The Portland daily press., 1876-02-03
Normal School for Western Maine

democratic government the education of ali
citizens becomes matter of the highest i'm.
portance, for that education is intimately
concerned with the welfare of the State. The
broader and more effective the educational
system the more intelligent and virtuous, in.
dustrious and prosperous, become the people,
and the more wealthy and powerful the
State which is but an aggregation of citizens
and represents only the mean of their intelli.
gence and thrift. The education of the citi.
zen is, with limited exceptions, acquired in
our common schools, and the kind and quail
ty of the instruction furnished in those
schools indicates the degree of intelligence
and liberallty to which the people have at
taiEed. The broader and better the system
of common school education the higher is
the standard of intelligence in the State, and
the better suited its citizens become to dis.
charge the responsible duties OF freemen.
These are self-evident truths that scarcely call
for repetition. 1t follows from a hearty ac-
ceptance of them that to draw back from the
establishment and support of proper institu-
tions for educational advancement makes
against these truths, and is a proceeding di-
rectly opposed to the true principles of State
policy and economy. So mnch will be con-
ceded.
1t also evident that the general highway of
the masses to intelligence is through the
common school, the great literary institution
Of the people, and the only one in which the
vast majority receive educational training.
The efficiency of these schools depends upon
a proper appropriation of money to their sup
port, and upon the wise expenditure of that
money in securing qualified teachers. So far
as the appropriation of money goes Maine
cannot be called niggardly. She expends an
nualy nearly million and half of dollars
upon her public schools. 1t behooves her to
see that every dollar of this money is wisely
expended. There is too much reason to be-
lieve that much of it absolutely wasted in the
employment of inefficient and incompetent
teachers. Were the entire revenue of the
national government expended on the schools
of Maine it would avail little unless compe-
tent teachers were employed. Every year
the great Importance of an advanced system
of instruction and of better qualified class
of teachers becomes more painfully apparent.
Certainly it is as necessary for the teacher to
have thorough professional education and
drill, and to become adept in the latest and
most improved methods of instruction as it is
for the physician or other professional man to
master the science of his profession before he
applies himself to the practice of its art. We
require the young physician to pass some
terms in our great hospitals, where he has op-
portunity for practice, before we care to in
trust him with the keeping of our health. So
we should require the teacher to pass some
terms in studying the theory of teaching and
the methods of instruction before we give
the education of our children into his hands.
There are, it is true, many good teach
ers in this state who have not had the advan-
tage OF a thorough and scientific study of the
laws of their profession, and no one regrets
it more than they. Possibly there are s'nat-
ural teachers" as there 'natural bone-set-
ters." "Genius is law unto ITSELF" and can
afford to dispense with the preliminary train
ing which mere talent requires. But genius
es are rare. The great majority of these
good teachers have wen their experience at
the expense Of their schools, as the imper-
fectly instructed physician gains his at the
expense of his patients. How many men he
may have killed, how many schools they may
have ruined, in coming to experience it is
impossible to tell.
But it is not just that the teacher should
gain his experience at so great cost to the
state. If we must educate him, and we GER
tainly must in selfdefense, let US educate
him in a less expensive way. Instead of
devoting the greater portion of million and
a half Of dollars to his instruction let us
cast about for a more economical method OF
a method which will not sacri-
fee the efficiency of score of schools to
make one good instructor. 1t is related of
a great French oculist that he spoiled whole
hatful of eyes before he learned TO remove
cataract. Perhaps that experience was nee
essary; bat it certainly is not necessary that
a "teacher'' should spoil whole county of
schools in learning to instruct. Or normal
schools teach him to teach at far less expense.
For fifteen thousand dollars they amply quail
ify their scholars in both the science and the
art of the profession. In the old method
over million dollars is devoted to the same
process, the efficiency OF many schools is
impaired, and the teachers are, after all the
time and expense, imperfectly educated.
These facts have become SO apparent, and
the superiority of the State Normal Schools
over all other institutions yet established for
the purpose of fitting and training teachers
so evident, that there is rapidly increasing
demand for their graduates as common school
teachers. We have in this state 5000 schools,
requiring between six and seven thousand
teachers. The capacity OF the Normal
Schools now established Is not nearly great
enough to supply the demand. The necessi-
ty Of another school is very generally con-
ceded, and the question of locality is the only
one to be seriously considered.
1t is believed that the larger population,
larger wealth and larger taxation of the three
western counties of the State entities them to
equal educational advantages with those en-.
joyed by the sparser population of the more
eastern counties which have fewer scholars
and pay smaller school and State tax and
yet receive larger proportional share of the
benefits of local State schools and the appro-
priations therefor. OF the pupils who attend
these schools the great majority are entirely
dependent upon themselves for the money
needed for board and other necessary expen-
ses, and are greatly controlled by the ques-
ton of locality. If the School be in their
vicinity they will gladly attend. If it be at
distance they must forego that advantage.
This fact is amply proved by the statistics of
these Schools as given in the State Superin-
tendent's report-There were in attendance
at the spring term of 1874 of the two Normal
Schools at Pennington and Castine 262 pupils.
OF this number the counties of Franklin and
Hancock, where these schools are located,
furnished IS pupils, though they have en-
ployment for but 927 teachers in their winter
and summer schools; while the counties of
Cumberland, Oxford and York, which en-
ployed for the like time 2,258 teachers, sent