The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1880-02-15
THE THREE Rs.
EleCting Their Education.
a Trustee Thinks II Impraotioablo.

SALT LAKE CITY, Feb. IA, 80.
Editors Herald:
The proposition OF Mr.. Jacques, in
10 the House of Representatives, on
Friday, is feature in education that
is hardly fitted to the present situa.
ton OF school matters in the territory.
There is no district school in Utah, to
my knowledge, but what is depend
ent Tor It's existence on very mixed
attendance of pupils these pupils
are sent 10 learn everything IN lhs
progressive steps from the a, B. grade
to the Filth reader in the spelling and
reading classes, and from the row OF
figure Is up to the fractions, or at
least. compound multiplication; also
in writing from poihooks as far in
advance as the time of attendance OF
the pupil at the school will allow.
With my little practical experience
in our schools have formed an opin-
ion that the attempt on the part
OF the teacher to pick oat the few
from his large number and varied
classes would create perpetual COM
motion and disagreement in pro-
gramme and consequent dissatisfao-
ton. Mr.. Editor, imagine teacher
picking out from the several classes
this spotted child and setting him
back from one class to another, every
day and every week, throughout the
year, so that he can study nothing
outside the branches prescribed by the
motion. Our district schools are very
much mixed. and, think, sre as
foreign country, entirely, to the opera
ton of Mr.. Jacques law. IN q thor,
oughly graded school this might be
possible, yet not very satisfactory. Some
earnest advocates Of education con-
tend for knowledge of the rudiment5
OF grammar and come information on
the geography and history of the
country, and other etcetres, which
materially aid the three Rs.
another Objectionable feature in
the proposed bill is the one dollar
proposition. a majority of the pupils
in the district schools could be dubbed
the dollar child, and the teacher
would have either to suffer pecB-
MARY loss from such an arrange
ment or the guardians of children
desiring to give their wards a knowl-
edge OF the other common branches
would be unjusily taxed for the puF-
pose.
In the lsrger cities some closer
grading could be adopted than in the
smaller settlements, and if Mr..
Jacques is in earnest in the matter snd
would like to see his suggestion tried
would hint that he move for the
consolidation of the small school dis
iricts into larger districts, snd the re-
firing of majority of the number Oh
the trustees, so that the fen e.
number of trustees could classify Of
grade the schools. This could bt
proGtsbly done in Salt Lake City
using the several sehoolhouses for par
ticular grades. II Mr.. Jacques con
siders that small minority of tn
scnoOl cnll1ren sUHSE HUH pIOLnls
cuous education. how much greater
must Re his conclusion of loss to thu
large majority of the children in on
: schools from the present system c
: promiecuous education.
q 1 am more directly interested il
such matters in Salt Lake City, be
cause that is where l live, and
would submit the proposition that
- bill be drafted and advocated in th
. Legislature giving municipal corpors
. tons the manager ent of the schoc
districts. control the schools, have th
say about hiring the teachers, an
e. the compensation. This might ope
the way for legislation upon figure
= and would, perhaps, work out son
idea like unto Mr., Jaques'. No
h. trustees have 10 make the best tern
d they can with teachers, and tht
are none too good adopt the doll
= system, and don't know that We cou
hire any teacherF. TRUSTEE.