Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1874-11-04
For the Freeman.
Our Common Schools.

About twenty-cight years ago the as
sembled wisdom of our state undertook to
| legislate for the benefit Of the common
schools. and with what success the follow
inc will show. At that time a state,
county and town superintendent was pro
| vided for. All persons desiring to stcach
school must pass an examination before
| one of these inspectors, and obtain from
him a certificate of their qualifications
| for teaching certain branches. This was
| something "new under the sun and
many of our most successful teachers
shrank from this ordeal. They left the
| field to others that were more apt to learn
books than common sense for it is Il fact
often demonstrated that it is not the schol-
n who is the most apt to lcarn that proves
always the most apt to teach or gOrc,1l :,
school. This truth has become 50 We'll
established that | shall refer to but sin
Gle cisc-tLat of the celebrated Zerah Col
burn. the greatest mathematician Of his
day and Vet Unsuccessful rs 4 teacher OF
that science except to such minds rs could
very readily grasp it.
TLen our teachers began to qualify
themselves for er1nlil1 HiOn-not for tcucL-
ing, and here is where our schools com
menced to fail, and they have continued to
from that day to this This school law
has been altered and amended until it has
become such complicated, cumbersome
machine, that if our present LEGISLATORS
We're to sit rs jurors to decide what this
machine was made for, they would report
- disagreed.
The practical bearing of this law is thi,
! The prudential committee of the district
may employ whom he plrls,-s to teach.
provided, ncvclthcl, =. that it is one OF
these ttpa-bclrny individu,lS If
the teacher proves ever s. worthless and
the superintendent. through prejudice.
bribery, or any other cause. sees fit to rc-
tain this person in tn. school house. tie
committee who employed this teacher
cannot discharge him or her. Thi, is Il
constitutional nut for the wise men to
crack. I'LL, H. again. il 4 teacher j. rivnn
good satisfaction to tn district. this lori,
of our schools for the above named cluSe
may remove him and install another in
his stead, f,r he r~t-t> up VIII nm he will.
and whom he viii he pulls down
benefit Whatever. for no person can tel
whether one VIII BE- Il successful teach
CT or not. by asking :, few st questions
1t is not necessary that a teacher shout,
understand algebra to teach common
school arithnrlic; neither i it ncce~>:,l,
that he should understand housekeeping
in order to teach geography The corrcc,
principle Is this: II the teacher i, uual
iicd 10 properly teach the child il, \. Il
6, and that school asks no other bran. h.
-. that district should not b. COMPELLED
To pay for talents not needed or services
not rendered.
This last item W. >hrIl talk abolt next.
Vermont ha~ about 30 towns. avrra~in.
= eight districts per town. with twelve We, k.
school in summer and winter Thrt teach
II takes out every Saturday. al Of tn,
holidays AMI tim to attend Il teachers
institute. making in all 4 los of six week.
per annum.
The pny ,hrour IN the state will arcrar,
a little OYER thrr, dollars Ter week: hu
we ~h.ll figure it at three ,ollar>-whi,l
will IN 'he eighteen doll,r~( los )rcrdi~jri,-
For two thousand districts it a.rrrrrratc.
tltiltV->i\ ,h,ll.1NI ,l1l1.,r M. $780,. Il,