teacher must exercise Il skill iu OBJ
tanning that confidence; he must know how 10
bring class before black board, and how to
instruct it when there; he must have perfect
command of hand and nerve, and possess complete
facility with the pen, pencil and Crayon. The
slightest failure on the part OF the teacher, IN
such exercises, tends to impair the confidence
which the class may previously have had III him,
The third elements
HEART PowER, OF Love FoR THE PCPu.
Without this power no teacher can ever succeed.
Scholars may be driven, but they cannot be- led
without they are loved. Even In this matter Of
loving pupils the teacher may exercise great dis
cretion. They who need most love should be
loved most, and those who are strangers TO love
at home should receive the tendcrest love al d
sympathy Of the teachers 1T school. The fourth
element Is
Will POWER
more commonly, though rather iuelegautIy ex-
pressed " Back Bone.9' 1t does not signify sui
len stubbornnese, but the power OF maintaining,
hour after hour, uniform course of conduct
expression nnd temper. Ia guiding and control
ling school but little force il required; but once
that control is lost, strong force Is required
regain it. The fifth element is
ABILITY To SEE AND HEAR
teacher should know What is going on in the
soLoolroom, at all times, and the scholaIs should
lave 4 tnorouph EnoWledge oil this iact. All lit
tie omissions should be detected, and all murmurs
Of diecontent overheard. They should also he
promptly checked before they grow into larrer
SINS and thus muth trouble Ue avoided TIE
sixth element Is
MORAL CHARACTER,
without which, no one should think of tea1Liur.
teacher should be honorable, yirtuous and
truthful lie ehould love the right and teach
his pupils 10 love 1t. No teacher sLeuld enter
upon the profession whose life is not model for
the scholars ior the great ant OF our land is the
moral training oi children.
This lecture Ia a mirror for the teacher Look
INTO 1t, and see where you are weak, and, by the
help OF God, try to conquer the evil.
The lecture was listened to with great atten.
ton, and the audience mainly composed OF our
Public School teachers, RETIRED feeling that great
and important truths had been listened TO- which
could not iail TO have q beneficial effect