New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1875-06-25
LETTERS FROM THE PEOPLE
1t PHoNRTICs IN THE SCHOOLS.
MORE "MILLIoNs IN TITLE SYSTEM EMPLOYED
IN ST. LOUIS. ....


To the Editor Of The Tribune.
SIR: You kindly permitted me last week to
poiut out certain economies which might DO enecfed I'D
nutne bv the abolition OF silent lctters- Permit me
now to show waste in another department OF letters
quite as great that In type, and that s tne
teaching and the OF learning oil the whimsical anu
uncertain vagares of sound and no sound In the ie
of our alphabet these days Of compulsory edncan
and short aud hurried Of attendance at schoo any
,etbod that will Weld more rapid and at the same time
moro efficient results cannot be deemed subject OF minor
consideration. 1t takes a pupil, on the douDieah"
twisted silent letter principle, about three years
from the age nine yearsto learn To read anu
spell with fair facility and cOrrectness while Win ra
ti,pa alphabet every letter having fixed and nvaria
ble yaue and no dummies to deceive the eye ond
pcrplex the reason the pupil can arrive a.
the same point Of progress In reading anu
smelling our print as 1t is-using the new SIN
ply to arrive Of the old-in from IL 10 10 months
The Phonetic Theory" has been over and over again
tested in practice and always with the same
results and made progress In actual use tn
perhaps Is known to the general public Editions Oh
nearly all the Primary School Observation-Disclosures bar
GENTS Wason's McCufcy's, and ohers--are now PRINT
ed in the pronouncing type" invented by Dr. Leigh;
and few of the most enterpsing schools use INC pro
cess and have established regular and permanent
method Of instruction. II is used AZ transition apna
bet mere scafoding bridge the difficulties Oh
slightly does the general shape Of words and OF letters IN
the words vary from old forms that the child has no
difficulty after O phonetic instruction OF from SIX 10
twelve months, in passing readily into Secohd vi iiu
Readers printed in tho ordinary type
In St. LOUIS this method has been adopted by aW' anu
IL now tho only process used in all the primary depart
ments 1t has been trial there during the last eight
years, aud every year with increasingly valuable
results No other method could now dispiace 1t, so
decisively has it approved ITSELF From saving only
about quarter Of the time during Its strictly trial
thorough acauantance Of their teachers with the method
take their pupils to the same point OF progress III
GFs For IN" Information OF feacers allow mo to state, in
brief detail the process OF instruction as recently saw
il in st. Louis The teachers had the lesson OF the day
written in prntshaped letters on the blackboard every
letter having the shape for the same sound ana an
the silent letters slightly outlined or printed IN
skeleton forms so be quite distinct IN appearance
from tho nonsent letters Then pupil OF the class
lie would rise in his place and utter tho sounds In the
word "a long Then ne WAS asked 10 s ta o g
pupil was given say the word knife and no would
kIie" aid then state the fact that and are silent.
and 50 through the lesson with all tho pupils OF the
wing by sound always spelling the word by letter.
and always noting the silent letters In this way every
and xcS in his He Rad the advantage Of
parson and contrast OF taking apart ana putting 20
gethcr in both ways, right there and then lie learned
and could accomplish IL easily. ne had an
infabe guide to follow, the phon tic principle, with no
doubts perpcX him. no uncertainties 10 guess W. al
his progress was thorough and rapid The pupils by TINS
method cannot out Of school correct IN speln
and full round and clear In pronunciation anu lsy 90
In onehalf the schedule time that the OLD schooi cocn
fakes Now let mako the economic Application.
There are 100000 teachers In the United Stetes haVo
no means OF knowing how many OF them are primary
teachers nor the average amount OF their salailes
suppose 100000 Teachers having AN average shiay vi
5000 per annm are gagged with children from SIX TO
nine years of age, mainly teaching them TO read ana
spell. Their annual salaries amount to S3OOOOooo
The phonetic method would half their labor; conse-
quently 81 900 900 paid to teachers annually Tor
be allowed to abridge the reading and spelling stage TO
the utmost and devote the time saved TO tine studies
which naturally succeed, and which mere reading
and spelling preparatory so that our children MAJ
graduate from the primary schools with Sl3OOO,0O1
worth OF higher and better education. We do not mind
the tric OF money but do object to sublectins our
children 10 three years OF drill among phantasns IN
void and lcvying taxes payable TO mpeaimea OF very
dead md unhGly ghosts. Il. @. LELAND.
No 10 West Fityfourth-st., May 26, 1873.