Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1877-10-20
The Educ alton OF Children.
some NEW IDEAS.

Last evening, in response TO a notice pub
]ished by M. IL. Richards, abut 80 per o1s,
mostly teachers, met in the hal, O. ne Sum
nerscbcol building for the purpos e of discus
sing 81 tnPoiF 1t education que StiGu.
Among rho G present were ex- MAYOR Eoweu
VINO p-esidsd, Dr. nCigras3, SIperintend-
ant Cook, Mess. JOhn.on, Carey, Brooks
I'D Holland, OF the schc d trustee J; Prof
RJb,nson, OF Howard University; Col. Clark,
Mr.. III. Ii. Tilley, Mrs. Pollok, OF the kinde
3arten school; Prof. Ro,s.
llr. Richards started out by remarkiDg that
many earnest frieI DIS of education are di--
satisfied as to the pre-: ent syst I'm of primary
EDUCATION, and Thee Is just Cause for thu J
dissatisfaction, IOr the long and clO.e con-
nhement and the ply steal 10 activity TO viii, b
young pupils ere subjected impairs their
health md lmperils tne.r lives. Let any
grown person try TO keep store six hours per
day, and they will be cow inced of this fact.
feIret 10, as taxing tue mental faculties, i'm
pairing The Physical health aud running the
children. ClIidren the first years OF their
1--we learn more al home than they do in he
first five years at school, and he would have
such a system as would simply be a contin-
uation OF the home Lessons. AT present cn.l-
G-ed are expected 10 menorize uooks befo- e
iGej knCwtne use OF language, and ii was lot
rai, 10 see children of ten years
with D. many books as they can carry,
tIudgiug 10 ~ from school. He claimed thai
from tour - to- LINES sss niuGn practlea
t'hcols as is now impai. 81; put the chau Sc
must be radical. BY referen,ee 10 the stat.. >
les % schools generally, four nIU-S 40 nos
attend school more than four Year,; Or haIi
not over Two years. He believed that the
most important point was the beginning, and
b would Therefore have the best teachers in
the primary schcols-jnst revere the preset
order. He would combine the best features
of the OBJECT, kinderga. ten and present sy
TENS. He would Continue the home instruc-
tons, by learning children the mare of
objects Elettiug the alphabet go to the
Y nv w " III learn
words. Having mastered the words they
will know the value of letters, end he would
then give them readers, and they will le1rn
Language: In the primary schools he would
throw out the ariihmeticS. aid there is no
niece: sity for spelling Jocks Mr.. Richar
said he would not coat he pupil at his
studies more than 20 minutes at one time,
end would NOT allow L lcter to have more
tran 20 pupils at a time. He explained, by
diagram, low he would have q school house
arrangcd-two study looms, with a teHcher
in each, with Kindergarten loom unier
tea(he., ard between tne&e rooms the classes
would alte. nate a1.er q lesson, 60 into the
Kindergarten snd do some lighG wo.k or
play. de belieS ed that instead OF nine real
ing Looks three would be sufficient. In con-
clusiOn, he said that this propOj sd system
he'd been talked OF tome time, and in New
BEDFORD something of the kind Is being tric 4,
and he believed that some such system will
be IN vogue generally within twenty years.
Mr.. Richards invited III e present 10 cues
tiOo him, and Messrs. Holla I'd, Brooks, TIL
~ ard others propounded several queries,
which Mr.. Il. answered.
gentleman asked II pupil bee lme az
quainted with the word though ani pro
iOUb 6d IL 'ftho." II when n ~" was adds
lie would rot call II 'thOt," and he wa au-
sweT 4 10y some one IN the audienCe fjlt by
tbe present system ne could not call il any
hing.
Quite number OF those present ex pressed
their approval Of The plan or portions OF It,
ard on Irv:..nu vote Of tha.ks was teaderod
Mr. Richards,