The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1877-02-16
ALLEN CREEK. Feb. 10.


HE Two Systems.
We have before us pamphlet is
sned by John WherrelI, of Le-gen
worth, advocating "A Uniform Lys
tenn of Normal Schools" for thi,
Stale. This Normal School cues
tIon is now a paramount one, ant
is'attrac,iDg general interest in Kan
sas and elsewhere. The quesuon i
whether Kansas, after spending
years of effort, and spending over /
hundred thousand dollars TO builC
up a good Normal Srhool, shall con
tiuue in the work or either aban
don Il entirely, .or so divide its eff
fort as to reap but poor results q
best.
Bri, fly Mr.. Wberrell's plan is a,
follows:
1. For the future welfare of the chill
| dren, the State should adopt = unitorn
| system, and should make provision fo
| the establishing Of several Normal Schools
2: The sole aim and object OF each Nor
exclusively for the District and GradeC
Schools.
3. When a higher department of nor
NAL education Is required in the state, 4
sity.
4. Each Normal School should be gov
erneG by local Board OF Directors ap
pointed by the state.
3. In each of the schools tuition xhoufC
be free, and no pupil should be admitted
unless he intends 10 prepare himself FOL
teaching.
6. 80 Normal School should ever re
eeive an appropriation greater b IN eighi
Thousand dollars per annum.
Z. The State should never appropriate
money Tor the erection of any buildings
or Tor the purchasing OF any furniture Oh
apparatus for Normal School purposes.
:. The buildings fer each Normal
School should be erected and furnished
throughout without expense to the State
by the town or county, or both, in which
each school is located,
8. Each Normal School should be fur.
nlshed with good Training School free
OF expense to the State. by the townfu
which each school is located.
10. Il uniform system of statistics
should be required by law.
IL. The course OF instruction 90 each
of the Normal Schools, should not in
cIude the Ancient or Modern Langua-
ges or higher Mathematics, but should be
confined to those EEgli b branches which
are taught in the District and Graded
Schools.
II. All lands which have been donated
by the State Tor Normal school purposes,
and all other lands or donations which
may be made hereafter for the same pur-
pose, should constitute fund known as
the Normal School Endowment Fund.
The Interest OF which should be distrlbu-
ted among the several Normal schools,
according the Of StudRnEa
rolled.
-. A law should be passed levYing
each year certain part of mill tax up
on ali of the taxable property of the state
for the support Of the Normal schools.
Said tax, however, should be Withdrawn
as sopn as the interest on the endowment
fund is sutticinet to support the Schools.
In the address of Prof. Pomeroy
alluded to in another place, a minute
examination is given of three sys-
TENS of Normal Schools: LIST, Uni
form elementary system; I'd, uni
form graded system; Sd, graded
system. The latter system, which
he advocates, was endorsed by a
of the National Teach
ers' Association, in 1872, composed
OF the leading educators of the uni
ted States. The report was ade
by Prof. VIM. f. Phelps, the d:stin-
guished Normal Educator, who for
ten years tested the Uniform Ele-
mentary system in Minnesota.
We caDnet better show the OBJ
jectiOnable features of Wherrell's
system than by quoting from Prof.
address, as follows:
First and weightiest, its utter made
quacy to supply the demand of the State
for competent teachers. In the first place
1t sets forth as its chief merit, it's entire
separation from the work OF higher edu-
and Grammar Schools, these places of ed
ucatIonal power in the State, are to be
provided for by the State University, or
Is Prof. Wherreli says, stake care of
which means rely upon i'm
ported teachers from other States, or en-
Ploy incompetent teachers. We have al
ready shown the inability Of the State
University to meet adequately this want.
The principals Of our higher schools. who
are responsible for all grades Of lower
work in their respective schools, and who
must largely perform Institute work in
teachers who need the full and thorough
course of instruction and training in u
we'll organized Normal School. These
are our permanent professional teachers
and the state, least of all. can afford to lg-
more their want. The educational policy
that overlooks their claims and undert s.
Inmates their value is suicidal. Bur in
the second place this system cannot sup
ply the immediate, much less the prOspec- |
live wants OF even elementary education. |
According to the State Superintendent |
report, there are now over 1000 teachers |
Employed in the common schools of the |
State. Let Us suppose the establishment |
by the legislature at its next session OF |
our elementary Normal Schools, the max |
mum number assumed to be necessary at |
present. Prof. Wherrell then declares |
hat these schools would furnish 1,200 |
.raihed teachers yearly, "who would ACT |
directly on the children In our district |
schools" Admitting the correctness of |
his statement, still more thsn one-fc Hrth |
If the common schools of the State are yet |
lnprovided for by this scheme. To meet |
ully the necessities of the case, even up
IN this basis Of calculation, the legisla-
ure should authorize the establishment |
II sixteen elementary Normal Schools in /
'tead of four, and provide for them by Vo- /
ing $l2S, 600 instead Of $32, 900! But OBJ
'erVe the fallacy involved in the calcula-
Ion made. 1t Is assumed that THESE four /
Normal schools would commence at once /
With an attendance in each OF 800 pupils /
eeklng elementary preparation for lie 'ch-
ny, n larger number Of elementary pupils /
han WAS ever present at the Normal /
school Of Emporia. after decade of years
II successful work. An average Of 100 |
instead Of $40, would be a liberal eaieuia-
ion. But still further, Of these pupils
lot more than an average of twenty for at
east several years In each Normal School
,ould be expected to graduate annually.
That is to say, these four schools would
urnish annually less than ons hundred
instead OF twelve hundred trained teach
RS for the district scheolsl The utter in
adequacy OF this class OF Normal schools
o supply the necessities OF elementary
lducation. has been telt aud admitted in
very state where Normal Schools have
,een established. This manifest defcien-
" has furnished the ehIet arguments
.gainst the utility of Normal SchooIs-has
ed to the establishment of independent
.ormal training schools in the larger cit
es and towns. and has con yinced the lead
ng educators Of the country that some
ther system of Normal Schools is an i'm
'eratise necessity.
AnotheI grave objection to this system
s its expensiveness and its yearly IN
reasing expensiveness. For any State
let rmlning Its educational policy this
cannot be overloaked. Is
'ecialiy Ia the new State of Kansas, this
bjectlon should be fatal. 1.-The question |